Improving energy efficiency of the systems for obtaining water from atmospheric air

Abstract

This paper outlines the prospect of obtaining water from atmospheric air by cooling it to the dew point temperature using refrigeration machines in order to partially reduce water scarcity in the arid regions of our planet. To minimize energy costs in the systems for obtaining water from atmospheric air, it is proposed to utilize solar energy with absorption refrigeration units (ARUs) acting as a source of artificial cold. The characteristic thermodynamic processes have been analyzed in a modernized ARU, capable of working at a lower thermal energy source's temperature than its analogs. The possibility has been studied to reduce the temperature of the heat source by including a solution vaporizer in the ARU scheme. The analysis involved an authentic method based on the balance of specific streams of ARU working body components and actual boundary conditions at characteristic points of the cycle. A limit was shown for the level of a minimum boiling temperature in the ARU generator (from 90 °C) when the systems for obtaining water from atmospheric air are operated under current climatic conditions. The simulation of heat-and-mass exchange processes during contact interaction between a steam-gas mixture and ammonia water solution was carried out. Based on variant calculations, it has been shown that the proposed ARU structure with an adiabatic solution vaporizer could work as part of systems to obtain water from atmospheric air at a hot spring temperature above 100 °C and constructively enough fits into the element base of standard models. It has been proposed to use two types of solar thermal energy sources to operate ARU. In a tropical climate, with vacuum solar collectors or solar energy hubs; in a temperate climate zone, with solar collectors with water as a heat carrier