Enhancement of solar water desalination using copper and aluminum oxide nanoparticles

Abstract

In this research, two identical solar stills were designed and constructed to investigate the effect of adding copper and aluminum oxide nanoparticles on the quantity of water produced by solar desalination. The two solar stills were installed side by side, and measurements were recorded simultaneously from both stills. The nanoparticles were added to one still, each at one time but with different concentrations, while the other contained only water. Data acquisition and a weather station were used to record the glass, water, and ambient temperatures in addition to the hourly solar radiation. It was found that the addition of nanoparticles increases the amount of condensate. The most efficient concentrations were found to be 0.4% of Al2 O3 and 0.6% of CuO. At these concentrations, an increase in the efficiency of the still equals 7.8%, and 9.62% was recorded. Furthermore, it was found that CuO has a more pronounced effect on the condensate than Al2 O3 at all concentrations except at 0.4% concentration.