INVERTED TRICKLE SOLAR STILL

Abstract

The concept of inverted water trickle, which has been recently developed for use in flat plate collectors. is utilized for solar distillation. The concept is based on the flow of a thin layer (trickle) of water on the back of the absorber plate. This layer is maintained attached to the plate by means of a wire screen welded to it, together with the effect of surface tension force. As the water moves downward along the plate, and if the flow of water is very small, then it is heated up and evaporated. The vapor is transferred to an adjacent compartment where it is condensed and collected. The main features of this concept are: 1. Elimination of condensation on the glazing thereby increasing solar radiation reaching the absorber plate. 2. Increasing the temperature difference between the evaporator and the condenser, which leads to an increase in the productivity of the basin-type stills. It is believed that such an increase affects positively the new concept. In the present work the still was designed, built and tested. The productivity reached a value of 3.83 liter per square meter per day.