Natural resources cannot satisfy current water demand in the world, so the desalination industry has become essential for population survival in locations with water scarcity. The technologies of distillation and reverse osmosis are those prevailing in the future so it is necessary to analyze their current situation and their relation to renewable energies. Large-scale desalination with renewable energies is virtually non-existent, so a specialization of the distillation systems, reverse osmosis, and renewable energy facilities is needed to make it competitive in comparison to the use of fossil fuels. Therefore, it is proposed a specialization of the parabolic trough collectors to be used jointly with distillation plants, obtaining with high and medium solar radiation water at a temperature of 180°C (using an absorption pump), and with low solar radiation water at a temperature of 70ºC. It increases the operating time of the distillation plant by multiple effects, which leads to a cost reduction.

Authors: Antonio Colmenar-Santos, Andrés León-Betancor, Enrique Rosales Asensio, David Borge-Diez

Published in: World Congress on Sustainable Technologies (WCST-2017)

• Date of Conference: 11-14 December 2017
• DOI: 10.20533/WCST.2017.0017
• ISBN: 978-1-908320-78-0
• Conference Location: University of Cambridge, UK