Modeling of Basin Type Single Slope Solar Still Under Local Climate Conditions in Yemen

Abstract

The economic crises and instability caused by the conflict in Yemen prevents the establishment of medium and large-scale water desalination plants to overcome the sever water scarcity in the high population major cities. This paper investigates small scale solar still water desalination technology as a potential candidate to aid with the production of fresh water to reduce the accelerated depletion of underground water reserves in Yemen. Water stills have the advantage of low capital cost and no operational cost as it utilizes the high solar radiation intensity in the coastal areas to evaporate water. This paper proposes and compares two models to simulate the performance of solar still following steady-state and transient modelling approaches, with in-depth evaluation of the different parameters affecting the performance. The transient model showed better prediction of the temperature profiles of the solar still when compared to other experimental and mathematical modelling studies. The small scale solar still showed water production yield of about 1.9 kg/day, with maximum hourly yield of about 0.27 kg/h.