Enhancing the wick solar still performance using half barrel and corrugated absorbers

The performance of tilted wick solar stills including new absorber configurations have been investigated. Four solar stills are built, the first one is flat wick solar still (FWSS), the second one is corrugated wick solar still (CWSS), the third one is half barrel wick solar still (BWSS) and the fourth one is conventional solar still (CSS). The modification in the absorber configuration increases the evaporation area for CWSS and BWSS. The new absorber designs are used to reduce the water flow rate through wick to improve the evaporation rate. The measurements showed that, the increase in the daily yields when compared with CSS are 75 %, 93 % and 100 % for FWSS, BWSS and CWSS, respectively. The theoretical model shows acceptable agreement with the measured data. For further enhancement in wick solar still performance, BWSS and CWSS have been tested with phase change material (PCM) mixed with CuO nanoparticles. The results obtained that, the daily productivity for CWSS and BWSS is increased to be 134 % and 124 % over CSS, respectively. Also, the efficiency and calculated cost per liter are 35 %-0.028 $, and 54.5 % -0.023 $ for CSS and CWSS with phase change material, respectively. (c) 2021 Institution of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

The performance of tilted wick solar stills with new absorber configurations was investigated, showing significant increase in daily yields. The new absorber designs reduced water flow rate through the wick, leading to improved evaporation rates. Additionally, incorporating phase change material mixed with CuO nanoparticles further enhanced productivity and efficiency of the solar stills.