Desalination 137 (2001) 1–6

Proving test for a solar-powered desalination system

in Gaza–Palestine
Moh’d S. Abu-Jabala*, I. Kamiyab, Y. Narasakib
a
Water Research Center, Al Azhar University of Gaza, PO Box 1277, Gaza–Palestine
Tel. +972 (7) 282-4010; Fax +972 (7) 282-3180; email: mjabal@email.com
b
Environmental Engineering Group, Ebara Corporation, 1-6-27 kohnan, Minato-ku, Tokyo 108-8480, Japan

Received 26 July 2000; accepted 12 August 2000

Abstract
A practical scale desalination system harnessing only solar energy as the heat source from solar collectors and the
power source from solar cells is in operation at the Al Azhar University in Gaza. The unit was developed and
manufactured by the Ebara Corporation (Tokyo) and the Water Research Center in Al Azhar University is performing
the tests for the system. The unit is considered as a zero-emission (zero-brine-discharge) system, and the desalination
method is evaporation distillation with triple-effect evaporators; basically it is a batch process for every-day operation
with brackish water. This paper describes the unit, discusses the method used for distillation and results of the tests
during the testing period. It also shows the feasibility of using the system in our region.

Keywords: Solar energy; Desalination; Gaza Strip; Ebara

1. Introduction Thus, water treatment is usually needed, and

desalination is the most efficient method for
The population of the world is increasing, and
providing fresh water from brackish and/or
fresh water is the primary requirement for life in
seawater. However, desalination is energy
the universe. However, while water covers about
intensive, and because of scarce availability of
three-quarters of the earth’s surface, only 3% is
wood and oil and high capital and operational
fresh water from various sources, and not all of
cost; solar desalination based on renewable, safe,
this limited quantity is suitable for drinking.
free and clean solar energy is the promise for a
cost-effective solution. Fortunately, in areas of
*Corresponding author.

