DESALINATION ELSEVIER Desalination 100 (1995) 99-104

Experimental and theoretical method for the determination of the daily output of a solar still: input-output method
V. B e l e s s l o t ~ s , K. V o r o p o u l o s , E. D e l y a r m i s Laboratory of Testing and Development of ~'olar and Other Energy System, National Centerfor Scientific Research "Demol~itos", 513 10 Agia Paros~vi AttikB, Athens, Greece Tel. and Fax: +30 (1) 654-4592

Abstract In the present work the thermal behavior of a typical solar still i.q examined experimentally and theoretically and its basic characteristics are analyzed. It is concluded from a large number of experimental measurements that the operation of such stills during daytime is characterized by three phases: (1) starting, (2) pseudo steady-state, and (3) saturation. A mathematical equation is formed for the instantaneous simulation of the solar still during the pseudo steady-state phase. From this the equation in its integrated form determines satisfactorily the daily output by the daily solar radiation (solar energy inpu0, the average ambient air temperature during the day, T~av), and the temperature of the water in the basin at the beginning of the day, Twi , as parameters. This method is n called the "input-output" method. Keywords: Solar still; Solar energy; Distilled water; Input-output

1. Introduction

that the mean daily output of distilled water is satisfactorily determined by the equation Moat = FIHd + F2(Taa_T~)+ F3 (1)

Much work has been done up to now conceming methods for the determination of the output of a solar still. From a series of experiments that have been conducted in the Laboratory of Testing and Development of Solar and Other Energy Systems, NCSR "Demokritos", Greece, and from measurements in many solar distillation installations developed by Prof. A. Delyannis and Dr. E. Delyannis, it is concluded *Corresponding author.
0011-9164/96/$15.00 ,D 1996 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights re.fred PII S0011-9164( 96)00011-2

The method of determining Moat in relation to the daily solar energy input H d is called the "inputoutput" method [1]. In the present work the assumptions and the conditions under which F 1, F 2 and F 3 remain constant are examined. The problem is approached experimentally and theoretically. The phenomenology of the second phase of the so!~

100

V. Belessiotis et aL /Desalination 100 (1995) 99-104

still operation during daytime, i.e., the pseudosteady-state is examined and an analytical equation o f the thermal simulation of the still is formed so that it corresponds to the "input-output" method equation. As a result, the following can be achieved: a. Determination of the solar still characteristics F~, Fz and F 3 from experimental data so that predictions of the still output for different climatic conditions, i.e., solar radiation and ambient temperature, can be done; b. Optimization of a solar still using the analytical expression of the characteristics, that is optimization of the construction parameters of the still having the "cost-profit" criterion as a base.
2. Phenomenology o f the ope-atJon o f a solar still

The solar still that is examined is shown in Fig. 1. It consists of basin B, painted black or covered by a material of black color, so that solar radiation can be absorbed as much as possible.
I. . . . . . . . . - -zsoo .= . . . . . . . . . I

The absorbed heat warms up the water in basin B, which is covered by a transparent cover C, usually a glass cover, which permits the penetration of the solar radiation through it. The vapors that are formed during the evaporation of the water in the basin are directed to the internal surface of the cover where they condense due to the fact that the temperature of the glass cover is lower than the temperature of the water within the basin. The distilled water flows along the internal surface of the cover area by gravity and is colle,,t~,i in the collecting gutters G. Fig. 2 shows the output of the still after measurements conducted in the Laboratory of Testing and Development of Solar and Other Energy Systems, NCSR "Demokritos" during a typical sunny day [2]. The form of the cumulative output curve C is typical for similar solar stills. By observing the curve, three operation phases are discerned: Phase 1: start of the operation of the still Phase II: pseudo-steady-state Phase Ill: saturation of the still

cover

distillate

~ll~

Fig. I. The asymmetrical type solar still erected in the Greek Islands.
~awaLcr f~d
:

II~.ul&u~

BI,Kk

body

.... ;....?.., ~...:~.,:L

I-~y - "[Imo ..;::,.:?_..,.~..'F...;

[" h r ] ~, ~ / , , .4 p.~. , ~ ~ ~ ~ ,',~.,. i ~,,,'.

