Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID 2008HI231B

Modeling of Humidification-Dehumidification (HDH) Seawater Desalination Systems Driven by Solar Energy

Institute: Hawaii
Year Established: 2008 Start Date: 2008-03-01 End Date: 2011-02-28
Total Federal Funds: $58,905 Total Non-Federal Funds: $101,424

Principal Investigators: Weilin Qu

Project Summary: A relatively new desalination process called humidification-dehumidification (HDH) is proposed as a feasible solution to the freshwater shortage problem in Hawaii. HDH operates under near ambient pressure and low temperature and can be driven by renewable solar energy as well as a variety of low-grade (low-temperature) thermal energy sources including low pressure condensing steam from a steam power plant, waste heat from a combustion engine, and waste heat from an oil refinery. While energy sources such as electricity and high-grade hydrocarbon-based thermal energy could be expensive because of Hawaiis geographical location, there are abundant solar radiation and low-grade thermal energy sources around the islands. Therefore, HDH water desalination driven by renewable solar energy or low-grade waste heat may constitute a viable future supplemental water source to Hawaii that is both cost-effective and energy-efficient. In the proposed work, theoretical modeling approach will be used to develop a fundamental understanding of the various thermal/fluid transport processes in small-scale HDH water desalination systems driven by solar energy.