Simulation and optimization of humidification-dehumidification evaporation system

In this paper, a theoretical and experimental investigation on HDH evaporation system performance was performed. A fixed size HDH system was constructed, and for the purpose to obtain the optimal operating parameters, a mathematical model was proposed to investigate the effect of the operating parameters on the evaporation rate and specific steam consumption (SSC). The evaporation rate is proportional to three operating parameters. SSC decrease with the increase of heat recovery ratio (HRR) in regenerator. Moreover, the operating parameters of the system were optimized to obtain minimum SSC using the GlobalSearch algorithm. The minimum SSC is 0.338–0.398 kg per kg of evaporated water at different evaporation capacities. And the value of minimum SSC increases with an increase in the evaporation limit. Furthermore, the experimental results were compared with the optimized results, and they are in good agreement. Considering both the evaporation rate and SSC, the recommended operating parameters are: mg = 502.53 kg/h, ml = 3556.93 kg/h, Tlie = 83.59 °C. •A simulation model is proposed to investigate the HDH evaporation system performance.•The effects of the operational parameters on the evaporation capacity and specific steam consumption (SSC) are discussed.•An optimization program for minimum SSC was developed.•A pilot HDH evaporation system was built, and the experimental results are consistent with the theoretical results.