,m

,,,j

!
" T

~,(

.
/

~"
~ "~l

:
"~l

o :
"

- - ~ ................

"--,...2

i-~:

-i
.e

Fig. 2. Thermal behavior of a solar still during a typical sunny day. A: radiation
intensity, B: temperature of water in the basin, C: cumulative output, D: ambient

/" '_;-" L'- ", ' " " " 6

"~" "i~"" ~ ; " " ~ ' ~ ' "

Oov -

. . . . . . . . . . . . "~1/"- ~ - - - i~,-' " ; ~ " ' ~ ' ....

T tree ( t~t:1

~"~',-'-~

temperature.

V. Belessiotis et al. / Desalination I00 (1995) 99-104 3. Analytical approach of the pseudo-steadystate phase
Fig. 3 shows the basic heat fluxes of the still, whereas the mathematical expressions of the various heat transfer coefficients are given in the Appendix. The heat balance for the water in the solar still is expressed [3] as
t~e

101

By combining Eqs. (3) and (4), and after integration in the daytime period we have

C w dT w _ k(t)noI(t ) - Ut[T,v(t ) - To(t)]

A., dt (2)

-Ub[Tw(t)-Ta(t)]
with the assumption that the temperature gradient in the water and in the transparent cover are negligible and that the mass of water in the basin is constant during the whole day. The overall upward heat flow factor between water and environment, U t and the heat transfer coefficients between water and glass cover and glass cover and environment are given in the Appendix. The energy used for evaporation is [3]

By integrating Eq. (2) in the period of the pseudo steady state and by combining the result with Eq. (5), we get an equation similar to Eq. (1), from which the coefficients F l, F 2 and F 3 are determined:

where
At

H d = [ I(t)dt

A8

Oe _ hewg Ut[Tw(t) - Ta(t)] ue

(3)

FI _- ~n0 At4 w he~g U, At

CwhlgU,

(6)

and the mass rate of the water produced is

F2-_ (Ut+Ub) Aw'4g hewg Ut (At)2

cw%u,

(7)

I(O

Characteristic parameter F3 concerns energy state of the still during phase I of duration AtF.I.
, .*eJ "i ~-'t.~ " ---~-~ .............. ;-'m;~

:2o.

l -

~.~
.~ ~"~
DBL|V XrredLe~to~ H~,'~ )V

%
Fig. 3. Heat flow in a solar still.

c,,
Fig. 4. Daily output of a solar still.

102

V. Belessiotis et al. / Desalination 100 (1995) 99-104

Since the proposed input-output method is applied daily and for 12 h, phase 1 begins 6 h before solar noon and ends at the time when Twd begins to increase. Parameter F 3, which expresses the inertia o f the still ,is given by equation
F3 = A

" ~h:. E

Atp. l

(8)

Temperature TWin is calculated by the following equation:

Twin=Tan

deviations caused mainly by thermal losses through the cover (air velocity) and vapor leakage. d. The determination of F l, F 2 and F 3, which express efficiency, losses and inertia of the still, respectively, gives the ability ofiong-term (annual) prediction of the output with minimum computational effort, as long as the daily climatic conditions H d and Ta of the area where the still is located are known. e. The arithmetic calculation o f F i , F 2 and F 3 can be used for the technical and economical design optimization of similar systems using minimum computational effort. 5. Symbols

which comes from Eq. (2) by taking into account the energy balance of the still during the time period from 6 h after the solar noon of the previous day to 6 h before the solar noon of the next day. Experimental results concerning the output of the solar still are presented in Fig. 4.

