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Feasibility assessment of a stepped solar still integrated with hexagram fin: an experimental and numerical approach toward sustainability

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Abstract

Effective utilization and conservation of freshwater is a global concern due to the rapid population growth and industrial usage. To address this challenge, various approaches have been developed and implemented to convert brackish water into freshwater and meet the global water demand. This study introduces hexagram-shaped aluminum fins attached to a powder-coated basin to improve the freshwater production rate of stepped solar still. The experiment involved testing the modified stepped solar still (MSSS) equipped with hexagram fins and the conventional stepped solar still (CSSS) without hexagram fins during summer days at the Sathyamangalam location (11.49° N, 77.27° E). A mathematical model was used to analyze the performance of the solar stills, and the simulation results were validated by comparing CSSS and MSSS in terms of their freshwater production. The results indicate that the productivity of CSSS increased by 40% using hexagram fins, and the MSSS with hexagram fins produced a maximum of 4.45 l/m2 of fresh water daily. The annual performance of MSSS and CSSS in the experimental location reveals a 12.6% reduction in the payback period of the solar still due to the presence of fins. The study recommends using fins in solar stills in hot climates for efficient and cost-effective water desalination applications to achieve sustainable development objectives while reducing carbon emissions.

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All relevant data are within the paper, and no additional data are available.

Abbreviations

α w :

Absorptivity of water

τ w :

Water transmissivity

α b :

Absorber basin absorptivity

τ g :

Transmissivity of glass

α g :

Absorptivity of glass

m w :

Mass of water (kg)

m b :

Absorber basin mass (kg)

m g :

Glass mass(kg)

C pw :

Specific heat capacity of water (kJ/kg-K)

C pb :

Specific heat capacity of absorber basin (kJ/kg-K)

C pg :

Specific heat capacity glass (kJ/kg-K)

C pv :

Specific heat capacity vapor mixture (kJ/kg-K)

K v :

Thermal conductivity of vapor mixture (W/m-K)

ρ :

Density (kg/m3)

μ :

Dynamic viscosity (N-s/m2)

A w :

Area of water (m2)

A b :

Area of absorber basin (m2)

A g :

Area of glass (m2)

h c :

Coefficient of convective heat transfer (W/m2 K)

U b :

Overall basin heat transfer coefficient (W/m2 K)

T w :

Water temperature (°C)

T g :

Glass temperature (°C)

T b :

Absorber basin temperature (°C)

T a :

Atmospheric temperature (°C)

T s :

Sky temperature (°C)

P w :

Partial pressure of water (N/m2)

P g :

Partial pressure of glass (N/m2)

ε eff :

Effective emissivity

ε g :

Emissivity of glass

ε w :

Emissivity of water

σ :

Stefan-Boltzmann constant (5.67 × 10−8W/m2 K-4)

v :

Wind velocity (m/s)

L h :

Latent heat of vaporization of water (kJ/kg)

P h :

Hourly productivity (kg)

P d :

Daily productivity (kg)

η ins :

Instantaneous thermal efficiency

η cum :

Cumulative still efficiency

I g :

Incident global solar radiation (W/m2)

A b :

Area of the absorber basin (m2)

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Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the management of Bannari Amman Institute of Technology, Sathyamangalam, Tamil Nadu, India, for providing facilities to conduct this research work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Bannari Amman Institute of Technology, Sathyamangalam, Tamil Nadu, India

    Subramaniyan Chinnasamy & Prakash K Babu

  2. Research Centre for Nano-Materials and Energy Technology (RCNMET), School of Engineering and Technology, Sunway University, No. 5, Jalan Universiti, Bandar Sunway, 47500, Petaling Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia

    Kalidasan Balasubramanian

  3. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sri Krishna College of Technology, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India

    Arivazhagan Sampathkumar

  4. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Saveetha School of Engineering, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, SIMATS, Chennai, 602105, India

    Christopher Sathiya Satchi

Authors
  1. Subramaniyan Chinnasamy
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  2. Kalidasan Balasubramanian
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  3. Arivazhagan Sampathkumar
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  4. Prakash K Babu
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  5. Christopher Sathiya Satchi
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Methodology, material preparation, and data collection were performed by SC, KB, and AS. Data collection and analysis were performed by SC, PKB, and CSS. The first original draft of the manuscript was written by SCand KB, and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Subramaniyan Chinnasamy.

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Chinnasamy, S., Balasubramanian, K., Sampathkumar, A. et al. Feasibility assessment of a stepped solar still integrated with hexagram fin: an experimental and numerical approach toward sustainability. Environ Sci Pollut Res (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-023-30726-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-023-30726-y

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