Numerical Investigation forSingle Slope Solar Still Performance with Optimal Amount of Nano-PCM

Abstract

Desalination using solar energy systems is a practical solution for production of potable water and particularly in remote areas, which suffer from lack of drinking water due to poor infrastructure. It is possible for a small distillation system to be a practical and economical solution for current and future demand for potable water with availability water resources and large amounts of solar radiation. Therefore, productivity that could be increased by increasing the model's ability to store the heat energy needed to maintain evaporation was discussed using nanoparticles dispersed in paraffin wax beneath the basin. In this paper,the main objectives of the study are to obtain the optimum parameters of PCM mass, NPCM mass, water mass and solar radiation to give the best productivity of the model inside the atmosphere of Najaf city, a numerical study involving the study of the performance of single-slope solar still using different masses of PCM with and without nanoparticles. Nanoparticles is used to improve thermal conductivity of paraffin wax. The most commonly used paraffin wax (PCM) and Al2O3 (nanoparticles) complements its specific thermal properties with fusion temperature where the main active properties are studied. The numerical solution was done using COMSOL 5.3 software and the results were compared with previous studies and showed thata good agreement. Also, the results showed that the use of 1 kg of PCM represent optimal amount of enhancement, and thus using of 3 Vol.% concentration of Al2O3 nanoparticles dispersed in 1 kg of paraffin wax gives the possibility of improving the traditional single slope solar still daily productivity by about 20%.