Rights statement: This is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Desalination. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Desalination, 526, 2022 DOI: 10.1016/j.desal.2021.115521
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Final published version
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Exploring the potential of MXene-based advanced solar-absorber in improving the performance and efficiency of a solar-desalination unit for brackish water purification
AU - Thakur, A.K.
AU - Sathyamurthy, R.
AU - Saidur, R.
AU - Velraj, R.
AU - Lynch, I.
AU - Aslfattahi, N.
N1 - This is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Desalination. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Desalination, 526, 2022 DOI: 10.1016/j.desal.2021.115521
PY - 2022/3/15
Y1 - 2022/3/15
N2 - Brackish water desalination using solar still (SS) is a low-cost sustainable solution to global water scarcity, but this technology suffers from low yield and efficiency. The judicious amalgamation of highly conductive materials with superior solar absorption behavior is one of the most effective approaches to overcome this limitation. In this regard, the present work synthesizes a novel multilayered 2-D MXene from 3-D MAX phase as a coating material for the solar absorber of a SS to improve its performance. Two different loadings of MXene (0.05 and 0.1 wt%) were dispersed in turpentine oil/black paint (1:4) and coated onto the solar absorber of the SS. Higher MXene loading significantly augmented the thermal conductivity and solar absorptivity of the turpentine oil/black paint solution. The 0.1 wt% MXene coated absorber provided a higher heat transfer rate from the absorber to the water, leading to a 6% increase in water temperature and a total water yield of 2.07 kg. The theoretical calculated water yield was identical to the experimental yield with a deviation of ±5%, demonstrating the accuracy of thermal modelling. The average energy efficiency of the SS with 0.1 wt% MXene in the absorber black paint coating was 36.31%. Water quality analysis has shown that the distilled water resulting from the desalination is suitable for drinking. In conclusion, MXene with its excellent thermo-physical properties and solar absorptivity will be beneficial in development of efficient solar desalination units with augmented performance for water purification.
AB - Brackish water desalination using solar still (SS) is a low-cost sustainable solution to global water scarcity, but this technology suffers from low yield and efficiency. The judicious amalgamation of highly conductive materials with superior solar absorption behavior is one of the most effective approaches to overcome this limitation. In this regard, the present work synthesizes a novel multilayered 2-D MXene from 3-D MAX phase as a coating material for the solar absorber of a SS to improve its performance. Two different loadings of MXene (0.05 and 0.1 wt%) were dispersed in turpentine oil/black paint (1:4) and coated onto the solar absorber of the SS. Higher MXene loading significantly augmented the thermal conductivity and solar absorptivity of the turpentine oil/black paint solution. The 0.1 wt% MXene coated absorber provided a higher heat transfer rate from the absorber to the water, leading to a 6% increase in water temperature and a total water yield of 2.07 kg. The theoretical calculated water yield was identical to the experimental yield with a deviation of ±5%, demonstrating the accuracy of thermal modelling. The average energy efficiency of the SS with 0.1 wt% MXene in the absorber black paint coating was 36.31%. Water quality analysis has shown that the distilled water resulting from the desalination is suitable for drinking. In conclusion, MXene with its excellent thermo-physical properties and solar absorptivity will be beneficial in development of efficient solar desalination units with augmented performance for water purification.
KW - Absorber coating
KW - Energy efficiency
KW - MXene
KW - Solar desalination
KW - Thermal performance
KW - Water quality
U2 - 10.1016/j.desal.2021.115521
DO - 10.1016/j.desal.2021.115521
M3 - Journal article
VL - 526
JO - Desalination
JF - Desalination
SN - 0011-9164
M1 - 115521
ER -