ZEMCH 2019 International Conference Proceedings April.2020 | Page 403
1. Introduction
Currently, more than 40% of the worldʹs population suffers from water shortages. In addition, due
to global warming and deepening climate change, uncertainties in water resource use and management
are increasing. Korea, which is relatively rich in water resources, is also concerned about the lack of
water in mountainous and coastal areas due to climate change[1]. Along with these problems, various
measurements are needed for the independence of the building facilities in the island area. While the
development of alternative water resources is needed, seawater desalination technology is receiving
the most attention, and the reverse osmosis method, which consumes less energy than the conventional
evaporation method, is increasing. According to Kim et al. [2], the reverse osmosis system occupies
about 90% in the overseas seawater desalination plant market, and 87.5% of seawater desalination
facilities in Korea use reverse osmosis. Kesieme at al. analyzed desalination technologies in the context
of carbon pricing and found that the cost of desalination schemes increase by introduction of a price
for carbon, but RO still remains lowest cost[3]. However, reverse osmosis also has a limitation in that a
pretreatment facility is essential, energy recovery cannot be more than 50%, and maintenance costs are
high due to membrane replacement[4]. In addition to maintenance costs and energy aspects, existing
seawater desalination systems are difficult to apply to island areas due to their large size. This study
aimed to analyze the mechanism for the optimal design of seawater desalination system using heat
pump that is a compact facility and can be applied as an independent water supply system for island
buildings.
2. Experiment apparatus and method
2.1. Preliminary Research
Through the analysis of previous studies, the basic principles of the seawater desalination system
using the evaporation method were analyzed and reflected in the design of the experimental system.
2.2. Experiment apparatus composition and test method
The experimental apparatus was configured as shown in Figure 1. The blowout air temperature of
the heat pump evaporator and the heat storage tank were measured using a thermocouple. Heat pump
condenser inlet, outlet, temperature and 3way valve temperature were measured by automatic
temperature sensor.
Figure 1. Schematic diagram of seawater desalination system using a heat pump
Mechanism Analysis of Seawater Desalination System using a Heat Pump
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