Large-scale freshwater generation from the humid air using the modified solar chimney

Yongjia Wu, Tingzhen Ming, Renaud de Richter, Rüdiger Höffer and Hans-Jürgen Niemann

Renewable Energy, 2020, vol. 146, issue C, 1325-1336

Abstract: Global Warming will probably modify air circulation patterns and increase the severity of droughts, heat waves, heavy precipitation, and floods across the world. A device called ‘aerological accelerator’ (AeAc) is proposed in this paper to harvest water from the air using a very high tower where the warm and humid air enters from the bottom and rises till the top driven by buoyancy force. This AeAc device is similar in operation principle to a solar chimney power plant (SCPP) with additional features. A mathematical model was developed to calculate the potential energy and water that can be generated in various environments. The calculation results show that clouds are generated within and out of the chimney and the latent heat released by the vapor can noticeably increase the power output of the modified SCPP. With a proper water collecting method, the system can supply water and carbon-free renewable energy for residential and agricultural use. The present study opens the perspective that with minor improvements, significant energy and freshwater production might be possible using these tall engineering structures, whose high chimney can be built thanks to fabric balloons filled with gases lighter than air.

Keywords: Aerological accelerator; Solar chimney; Renewable energy; Freshwater harvesting (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:renene:v:146:y:2020:i:c:p:1325-1336

DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2019.07.061

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