Desalination 139 (2001) 35–41

A new approach to solar desalination for small- and

medium-size use in remote areas
Herbert Kunze
Sonne + Energie GmbH, Schroeckstrasse 6, 86152 Augsburg, Germany
Tel. +49 (821) 508-4810; Fax +49 (821) 508-4811; e-mail: info@SundE.de; http://www.SundE.de

Received 24 January 2001; accepted 15 February 2001

Abstract
A conventional solar still produces 6 litres of fresh water per square metre per day of collector surface. With heat
recovery and air mass circulation we can reach up to 20 litres m3/d. The quality of the processed water is always very
high so that the investment costs are justified. This depends on the material used and the price of the solar stills. The
advantage of the solar still is independent water production at the point of use and no need for trained maintenance staff.
The high working temperature solves most problems. Small, modular high-performance stills with features like the
possibility of decentralized use, less maintenance and robust construction can help to reduce sweet water scarcity. Small
solar stills for fresh water production were not able to compete in the past because they were too expensive for producing
less than 6 litres m3/d of fresh water. The recent development of stills based on new concepts for stream-leading and heat
recovery has been successful.

Keywords: Solar still; Desalination; Water purification; Desalination units; Renewable energy; Independent use

1. Introduction for the production of drinking water. The

Solar stills are used to produce fresh water
from sea and brackish water by directly utilizing
sunshine. The first stills were developed in 1872
in Chile, but technical optimization is still in
process today [1].
Because the area to be used for production is
relatively small, these stills will be used mainly
required quantity for irrigation and watering-
places is usually too high to produce it economic-
ally using this technique [2]. However, this still
represents the best technical solution to supply
remote villages or settlements with fresh water
without depending on high-tech and skills. The
high production efficiency has been achieved

Presented at the European Conference on Desalination and the Environment: Water Shortage. Lemesos (Limassol),
Cyprus, 28–31 May 2001.
0011-9164/01/$– See front matter © 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved
36 H. Kunze / Desalination 139 (2001) 35–41
employing a new construction principle, i.e.,
achieving a maximum level of salt water evapo-
ration temperature as low as possible. The
production capacity during sunshine achieved
under local conditions is between 1.0 liter m2/d
and 1.57 liters m2/d of fresh water and indicates
a possible daily production of far more than
15 liters m2/d. Therefore, the still has a place in
the upper range of known comparable products
with regard to production output.
The system can be installed decentralized in
any terrain and position similar to collectors or
mirror systems. It can also be used on buildings
or greenhouses providing a cooling effect. The
system is complete and requires no additional
infrastructural measures except the necessary raw
water and sufficient sunlight [3].
2. Construction
The construction differs from known stills.
The still unit looks like a flat solar collector. The
compact structure — the set-up is a compact,
window-like unit — has been achieved by using
a flat tub covered with a transparent glass/foil,
which includes the three elements to obtain the
operational condition. In case of maintenance and
repair, these parts are easily reachable. Special
know-how is not required.
The top has a glass cover, the middle section
works as an evaporator and the lower section
contains the condenser and the third part is an
absorber and tripper (Fig. 1). The water purifi-
cation unit of the plant consists of a poly-
urethane foam box 1.0×1.4 m which is inclined
against the sun and has an angle to the surface of
30°. The evaporation surface measures approxi-
mately 0.8×1.0 m. The tubings are silicon hoses.
The upper part of the still has a head-cover to
prevent the direct solar heating up of the upper
condenser space.
The middle section of the unit consists of a
temperature-stabilized evaporator surface, the
upper side is covered with black fleece, and the
surface pointing towards the lower unit is
insulated.
The upper and lower part of the evaporator
surface has a large opening to connect the front
and back air chamber. This creates an air mass
circulation between the back condensation
chamber and the front evaporation chamber. The
lower section of the unit consists almost solely of
a condenser. The brine passes through the
condenser from the bottom to the top counter-
wise to the air circulation. The condenser has
only one pipe of connected, horizontal canals.
At the bottom above the back-water-basin, the
inside of the tub has a cross conduit for collection
and outflow of the fresh water. The surplus
concentrate water is removed via the wastewater
exit.
3. Methods
Inside the system, silicon hoses are being used
for the in- and out-flow of the brine. The brine
flow is adjusted with primary pre-pressure and
reducing of the flow diameter of the silicon
hoses. Through opening or tightening of the
hoses, hydrostatic pressure is reached with help
of a centrifugal pump or with a tank above the
still. The brine or raw water is taken from a 200-
litre container and returned; only the fresh water
is collected separately.
The raw water flows through the entire
condenser located at the back of the element from
the bottom to the top counter-clockwise. The
coils of the condenser are formed as one channel
of parallel pipes.
After the raw water has passed the condenser,
a large amount of the brine will be diverted via a
bypass. Only the smaller quantity (approximately
3 litres m2h) remains in the system (an approxi-
mate relation of 3:20 has been achieved). The
balance of this proportion is obtained with the
help of a valve or a reduction of the diameter of
 H. Kunze / Desalination 139 (2001) 35–41 37

Fig. 1. Cross section of the still with points of temperature measurement.

