Heliyon (Feb 2024)
Analysis for optimized prerequisites of modified solar stills
Abstract
This research portrayed the analysis of performance enhancement through a relative optimization approach of novel solar still models based on energetic-exergetic performances and energy matrices with environs-economic breakthroughs and is an extension of the existing research done by Singh & Samsher, and Singh & Gautam in the year 2022. The existing solar distiller models haven't shown relative influence on the performance of variable number of vacuum tubes, fully/partially illuminated and with/without the augmentation of parabolic concentrators among different schemes of solar still models. The present research bridges the above gaps to identify the analytical observations for the optimized results for the novel arrangement of the solar distillers compared to others. The dual slope solar still (DSS) with parabolic solar receiver (PSR) and evacuated annual tubes (EATC) found superior among other schemes and the DSS-EATC-PSR arrangement is advanced and enhanced with basin mass temperature (11.4 %) in observance with 30° inclined glaze cover and vacuum tubes altogether. A natural circulated thermo siphon shows increment (28.1 % & 0.1 %) to DSS-EATC-PSR relative to SSS with EATC & PSR, respectively. Further, the daily overall efficiencies (energy and exergy) have a marginal decrement of 8.4 % and 4.7 %, respectively, than the single-face solar still scheme (SSS). The daily yielding improvement is 4.6 % than the SSS scheme with nominal promotional cost (0.07 $/l) at a noticeable production cost. The CO2 mitigates, and environmental revenue is better than the SSS scheme by 5.9 % & 14.6 %. The concern price of the DSS coordination is lower by 6.6 %, and the productivity of the systems was found to be more than 100 % which assures the viability of the projected scheme.
