Performance enhancement of a solar desalination system using transverse cylinder vibrations: CFD-AI-based prediction

Freshwater production through solar desalination (SDS) is still limited due to low efficiency. This study investigates the effect of transverse cylinder vibrations on the performance of a SDS. The thermal behavior of the SDS is simulated based on a two-dimensional model based on the finite volume method. The effects of parameters affecting the SDS performance such as the amplitude and frequency of oscillation, the location of the cylinder, the temporal patterns of amplitude changes, and the surface temperature of the absorber have been evaluated. The results show that the transverse cylinder oscillation improves the system indicators and causes up to a 1.68-fold increase in water production, a two-fold increase in thermal efficiency, and a 1.97-fold increase in exergy efficiency. Also, the exponentially decreasing amplitude profiles cause the formation of vortices earlier and enhance convective transport in the desalination plant. Definite oscillatory patterns, if properly timed, can increase the system efficiency by up to 68%. The effectiveness of transverse cylinder vibrations is a function of the cylinder position, so that the closer the oscillating cylinder is to the glass cover, the more mixing the boundary layer and the better penetration of vortices, facilitating heat and mass transfer. The effect of the parameters studied on the system performance was evaluated using Sobol sensitivity analysis, and the results indicate that the most effective parameter is the ratio of current to amplitude. Based on the data available in this research and the ANFIS model, the system performance was predicted with a coefficient of determination of R² = 0. 99.