https://doi.org/10.1140/epjp/s13360-024-05002-8
Regular Article
Chrysopogon zizanioides as a sustainable material for enhanced condensation in solar desalination: an innovative approach to clean water production
1
Centre for Research in Advanced Fluid and Process, Universiti Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah, Lebuhraya Tun Razak, Gambang, 26300, Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia
2
Faculty of Mechanical & Automotive Engineering Technology, Universiti Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah, 26600, Pekan, Pahang, Malaysia
3
Solar Energy Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sri Vasavi Engineering College (A), 534101, Tadepalligudem, Andhra Pradesh, India
4
Solar Energy Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Institute of Technology Puducherry, 609609, Karaikal, Puducherry, India
a kousik@umpsa.edu.my, kousik.mech@srivasaviengg.ac.in
b
mahendran@umpsa.edu.my
c
sendhil80@nitpy.ac.in
Received:
29
September
2023
Accepted:
13
February
2024
Published online:
8
March
2024
The primary objective of the current investigation is to evaluate the performance of desalination systems in addressing the issue of elevated temperatures on glass covers by incorporating Chrysopogon zizanioides (CZ), known as vetiver. This study presents an innovative modification to a conventional solar desalination system (CDS) involving introducing a water-dripping mechanism and the utilization of Chrysopogon zizanioides positioned on top of the glass cover. Experimental trials were conducted under similar meteorological conditions to compare the unmodified CDS and the solar desalination system with Chrysopogon zizanioides (DSCZ) regarding their impact on freshwater production in environmentally sustainable solar desalination. Notably, incorporating CZ-vetiver significantly reduced glass temperatures, achieving a remarkable 27% decrease compared to the CDS. Moreover, DSCZ exhibited a notable enhancement of 49% in distillate productivity relative to CDS. Beyond its thermal performance, the cost per liter of potable water obtained from DSCZ was found to be ₹1.35, with a rapid payback period of only 3.9 months. In contrast, the corresponding figures for CDS were ₹2.32 and 5.7 months, respectively. This study underscores the potential of Chrysopogon zizanioides as an eco-friendly material for augmenting solar desalination, offering an efficient and affordable avenue for procuring potable water through an innovative method.
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© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Società Italiana di Fisica and Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2024. Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
