Enhancement of Water Production Using Solar Still Coupled with High Power PV/AC Heater

Water purification technologies have expanded and grow widely over the
years in order to cope with water limitation especially in countries experiencing
water stress condition. Most of the technologies are costly and causing pollutions to
the environment. Hence, more are looking forward for solar still as a method to
produce safe and clean water for consumption without investing too much cost or
causing harm to the environment. There are two types of solar still which are passive
and active. This paper presents the performance of an active solar still coupled with
high power PV/AC heater in producing distilled water. The experiment will be
conducted in an open area filed in Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP) for 24
hours of period with weather forecast and solar radiation intensity obtained from
Ipoh Meteorological Department. Other related parameters such as temperature of
water, temperature of glass cover and ambient will be recorded during experiment
conducted. To evaluate the efficiency of the experiment, another prototype of
conventional solar still with the same dimensions and parameter will be conducted
alongside with the active solar still. Water produced will then be tested in order to
ensure safety of consumption that aligns with Malaysia National Drinking Water
Quality Standards guidelines.