Ag Ar

Aw Cw Fi F2 F3 H
hc he hr

-----~ -~ ~ ~ -~ ~ -~ ~ --~ ~ ~ ~

4. Conclusions
a. The proposed input-output method (I/0), when applied to many installed solar distillation systems, gives very reliable results with small errors. b. The I/0 method is simple and can be used as a standard method for the characterization of solar distillation systems by measuring Mout, H d, Tad, and Twd for a period from 6 h before the solar noon to 6 h after the solar noon for a number o f days with radiation levels from 5-25 M J/ m 2. Subsequently, the characteristic parameters of the still Ft, F 2 and F 3 can be determined by regression analysis. The daily output curve will have the form o f the curve in Fig. 4. c. The analytical expressions of the characterislic parameters o f the still Ft, F 2 and F3, when compared to the experimental ones, have small

h,v
hyg

I k M th no p
ta

transparent cover area, m 2 ratio o f A g / A w black surface basin area, m 2 heat capacity of water in the basin, J/K system parameter, kg.m2/Mj system parameter, kg/k 3ystem parameter, kg daily radiation (insolation), MJ/m 2 convective heat transfer coefficient, W/m2K evaporative heat transfer coefficient, W/m2K radiative heat transfer coefficient, W/m2K wind heat transfer coefficient, W/m2K latent heat of vaporization ( h g - h f ) , J/kg solar radiation intensity, W/m z angle of incidence of solar radiation daily produced distillate, kg mass of distillate in time dt or mass flow rate, kg/s optical efficiency of the solar still partial vapor pressure, mm Hg heat transfer rate, W solar radiation period thermodynamic temperature, K

v. Belessiotis et al. / Desalination 100 (1995) 99-104

Ub Ui ~ heat transfer coefficient through base and sides, W/m2K - - heat transfer coefficient between water and glass cover, W/m2K - - h e a t transfer coefficient between glass cover and environment, W/m2K - - overall upward heat flow factor between water and environment, W/m2K

103

Uo Ut

[2] E. Delyannis, V. Belessiotis and A. Oelyannis, Proc., 7th International Symposium on Fresh Water from the Sea, Amsterdam, 2 (1980) 383. [3] V.B. Sharma and S.C. Mullick, Trans. ASME, J. Solar Engineering, 155 (1993) 231.

Appendix m Calculation o f heat transfer coefficients in a solar still 131

1. The overall upward heat flow factor between water and environment Ut is given by

Greek
e At --~ -surface emissivity Stefan-Bolzmann constant, W/m2K 4 duration of the day, s duration of the night, s

Ut =

1 +

(A.1)

At n

wl',ere

Subscripts
a

an
c d e

---

ambient night

Ui = hcwg + hewg + hrwg h~.(Tg-T,)

(A.2) (A.3)

fg
g

gs
in out r s w nf wg

- - convective - - day - evaporative - - fluid-gas (in hfg) - - glass cover - - glass to sky - - initial - - output - - radiative ~ sky ~ water, wind - water at the end o f the previous day - - water to glass

~fo -

rg-r,

~h,gs

Ar - A--~

_ ag

(g.4)

2. The convective, evaporative and radiative heat transfer coefficients between water in basin B and cover C, respectively, are

hcwg = 0.884

T w-

+ Pw-Pg
2016 - P w

_
(A.5)

C~ther X(O
X --instantaneous value o f variable X mean value of variable X 9.15x lO -7 hcwgli~w-p_lh~r , , j , heng --

(A.6)

(Tw_Tg)

References
[1] V. Belessiotis et al., Proc., 3rd National Symposium for Renewable Energies, Thessaloniki, Greece, I (1988) 181.

The radiative and convective heat transfer coeffi-

104

V. Belessiotis et al. /Desalination 100 (1995) 99-104

cients between cover and environment, respectively, are

h rgs i 2 g

c. Partial water vapor pressure for temperature range 10-150C:

p = 165,960.72xlO-[X(a+bX+cX3)l/IT(i+aX)l

(A.12)

where

hcgs= hw (Tg- Ta)

(A.9)

X -- 647.27 - T a = 3.2437814

For the calculation of the above heat transfer coefficients, the following relations can be used: a. Sky temperature:
T s ~- 0.0552 T1"5

b = 5.86826x10 -3 c = 1.1702379 x 10 -8

(A.10)

d = 2.1878452 x 10 -3

b. Latent heat of vaporization:

hfg = 3,044,205.5-1679.1109 T w 2 1.!4258 T w
-

(A.II)

Note: The latent heat of vaporization hfg and the partial water vapor pressure p can also be taken from the "Steam Tables".