Title: Desalination using spray tower and vapour compression refrigeration system

Authors: S. Sathish Kumar, A. Mani

Addresses: Refrigeration and Airconditioning Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai – 600 036, India. ' Refrigeration and Airconditioning Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai – 600 036, India

Abstract: A desalination system using a spray tower and Vapour Compression Refrigeration (VCR) system is proposed for obtaining fresh water from brackish water. In the spray tower, simultaneous heat and mass transfer take place between the brackish water and air, which results in the evaporation of the brackish water and humidification of the air. Fresh water is obtained from the humidified air by condensing the water vapour using a VCR system. Parametric studies were carried out to study the effect of various operational parameters on the fresh water production rate.

Keywords: brackish water; condensation; desalination; evaporation; heat transfer; mass transfer; spray tower; vapour compression refrigeration; fresh water; potable water.

DOI: 10.1504/IJND.2006.009507

International Journal of Nuclear Desalination, 2006 Vol.2 No.1, pp.89 - 95

Published online: 10 Apr 2006 *

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