Analysing the Efficiency of a Single-slope Solar Still and the Effects of Glass Cover Cooling and Circular Cross-section Hollow Fins

Water is essential for life, yet much of the available supply is either too salty or too polluted for safe consumption. The process of desalinizing salt water can be quite expensive. A better option is to use solar stills to convert the water vapor into freshwater by evaporating the salt water. This study details the results of an experimental investigation on a solar still featuring a single slope and a closed circular fin linked to an absorbing plate. The study also incorporated experimental evaluations of the potential for cooling the glass cover. Circular hollow fins measuring 30 mm in diameter and 70 mm in height were utilized. Pulsed glass cooling (40 s/35 min), continuous water spray (40 s/35 min), and a combination of both methods were evaluated as cooling techniques. The results indicated that incorporating fins into the single slope solar still (SSSS) led to a 50% enhancement in output relative to conventional solar stills. Integrating SSSS with glass cooling at various spraying rates increased yield by 13.3%, 17.8%, 36.7%, 24.2%, and 10%, respectively. This demonstrates that using pulse water cooling rather than the conventional solar still (CSS) time (40 s/15 min) produces superior results. The cumulative improvement from both processes is 62.4% when compared to a traditional SSSS.