6. Conclusion

This chapter presented a numerical model to estimate the performance of solar basin-type distillation systems, both for conventional passive solar stills and active (forced circulation) stills with enhanced heat recovery. It also analyzed the factors affecting the distillate outputs of the still, including environmental factors (external factors or natural) and elements of the design and operation (subjective factors). The subjective elements as well as the measures taken to optimize these factors were thoroughly analyzed. With these measures, the distillate yield of solar stills was increased from 30 to 68% compared with traditional distillation systems. This has scientific significance and practicality enabling the application of this technology to solar water distillation using a source of clean and renewable energy. It provides a viable way to alleviating the problem of the availability of clean water, especially in those areas and communities in countries where water resources are increasingly polluted and salty.
