A solar powered desalination unit produces potable water from saline water through direct or indirect methods of desalination powered by sunlight. Countries such as Australia, Italy and Egypt have adopted this system as an alternative source of water for the population.
Direct solar desalination produces distillate directly in the solar collector. An example would be a solar still which traps the Sun's energy to obtain freshwater through the process of evaporation and condensation. Indirect solar desalination incorporates solar energy collection systems with conventional desalination systems such as multi-stage flash distillation, multiple effect evaporation, freeze separation or reverse osmosis to produce freshwater.
The intermittent nature of sunlight and its variable intensity throughout the day makes predicting its efficiency difficult. However, incorporating a thermal energy storage system solves this problem and ensures constant performance even during non-sunlight hours and cloudy days, improving overall efficiency.
Read more about Solar Powered Desalination Unit: ROSI, See Also
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