Alireza Habibi - Graduate student, RASES Lab, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran;
Ali Hakkaki-Fard - Associate professor, RASES Lab, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran;

Facing water stresses worldwide made most countries search for the solution to this problem. The Humidification-Dehumidification (HDH) desalination method is a promising and potential method to produce freshwater. This study evaluates the long-term performance of the solar-driven HDH desalination system with a geothermal dehumidifier. For this purpose, a three-dimensional transient Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model of the geothermal dehumidifier with comprehensive boundary conditions on the surface of the ground is developed. As a case study, the one-year performance of the system in Chabahar, Iran, is simulated. The performance of the system throughout the year and in different seasons is obtained, showing more amount of condensed water in winter days. Moreover, the continuous operation of the system is compared with the case that the system operates only during the day and recovers at night. It is demonstrated that the system with thermal recovery outperforms the system with continuous operation, which reveals the importance of ground thermal recovery.

solar-driven, humidification-dehumidification, geothermal, continuous operation, thermal recovery