Desalinated water and hydrogen generation from seawater via a desalination unit and a low temperature electrolysis using a novel solar-based setup

Abstract This study investigates the proficiency of employing solar energy in a novel setup geared towards simultaneous production of desalinated water and hydrogen wielding parabolic trough solar collectors (prime mover) in three solar radiation approaches; low radiation, high irradiation and no radiation. Targeted for coastal areas, this setup generates electricity using an organic Rankine cycle; utilizing its waste heat, a desalination unit applying humidification and dehumidification processes, yields desalinated water. Subsequently, hydrogen is produced through exploiting a proton exchange membrane electrolyser as a low temperature electrolyser fed by electricity and water. One of the cardinal points of this system is the production of hydrogen by means of electricity and desalinated water obtained from previous stages. With the purpose of determining the efficiency of this setup, a parametric study has been conducted grounded on the effect of important parameters on production rates and different efficiencies. Ensuing, multi-objective optimization is set forth by implementing a genetic algorithm in order to effectuate the optimal design state. The results indicated that the desalination rate in the three solar radiation approaches mentioned are 1.76 kg/s, 1.07 kg/s and 1.36 kg/s, respectively, and the hydrogen production rate are 4.33 g/s, 2.62 g/s and 3.54 g/s, correspondingly.