Mathematical modelling and experimental study of a solar distillation system

Author(s):  
O Mahian ◽  
A Kianifar

The production of potable water from saltwater or brackish water using solar distillation has been practised for many years in different parts of the world. However, little attention has been paid to the feasibility of this technique in Iran. In this work, a solar still with a basin area of 0.9 m2 and a glass cover in the form of a pyramid has been designed and constructed, and its performance is studied experimentally in Mashhad, Iran. Also, the performance of the solar still is modelled where a small fan was utilized to enhance the daily productivity of freshwater. In addition to the effect of forced convection caused by a fan, the effects of the water depth, the insulation thickness of the basin base, and the wind velocity have been investigated. The empirical results have been compared with the results obtained from the mathematical model and good agreement has been obtained. The results show that the use of a low-cost fan with negligible power can be an effective and economical way of enhancing the evaporation rate and hence freshwater production. Based on the mathematical model, the daily productivity of freshwater increases up to ∼ 56 per cent at a Reynolds number of 35 000. Finally, an effective range for the wind velocity as well as insulation thickness is presented in order to optimize the production rate of freshwater.

Author(s):  
Hamdy Hassan

Abstract In this paper, a theoretical study is presented on enhancement of the solar still performance by using the exhaust gases passing inside a chimney under the still basin. The impact of the exhaust gases temperature on the solar still temperature, productivity, and efficiency are considered. The performance of solar still with chimney is compared with that of conventional solar still. The study is carried out under the hot and climate conditions of Upper Egypt. A complete transient mathematical model of the physical model including the solar still regions temperatures, productivity, and heat transfer between the solar still and the exhaust gases are constructed. The mathematical model is solved numerically by using fourth-order Runge-Kutta method and is programmed by using MATLAB. The mathematical model is validated using an experimental work. The results show that the solar still saline water temperature increases and productivity with using and rising the exhaust gases. Furthermore, the impact of using exhaust gases on the still performance in winter is greater than in summer. using chimney exhaust gases at 75 °C and 125 °C enhances the daily freshwater yield of the conventional still by more than three times and about six times in winter, respectively, and about two and half times and more than three times in summer, respectively.


Author(s):  
W M G Malalasekera ◽  
F Lockwood

A mathematical model has been applied to simulate model experiments of the 1987 King's Cross underground fire by the Department of Health and Safety Executive. The predicted growth of the fire is compared with the experimental data and in particular the predicted and measured times to ‘flashover’ are compared. The comparisons show exceptional agreement which, in part, may be fortuitous due to the need to facilitate the prediction of the early stages of the growth with the aid of an experimentally estimated fire strength. The good agreement nonetheless is also due to the full description of the radiation transfer which is a feature of the mathematical model. It is concluded that the flashover phenomenon that occurred at King's Cross was thermal radiation driven and that future research should be devoted to modelling the details of fire spread across a combustible surface.


1999 ◽  
Vol 66 (4) ◽  
pp. 926-933 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. A. Godfrey ◽  
J. N. Rossettos

A simple micromechanical model is developed to predict the onset of tear propagation at slit-like damage sites (i.e., a series of consecutive aligned yarn breaks) in biaxially stressed plain weave fabrics under increasing loading. A crucial aspect of the model is the treatment of the frictional slip of yarns near the damage site. Although the actual configuration of slipping regions is complex, the onset of tear propagation in large slits (i.e., more than, say, 35 breaks) is dominated by slip occurring on the first few intact yarns adjacent to the breaks. The assumptions in the mathematical model were motivated by both experimental observations and calculations for key configurations. Analytical results obtained for this simple model exhibit good agreement with experimental results, which are presented for a variety of fabrics with initial slits of 35 and 45 breaks.


2021 ◽  
pp. 0734242X2110337
Author(s):  
Tea Sokač ◽  
Anita Šalić ◽  
Dajana Kučić Grgić ◽  
Monika Šabić Runjavec ◽  
Marijana Vidaković ◽  
...  

In this paper, two different types of biowaste composting processes were carried out – composting without and with bioaugmentation. All experiments were performed in an adiabatic reactor for 14 days. Composting enhanced with bioaugmentation was the better choice because the thermophilic phase was achieved earlier, making the composting time shorter. Additionally, a higher conversion of substrate (amount of substrate consumed) was also noticed in the process enhanced by bioaugmentation. A mathematical model was developed and process parameters were estimated in order to optimize the composting process. Based on good agreement between experimental data and the mathematical model simulation results, a three-level-four-factor Box-Behnken experimental design was employed to define the optimal process conditions for further studies. It was found that the air flow rate and the mass fraction of the substrate have the most significant effect on the composting process. An improvement of the composting process was achieved after altering the mentioned variables, resulting in shorter composting time and higher conversion of the substrate.


