Experimental characterization of an air solar heater for desalination process

Solar air heaters form the major component of solar energy utilization systems which absorb the incoming solar radiation, converting it into thermal energy at the absorbing surface, and transferring the energy to a fluid flowing through the collector. This paper presents the outline of an experimental investigation of the performance of a flat plate air solar collector for use with solar desalination systems based on humidification and dehumidification principle. The experimental results show the effects of design and operational parameters on the air solar collector efficiency. It transpires from experimental investigation that the thermal efficiency of air solar collector increases with air velocity. The thermal efficiency can reach up 80 % for an air velocity value equal to 3.7 m/s.