Comparative Analysis of Glass Fiber Sheet and Crepe Paper for a Wick Type Floating Solar Still

Abstract

Water is a prerequisite for the existence of life on earth. Rapid growth in the global population and industrialization have created a dearth of freshwater resources. Escalating water scarcity suggests that the use of passive solar stills is the most suitable and viable option in the arid and semi-arid areas around the world. In this study, the yield of wick type floating solar still is experimentally investigated for different wick materials. Capillary rise and absorbency of two different absorbers are considered as performance parameters for analysis of the research. Based on results, crepe paper with absorbency (1.8s) and capillary rise (112mm/h) proved a better absorber for higher productivity of the still. The efficiency of still with crepe paper was observed to be 16.68% higher than that of glass fiber sheet when applied in still during the investigation. The maximum internal temperature and the productivity of still were 9.1°C and 0.8 L/day respectively higher when crepe paper was used instead of a glass fiber sheet as a wicking material.