Experimental study on performance of single slope solar still integrated with sand troughs

In this paper, a new method of incorporating sand troughs is proposed to enhance the performance of a single slope solar still performance with 1.5 m2 aperture area. Experiments are performed in clear days of the sky for 1 cm, 2 cm, and 3 cm of water levels at the basin. The maximum yield is obtained for 1 cm water level at 2 PM for both the cases of solar still with and without sand troughs are 0.453 L/m2 and 0.2 L/m2, respectively. Solar still gives better yield with low depth of water level even at less solar radiation. The water level and use of sand troughs increased the evaporation rate and yield of the solar still. The still with sand troughs exhibits the maximum daily productivity rise of 71.4% for 1 cm water level when saline water is used. For 12 years of still life, the annual cost of produced pure water in modified still with sand troughs is calculated as ?0.801 per litre. Water level plays a major role in the productivity of the solar stills. The efficiency of solar still with Sand troughs at 1 cm water depth is obtained as 65.08% whereas still without S.T at 1 cm water depth is limited to 37.9%. <comment>Superscript/Subscript Available</comment