Work

Performance enhancement of hemispherical solar distillers integrated with combined innovative spiral base copper fins, AgNPs-enhanced PCM, and corrugated external reflectors: 3E performance evaluation and statistical analysis

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Conventional solar distillation systems suffer from low thermal performance and limited freshwater productivity, restricting their practical application for sustainable water production, particularly in remote and arid regions. This study experimentally investigates the performance enhancement of hemispherical solar distillers (HSDs) using several innovative thermal and engineering modifications. An integrated improvement strategy was developed by combining silver-nanoparticle-enhanced phase-change material (AgNP-PCM), innovative spiral-base-copper fins, and an external reflector. The study also includes comprehensive thermal, economic, and statistical analyses. The results demonstrate clear improvements in the performance of the modified stills compared with the traditional hemispherical solar distiller (THSD). The daily freshwater yield increased by 38.06 % with AgNP-PCM, by 74.14 % with PCM-Ag and spiral-base-copper fins, and by up to 103.23 % when an external reflector was added. Thermal efficiency increased from 57.64 % for the conventional still to 79.16 %, 99.44 %, and 115.76 % for the modified configurations, respectively, corresponding to a maximum increase of 100.82 %. Exergy efficiency increased from 1.45 % to 6.09 %, representing a maximum improvement of 320.46 %. From an economic perspective, the configuration incorporating PCM-Ag, spiral-base-copper fins, and an external reflector reduced the freshwater production cost by 53.73 %, with a payback period of less than two years. These findings demonstrate that the integrated application of the proposed modifications can effectively improve the technical and economic viability of solar stills.

Source: Energy Conversion and Management X

DOI: 10.1016/j.ecmx.2026.102255