2021 ◽  
pp. 43-54
Author(s):  
A. N. Krutov ◽  
◽  
S. Ya. Shkol’nikov ◽  

The mathematical model of kinematic wave, that is widely used in hydrological calculations, is generalized to compute processes in deformable channels. Self-similar solutions to the kinematic wave equations, namely, the discontinuous wave of increase and the “simple” wave of decrease are generalized. A numerical method is proposed for solving the kinematic wave equations for deformable channels. The comparison of calculation results with self-similar solutions revealed a good agreement.


Author(s):  
Stanislav N. Danov

Abstract Several improvements to the mathematical model of the indicator process taking place at a diesel engine cylinder are proposed. The thermodynamic behavior of working medium is described by the equation of state, valid for real gases. Mathematical dependencies between thermal parameters (P, T, v) and caloric parameters (u, h, cv, cp) have been obtained. An improved mathematical model, based on the first law of thermodynamics, has been developed, taking into account working medium imperfections. The numerical solution of the simultaneous differential equations is made by a method of Runge-Kutta type. The computing procedure is iterative. Calculations in respect to the caloric parameters (u, h, cv and cp) for various gases under pressure up to 25 MPa and temperature up to 3000°C have been carried out. The results show, that there are significant differences between the values, calculated by equations for ideal gases, and the proposed equations for real gases under high pressure and temperature. Actual applied problems for two-stroke turbocharged engines Sulzer-RLB66 and 8DKRN 74/160 have been solved. The comparison between the experimental data and numerical results show very good agreement. The numerical experiments show that if the pressure is above 8–9 MPa, the working medium imperfections must be taken into consideration.


2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ibrahim A Abuashe ◽  
Bashir H Arebi ◽  
Essaied M Shuia

A mathematical model based on the momentum, continuity and energy balance equations was developed to simulate the behavior of the air flow inside the solar chimney system. The model can estimate the power output and performance of solar chimney systems. The developed mathematical model is validated by the experimental data that were collected from small pilot solar chimney; (experiment was presented in part I). Good agreement was obtained between the experimental results and that from the mathematical model. The model can be used to analyze the solar chimney systems and to determine the effect of geometrical parameters such as chimney height and collector diameter on the power output and the efficiency of the system


2013 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 285
Author(s):  
Emile Barrett ◽  
Imran Abbasy ◽  
Chii-Rong Wu ◽  
Zhenjiang You ◽  
Pavel Bedrikovetsky

Estimation of rate profile along the well is important information for reservoir characterisation since it allows distinction of the production rates from different layers. The temperature and pressure sensors in a well are small and inexpensive; while flow meters are cumbersome and expensive, and affect the flow in the well. The method presented in this peer-reviewed paper shows its significance in predicting the gas rate from temperature and pressure data. A mathematical model for pressure and temperature distributions along a gas well has been developed. Temperature and pressure profiles from nine well intervals in field A (Cooper Basin, Australia) have been matched with the mathematical model to determine the flow rates from different layers in the well. The presented model considers the variables as functions of thermal properties at each location, which is more accurate and robust than previous methods. The results of tuning the mathematical model to the field data show good agreement with the model prediction. Simple and robust explicit formulae are derived for the effective estimation of flow rate and thermal conductivity in gas wells. The proposed approach has been applied to determine the well gas rate and formation thermal conductivity from the acquired well pressure and temperature data in field A. It allows for recommending well stimulation of layers with low production rates.


Author(s):  
R. Caracciolo ◽  
A. Gasparetto ◽  
A. Trevisani

Abstract This paper presents an experimental validation of a finite element approach for the dynamic analysis of flexible multi-body planar mechanisms. The mathematical model employed accounts for mechanism geometric and inertial non-linearities and considers coupling effects among rigid-body and elastic motion. A flexible five-bar linkage actuated by two electric motors is employed as a test case. Experimentally determined link absolute deformations are compared with the numerical results obtained simulating the system dynamic behavior through the mathematical model. The experimental and numerical results are in good agreement especially after the very first transient period.


2015 ◽  
Vol 812 ◽  
pp. 14-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Malaiyappan Prakash ◽  
Elumalai Natarajan

A solar still is efficient and attractive application of renewable energy (solar) in the distillate production. In this work, the solar still with different basin materials viz; plastic, glass, and galvanized iron (GI) with basin area of 1m x1m and slope of 13○ were fabricated and tested in Anna University, Chennai. The basin materials are taken according to the low cost that is easily available in the local areas. The bottom and side losses of the still are considerably reduced, due to the low cost insulation material (thermcol) beneath the basin liner. The stills are experimentally investigated on a clear day (03/04/2014). Comparison of the various basin materials under the same weather conditions is done. A model economic analysis calculation for the asymmetrical single-basin and single-slope solar still is verified.


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