Table 1 the hose. Then the brine remaining in the system

Cross section of the still, points of temperature measure- is covered with textile or sponge material to
ments (rounded data) facilitate an intensive heat exchange. Thereafter,
the warm raw water flows through the top-
Temperature, °C elements. At this point it is heated up further and
Normal Max. Possible has reached the maximum temperature when the
raw water drops out of the head cover to the
Circulating air inside: upper evaporation surface in the middle.
T1 at bottom of condenser 30 40 45 A major part of the hot brine evaporates drip-
T2 at bottom of ping down slowly over the black fleece under sun
evaporation surface 65 70 75 irradiation. The brine flow must be controlled for
T3 at top of evaporation
the concentrated salt solution may never fall un-
surface 70 75 85
T4 at top of condenser 60 65 65
der its solubility when the solvent is reduced. The
hot brine evaporates and drips from the bottom of
Fluid medium: the evaporation surface into the brine basin.
T5 seawater entry 25 25 25 An autonomous air circulation results from
T6 condenser exit/bypass 45 50 50 the temperature difference between the condenser
T7 collector exit 70 75 90 and the evaporation chamber. The air at the
T8 evaporation surface 65 70 80 cooled condenser moves to the bottom driven by
at top
its higher specific density. Depending on the
T9 evaporation surface 60 65 65
at middle degree of cooling, the stream condenses directly
T10 evaporation surface 60 65 65 on the condenser or on the insulation surface at
at bottom the rear condenser chamber. The condensate runs
T11 back water exit 45 50 50 down on the condenser. Ultimately, the water of
T12 air outside 30 30 30 the condensation collects itself at the bottom
above the back-water basin of the rear element
and is led via a channel to an external pool.
38 H. Kunze / Desalination 139 (2001) 35–41
4. Results
Lessing [4] tested the still in Hannover in
such a way that the direct rays of the sun reach
the position of the still at about 11:20 a.m. The
global rays changed during measuring from about
400 W/m² to 650 W/m². The following results are
provable:
• The maximum production reached per hour
was between 1.20 liters /m2h and 1.57 liters
m2h. If these values could be reached during
con-tinuous operation in the south, a daily
output of far more than 15 l/m3/d is possible.
• The fact that the approximate 1/3 higher
global irradiation of the south and equatorial
area and even the fact that clouds during the
time of measuring occurred and therefore
reduced the impact of the sun were not taken
into account.
• The still responds relatively quickly to the
sun. Under high energy density the operation
balance is reached in less than 45 min. On the
other hand, if the energy supply diminishes,
the production output goes down rather
quickly too and production stops within
30 min.
• The still reaches maximal temperatures of
about 70–75°C of the circulating air masses
on top and of the brine on the entire
evaporation surface. The lowest temperature,
between 30–40°C, is found at the bottom of
the condenser. The design of the integrated
collector was not optimal. It appears that
values of more than 85°C maximum brine
temperature can be reached easily with
suitably designed collectors.
• Heat recovery by the heat exchanger in the
wastewater basin is characterized by a temp-
erature increase of not more than 4°C to about
65°C maximum. Therefore we led them off.
• The temperature on the middle of the evapo-
ration surface stabilized at about 70°C under
all conditions. The reason therefore seems to
be the control of the evaporation surface
Fig. 2. Four factors and two regulation circles control the
temperature on the evaporation surface.
temperature by four factors and two negative
regulated circles (Fig. 2). The heat collector
only influences the temperature at the top of
the evaporation surface, but that is important.
• The dynamics of the circulation air masses
can be a bottle-neck under high solar irradi-
ation conditions because the solar energy
cannot be led off by evaporation and conden-
sation. Therefore, the production of the fresh
water directly depends on the air circulation.
The circulation air masses are normally
almost saturated with steam at every point in
the still [5]. The absolute hydration percen-
tage is directly connected to the air tempera-
ture, the absolute fresh water produced is
determined by the difference between maxi-
mal evaporation temperature (at the top of the
still) and the minimal condensation tempera-
ture. Both values increase greatly over a 70°C
evaporation temperature, and this range could
only be reached with our heat collector.
5. Discussion
5.1. To results
The solar still produces fresh water from sea,
from brackish water, or even from contaminated
water (e.g., arsenic) by utilizing sunshine
 H. Kunze / Desalination 139 (2001) 35–41 39

