Performance of solar still powered water recovery system from moist air

• Published in: Materials today : proceedings Vol. 62; pp. 1765 - 1769
• Main Authors: Rajendra Prasad, A., Jaiganesh, V., Sunil Babu, S., Shanawaz, A.M., Vijay Muni, T., Venkatesh, V., Subbiah, Ram
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 2022
• Subjects: Desiccant; Silica gel; Solar still; Water from atmosphere; Water production; Solar still; Silica gel; Water from atmosphere; Water production; Desiccant
• ISSN: 2214-7853; 2214-7853
• DOI: 10.1016/j.matpr.2021.12.336

In recent years, drinking water shortage has become an urgent concern. By contrast, our surrounding air contains a significant quantity of moisture content. Appropriate harvesting methods can alleviate the issue of water shortage up to a specific level. The purpose of this research is to examine a method for recovering drinkable water from the ambient air using a solar recovery system based on desiccant. The desiccants are capable material to adsorb the moisture from the surrounding medium and it can be recovered using a suitable method. In the present research, silica gel based adsorbent was employed as a desiccant, a substance that absorbed moisture from the ambient air throughout the nocturnal period. During the daylight, the laden moisture from the loaded desiccant was recovered utilizing a solar still type recovery device. Three comparable solar days were observed in March 2021 at Hyderabad, India, and the averaged findings are elaborated. Economically, the system was noticed to generate 0.94 L of drinkable water each day during the experimentation.