Computational fluid dynamics simulations of solar-assisted, spacer-filled direct contact membrane distillation: Seeking performance improvement

Significant downstream performance reduction and concentration polarisation reduce direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) efficiency. These challenges are not well researched since they are difficult to implement experimentally and numerically. Hence, this study examined the impact of solar absorbers and different spacer filaments upon DCMD performance. A 2D computational fluid dynamics model that considered simultaneous mass and heat transfer across the membrane and throughout the channels was developed to simulate water flux in DCMD modules under the use of solar absorbers and spacer filaments of various designs. The simulation outcomes were in excellent agreement with experimental results provided by two different studies, with the assisted solar absorber module and the spacer-filled module deviating