Table 2
Calculation of the energetic portions (I) of the condenser, collector, basin and solar irradiation under usual (Series 1), good
(Series 2) and optimal (Series 3) conditions by using empirical data based on the calculation of vapour content of the
circulating air (II)
40 H. Kunze / Desalination 139 (2001) 35–41

directly. For operation only water pressure raised
to the level of the apparatus and sun is necessary.
The evaporation of 1 litre fresh water requires a
constant amount of energy depending on the inlet
temperature of seawater only. Therefore it is
possible to calculate the portion of energy gain or
requirement by the technical still elements if the
outlet temperatures of the brine and the tempera-
tures of the circulation air are known. The simple
question is: What portion of energy is delivered
by the condenser, the heat exchanger, the
collector, the wastewater basin and by solar
irradiation for the evaporation of 1 litre fresh
water? (To simplify the complex calculation the
assumption was set that the seawater must always
be heated to 100°C before evaporation takes
place.)
The calculations show that only the waste-
water basin has important relevance for energy
recovery. The renewed heating and renewed
humidification of the condenser-cooled air
masses over the wastewater basin is very impor-
tant! The heat recovery by the heat exchanger in
the wastewater basin results in a temperature
increase of not more than ca. 4°C to about 65°C
maximum; that is only less than 1% of the whole
energy requirement for evaporation and therefore
is negligible. Under normal conditions the energy
requirement by solar irradiation is reduced to
35% and is reduced to about 50% if the solar
irradiation becomes optimal only by the basin. In
relation to increasing solar irradiation, the whole
energy recovery decrease is stamped by the basin.
The energy recovery of the still is not a stable

Table 3
Daily solar irradiation and energy amount available in relation to fresh water production. (Supposition: 2570.70 kJ/litre
fresh water distillation and a linear decreasing energy recovery factor)

Usable kJ/day (collector factor of 0.8)

Solar radiation, W/m2

Hours/day 500 600 700 800 900

2 2.880 3.456 4.032 4.608 5.184

4 5.760 6.912 8.064 9.216 10.368
6 8.640 10.368 12,096 13.824 15.552
8 11.520 13.824 16,128 18.432 20.736
10 14.400 17.280 20.160 23.040 25.902

Liters of fresh water/day

Solar radiation, W/m2

Hours/day 500 600 700 800 900

Factor for energy recovery 0.70 0.65 0.60 0.55 0.50

2 3.73 38.40 3.92 3.98 4.03

4 7.47 7.68 7.84 7.97 8.07
6 11.20 11.52 11.76 11.95 12.10
8 14.94 15.36 15.68 15.93 16.13
10 18.67 19.21 19.61 19.92 20.17
 H. Kunze / Desalination 139 (2001) 35–41
factor — like assuming by the definition of the
GOR [3]. It is maximal at normal solar irradiation
conditions. As soon as the still is in operation
mode, the regulation of the air circulation occurs
by itself to the still’s optimum.
The energetic analysis of data shows that the
condenser and the collector have dominant
relevance for energy recovery. And they are very
important for the dynamic of the circulation air
masses and the vapour transport. These factors
become greater as the difference increases
between collector exit temperature (T3/T7) and
condenser bottom temperature (T1).
5.2. Perspective
The empirical data prove fresh water pro-
duction of 1.52 liters m2h; extrapolations point to
more than 15 liters m2/10 h with this prototype.
These data correspond with theoretical considera-
tions respecting the specific energy recovery
factor of the still: By assuming a collector factor
of 0.8 and increasing solar irradiation calculation
results from about 15 liters m2/8 h to 20 liters
m2/10 h. A collector factor of 0.9 and an energy
recovery factor of 0.6 of optimal solar irradiation
(800 W/m3 to 900 W/m3) more than 25 liters
m2/10 h are possible. We believe that this limit is
reachable. This special regulation of mass flow
and air circulation is necessary.
The high fresh water production of the still is
the result of an optimized heat recovery and an
optimized reduction of temperatures at the
condenser with a brine temperature as high as
possible. This new concept is constructively
41
achieved by guiding the flow of the brine first
through a large condenser and then through a
solar collector built on top.
By using this, solar collector temperatures of
more than 75°C can be reached before the brine
reaches the evaporation surface; even tempera-
tures over 85°C are realistic.
The above-mentioned production data are
based on the prototype. The still’s construction is
optimized to increase the real production output:
• The collector is designed in such a way that
maximum brine temperatures of more than
85°C are reached.
• The element is shaped longer in order to reach
a better dynamic of the air masses.
• Optimization of the heat recovery without
reducing the difference temperature between
the condenser and the evaporation.
• An optimized wastewater basin.
References
[1] K. Hanada, Fresh water production unit by use of
solar heat. Patentschrift aus dem Japanischen; JPC:
13(7)B21; Int. CI” BO1D3/00; JPC: 13(7)B21, 1977.
[2] E.E. Delyannis, Desalination, 67 (1987) 3–19.
[3] O. Heschl and R. Sizmann, Solar sea water desali-
nation with a high efficiency multi effect solar still,
Ludwig-Maximilian-Universität, München, 1987.
[4] H. Lessing, A small modular, high-efficiency solar
still, Niedersächsisches Umweltministerium Abt. 1,
Ref. 104, Archivstr. 2, 30169 Hannover, 1989.
[5] O. Heschl, Nützung regenerativer Energiequellen in
Entwicklungsländern; BMFT-Bericht, Teilgutachten,
Solare Meer- und Brackwasserentsalzung, 1987.