A small scale solar powered desalination system has been designed, analyzed, and optimized with regard to power needs and energy consumption. Both quantities scale linearly with the concentration of the total dissolved salt concentration (TDS) in the feed solution. The desalination of brackish water at a TDS value of 3,000 ppm requires an energy of approximately 1.5 kWh/m3. For seawater at a TDS value of 34,000 ppm, this value increases to 9.5 kWh/m3. The selected type of membrane, the system design, and, in particular, the efficiency of the high pressure pump crucially affect energy consumption. The desalination cost also has been estimated for a small scale system that linearly scale with the TDS value of the feed water. [S0199-6231(00)00104-0]
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November 2000
Technical Papers
Design and Performance of Small Scale Solar Powered Water Desalination Systems, Utilizing Reverse Osmosis
K. B. Franc¸a,
K. B. Franc¸a
Universidade Federal da Paraı´ba, Centro de Cie^ncias e Tecnologia, Department of Chemical Engineering, Campina Grande 58109-970, Pb, Brazil
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H. M. Laborde,
H. M. Laborde
Universidade Federal da Paraı´ba, Centro de Cie^ncias e Tecnologia, Department of Chemical Engineering, Campina Grande 58109-970, Pb, Brazil
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H. Neff
H. Neff
Universidade Federal da Paraı´ba, Centro de Cie^ncias e Tecnologia, Department of Electrical Engineering, Campina Grande 58109-970, Pb, Brazil
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K. B. Franc¸a
Universidade Federal da Paraı´ba, Centro de Cie^ncias e Tecnologia, Department of Chemical Engineering, Campina Grande 58109-970, Pb, Brazil
H. M. Laborde
Universidade Federal da Paraı´ba, Centro de Cie^ncias e Tecnologia, Department of Chemical Engineering, Campina Grande 58109-970, Pb, Brazil
H. Neff
Universidade Federal da Paraı´ba, Centro de Cie^ncias e Tecnologia, Department of Electrical Engineering, Campina Grande 58109-970, Pb, Brazil
Contributed by the Solar Energy Division of The American Society of Mechanical Engineers for publication in the ASME JOURNAL OF SOLAR ENERGY ENGINEERING. Manuscript received by the ASME Solar Energy Division, Sep. 1999; final revision, Jul. 2000. Associate Technical Editor: G. Vliet.
J. Sol. Energy Eng. Nov 2000, 122(4): 170-175 (6 pages)
Published Online: July 1, 2000
Article history
Received:
September 1, 1999
Revised:
July 1, 2000
Citation
Franc¸a , K. B., Laborde, H. M., and Neff, H. (July 1, 2000). "Design and Performance of Small Scale Solar Powered Water Desalination Systems, Utilizing Reverse Osmosis ." ASME. J. Sol. Energy Eng. November 2000; 122(4): 170–175. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.1330542
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