Experimentally investigation of extraction of water vapours with Scheffler reflector through nobel composite desiccant material

ABSTRACT

In this manuscript, an attempt has been made to produce water from the atmospheric air through nobel composite desiccant material consists of coal ash/brick powder/river sand as a host material and calcium chloride (CaCl₂) as a hygroscopic salt by using a concentrated Scheffler reflector of 1.54 m² surface area. The extraction of water vapours from atmospheric air achieved in two phases; in the first phase absorption process takes place (at night) and regeneration followed by condensation (at day time) in the second phase. The maximum absorption rate and regeneration rate during the investigation have been 0.026 and 0.17253 kg/h found, respectively. The water produced from system was 92 ml from per kg of material. The cost of water extraction from this system is $0.66 per year and the maximum efficiency of the system during the experiments was 7.93%. The extracted water has been tested in laboratory and found clean and portable.

KEYWORDS:

• Water extraction
• regeneration rate
• absorption rate
• Scheffler reflector

Acknowledgement

The authors thanks to water testing laboratory of public health engineering department, Kurukshetra Haryana for providing test facility of water samples.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).