Presented at the conference on Desalination Strategies in South Mediterranean Countries, Cooperation between
Mediterranean Countries of Europe and the Southern Rim of the Mediterranean, sponsored by the European Desalination
Society and Ecole Nationale d’Ingenieurs de Tunis, September 11–13, 2000, Jerba, Tunisia.
0011-9164/01/$– See front matter © 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved
2 M.S. Abu-Jabal et al. / Desalination 137 (2001) 1–6
greater fresh water shortages like the Middle East
and the southern Mediterranean, solar energy is
more abundant during all seasons [1].
Solar desalination has been practiced for
many generations. According to Malik et al. [2],
the earliest documented work is that of an Arab
alchemist in the 5th century, as reported by
Mouchot in 1869. Mouchot stated that an Arab
alchemist had used polished Damascus mirrors
for solar distillation. The great French chemist
Lavoisier (1862) used large glass lenses mounted
on collaborating supporting-structures to concen-
trate solar energy on the contents of distillation
flasks [2]. The use of silver or aluminum-coated
glass reflectors to concentrate solar energy for
distillation was described by Mouchot [3]. In the
last century the use of solar concentrates in solar
distillation was reported by Pasteur [2], who used
a concentrator to focus solar rays onto a copper
boiler containing water. The steam generated
from the boiler was piped to a conventional
water-cooled condenser in which distilled water
was accumulated. Renewal of interest in solar
distillation occurred soon after the First World
War. Many varieties of new devices and stills
such as the basin-type, roof-type, tilted-wick
type, inclined-tray, inflated stills, and flash-type
systems had been developed and studied for solar
desalination systems [3], but a very small number
of the systems were put into practice because of
the low efficiency and small amount of fresh
water production [4].
In view of the above, the Ebara Corporation
developed a practical scale desalination system
harnessing only solar collectors with its power
source from solar cells. The solar desalination
system was developed under the guidance of
Prof. Haruki Sato, Department of System Design
Engineering, Faculty of Science and Technology,
Keio University. Since the performance of the
system depends on weather conditions such as
solar radiation, atmospheric temperature, etc., it
was decided to test in a region such as the Middle
East where there is high water demand. With the
help of the Tomen Corporation, it was decided
that testing the system should be performed at Al
Azhar University in Gaza–Palestine with the
cooperation of the Water Research Center of the
university. This began in July 1998.
2. Principles and the system
The principle of the still is quite simple. When
the air in the system is evacuated, the water boils
at low temperature. Under conditions of higher
temperatures of about 40°C and lower tempera-
tures of about 5°C, solar radiation can be used
many times for the distillation by re-use of the
latent heat of condensation of steam for the next
evaporation of steam at a few Kelvin degrees
lower temperature [4]. The smaller temperature
difference being only a few Kelvin between an
evaporator and a condenser makes it possible to
get more fresh water. The optimum system would
be constructed from a realization of an optimum
heat and mass transfer process by considering the
Second Law of Thermodynamics [4].
3. Description of the present system
The desalination method used in the present
system is evaporation distillation at low tempera-
ture with triple-effect evaporators (solar radiation
energy is used three times for distillation and
operated under vacuum pump). It is basically a
batch process for every-day operation with
brackish water. Schematics of the system are
shown in Fig. 1.
A thermo-siphon system was used in the solar
collector. The thermal medium is pure distilled
water and the air in the solar collectors was
evacuated by using a vacuum pump. Any
temperature of the solar energy evaporates water
of the collectors and transfers solar thermal
energy to the first evaporator. The transfer is
 M.S. Abu-Jabal et al. / Desalination 137 (2001) 1–6
Fig. 1. Schematic flow diagram of the Ebara solar desalination system [5].
made by the movement of steam from the solar
collectors (high pressure and temperature side) to
the first evaporator (low pressure and tempera-
ture side) where later it condenses in the
evaporator, and pure distilled water moves back
to the solar collectors by gravitational potential
energy.
In the first evaporator the raw water is
evaporated with the heat and the steam is fed to
the second evaporator. The steam entering the
second evaporator causes the raw water to
evaporate and is itself condensed to distilled
water and passes to the distilled water tank. The
raw water in the second evaporator is heated and
generates steam, which is passed into the third
evaporator, heats the raw water in the evaporator
and itself condenses to flow into the distilled
water tank. The steam generated in the third
evaporator goes to the saline water tank and is
cooled to condensate by using a condenser in the
3
distilled water tank. Gradually the temperature of
the raw water in the saline water tank increases,
but the volume of the raw water provides enough
cooling for the operations of the day. The raised
temperature of the raw water in the saline water
tank is cooled down accordingly with the ambient
temperature drop during the night and is ready
for cooling the next day.
The saline water tank is prepared not only for
the saline water storage but also for the important
roles of the lowest temperature heat sink and heat
storage tank. At night the raw water in the tank
evaporates by a basin-type process due to the
temperature difference between ambient and
inside of the tank where 4000 l of water are
stored.
The objective of the vacuum pump is not the
distillation by evacuation but rather to get a
vacuum in the solar collectors every month and in
the evaporators at the beginning of the day as
4 M.S. Abu-Jabal et al. / Desalination 137 (2001) 1–6

