Thermodynamic Analysis of a Modified Solar Still

In the present investigation thermodynamic analysis of a modified solar still has been carried out. Emphasis is laid on finding out the most appropriate economic design to obtain maximum distillate output for North-Eastern region of India. In order to meet the objective, a novel absorber plate is designed, fabricated and installed inside a solar still. A flat plate collector is integrated to the solar distillation unit to deliver hot water. Experiments were performed in three different stages. In the first stage, double stepped absorber plate with baffle plates is used.

In the second stage, jute is laid on the double stepped absorber plate and in the third stage number of stepping is increased to four along with jute wick laid on it. Energy and exergy analysis is carried out for different stages and the results are analyzed. Analysis of the experimental result found that the range of instantaneous energy efficiency is 24–70%, while for exergy efficiency is 3.3–24.9%. The still with four stepped absorber plate having jute wick gives the maximum instantaneous efficiency and hence distillate yield of 4.45 litres.