Fabrication and characterization of a slanting-type solar water distillation kit

Abstract

Supply of portable water is a major problem in underdeveloped as well as in some developing countries. Distillation is one of many processes that can be used for water purification and solar energy can be a source of energy for solar stills. We fabricated a slanting-type solar water distillation kit which was tested outdoor under the meteorological conditions of Imo State University, Owerri, Nigeria. The system includes four major components; a wooden basin of surface area 0.16 m², an absorber surface, a slanting glass roof and a condensate channel. Very cheap locally available materials were used to fabricate the solar still. The solar still produced an average of 0.09 m³ of distilled water per day, and this study was performed in the month of November, 2015. Though the condensate was small compared to average human need as is peculiar to many solar stills, the output can be increased by fabricating solar still of larger surface area. Also, since the materials are cheap and readily available, one can fabricate as many solar distillation kits as possible to tackle the daily demand of potable water.

Keywords: Imo State, potable water, solar energy, water distillation