well as the operation of evacuating contained air The temperature of the water in each
coming from the water in the system. It can also evaporator and the tank was measured by copper-
be used to draw water into the system [4]. nickel thermocouples and recorded at any time on
The solar cells are crystal silicon cells of a chart paper. The electric generation by solar cells
nominal conversion efficiency of 13%. To was measured every day by an electric power
provide AC current to the vacuum pump, an meter, and the total hourly accumulated solar
inverter is used. A set of batteries prepares to insulation measured by total solar pyrheliometer
store electricity. The dimensions of the system (J) and recorded on recording paper.
are 9 m length, 3.2 m width, and 2.3 m height, 5 t After finishing the operations of the day (at
approximate dry weight and 11 t approximate sunset), the distilled water in the distilled water
operating weight. The area of the solar cells is tank was recovered after the vacuum of the
about 5.1 m2, and the evaporators are about system was broken. The volume of distilled water
3.3-m-long cylinders with a heat exchanger. produced by each evaporator in each distilled
water tank was measured with a balance. This
cyclical operation was repeated manually every
4. Proving the test procedure day. During the second day of operation,
One hour before sunrise, 4000 l of brackish evaporators were drained and refilled again from
water were prepared in a saline water tank and the saline water tank where the drained water
200 l in each evaporator (total 600 l). The water- after mixing with brackish water is recycled and
filled evaporators were evacuated by the vacuum feeded as raw brine to the tank.
pump. The pressure inside became the vapor
pressure of the water, which can be reached
5. Results of the tests
within 15 min (to a value of −74 to −73 cmHg),
but evacuation is continued for another 15 min to The results of the data obtained during the
remove the air contained in the water. first year of operation were analyzed. Table 1
Table 1
Average daily solar insolation, power generation, highest distilled water production and lowest distilled water production
for each month
Average daily Highest production, kg/d Lowest production, kg/d
Insolation, KJ/m2.d Power generation
January 11,455 920 96.6 5.03
February 14,397 924 135.7 1.1
March 20,165 986 137.6 37.9
April 24,396 983 164.5 52.2
May 27,821 939 167.6 110.75
June 29,491 941 176.5 125.4
July 29,051 952 204.5 123.5
August 25,913 836 161.5 125
September 22,242 994 154 112
October 17,313 959 144.5 92.6
November 12,552 945 109.9 7.5
December 10,195 914 85 0
Avg. month 18,204 941 145 66
 M.S. Abu-Jabal et al. / Desalination 137 (2001) 1–6
Fig. 2. Average monthly variation of solar insolation,
distilled water productivity.
Fig. 4. Comparison of average daily productivity and
insolation.
summarizes the average daily solar insolation,
power generation, highest distilled water
production and lowest distilled water production
for each month. It is clear that the highest solar
average daily insolation (29,491 KJ/m2.d) was in
June–July, with the highest daily production of
204.5 l/d, while the lowest was in the month of
December, where the highest production is 85 l/d
with insolation of 10,195 KJ/m2.d. December has
only 1 day of zero output.
The average monthly variation of solar inso-
lation, distilled water productivity is shown in
Fig. 2. It is clear from the figure that the average
daily productivity (l/m2.d) increases with the
increase of solar insolation. Fig. 3 indicates that
5
Fig. 3. Relationship between productivity and solar
insolation.
Fig. 5. Comparison of average daily productivity and
electric power generated.
the increment of the productivity is directly
proportional to solar insolation increase.
Fig. 4 shows a comparison between the
average daily productivity of distilled water for
the three effects. The relationship equation is:
q = 0.1 × s2 + 0.9 × s −4.5 (1)
Fig. 5 also indicates that there is a relationship
between average daily distilled water product-
ivity and the average power generated. The
relationship is:
q = 3×10−6×e2 + 0.003×e −4.5 (2)
6 M.S. Abu-Jabal et al. / Desalination 137 (2001) 1–6
6. Conclusions and recommendations
After performing the proving test in a semi-
arid climate, we found the following features:
• All heat and electricity for this system is
supplied from solar radiation, so it can be
used in isolated areas (or for emergency
purposes) such as desert villages of the
Arabian Gulf countries and Libya.
• Ecologically the system is considered as a
zero-emission (zero-brine-discharge) system.
• Operation of the system is very easy.
• Distilled water productivity for this system is
higher than other solar desalination processes.
• High corrosion-resistant material is used for
saline water contacting surfaces making it
durable for very hard water such as seawater.
• Maintenance for the system is not significant;
maintenance is required for the vacuum pump
inspection, battery replacement (batteries are
now working for more than 2 years), and
cleaning of the solar cell panel and solar
collectors.
• For getting more water production, a number
of units can be used in parallel.
• The running cost rises by daily operation and
for periodical maintenance cost for the
vacuum pump.
• The water quality produced is very high
because the evaporation method is used. It can
be utilized for drinking, pharmaceuticals,
laboratories, industry, and microirrigation.
7. Symbols
e — Electric power generation, Wh/d
q — Distilled water productivity, l/m2.d
s — Solar insolation, kJ×103/m2.d
References
[1] A. El-Bahi and D. Ian, Desalination, 123 (1999) 79.
[2] M.A.S. Malik, G.N. Tiwari, A. Kumar and M.S.
Sodha, Solar Distillation, Pergamon Press, Oxford,
1982.
[3] S. Kalogirou, Appl. Energy, 60 (1998) 65.
[4] H. Nishikawa, T. Tsuchiya, Y. Narasaki, I. Kamya
and H. Sato, App. Therm. Eng., 18 (1998) 1067.
[5] New Technology Japan, 26 (1998) 6.