Theoretical and experimental investigation of reverse osmosis (RO) desalination solar system using the solar panel, battery, and water turbine for high-pressure recovery of output brine

Abstract

Drinking water shortage is one of the most critical risks threatening current communities. The number of freshwater resources is decreasing due to industrialization and population growth in addition to unprecedented consumption. Brine desalination processes are the solution that helps to overcome this crisis. Among desalination techniques, reverse osmosis (RO) is the leading technique in this field. In this study, we investigate a desalination system, a photovoltaic/water turbine (PV/WT) panel based on the RO technique to provide the water required for several rural families living in Ilam at a small scale. This paper examines the exergy and economic analysis to measure the lifetime of equipment by using ESS Software. Results show that the lifetime of equipment equals 350, 73, 183, and 360$ for PV, WT, battery (B), and RO, respectively. On the other hand, the output rate of the PV panel and RO purification machine equals 12% and 35%, respectively. Also, three hybrid arrangements are examined: PV + RO, PV + B + RO, and PV + WT + B + RO, and the most efficient arrangement is introduced in which, the maximum water desalination volume is 150L per day, and the TDS rate of output water is decreased up to 120 ppm, and the produced drinking water throughout the project equals 25 m3. Moreover, solar and WT panels generate 120 and 20 kw/h of electricity over the project time, respectively.