Effect of reflector on performance of solar still

Abstract

This paper goals towards fabrication and performance testing of a single slope solar still at location (13.18°N,74.93°E).The solar still performance is tested without a reflector and with a reflector. The testing has been done at four different levels of water in the basin (0.5 in., 1 in., 1.5 in. and 2 in.). The distillate output has determined at three different positions of reflector (45°, 60°and 75°). The testing has been done for the entire day for two months and the collected distillate is measured daily. From the results it is found that with the increase in water level in the basin, the distillate output reduced. The optimum performance was observed at 60°reflector tilt. It is found that with the use of reflector the performance of the still has increased by24.2% compared to a normal solar still.