Thermodynamic investigation of waste heat driven desalination unit based on humidification dehumidification (HDH) processes

•HDH desalination system powered by waste heat is proposed.•Performance of the desalination unit and the relevant heat recovery effect is calculated.•Sensitive analysis of the performance for the HDH desalination system is investigated.•Mathematical model based on the first and second laws of thermodynamics is established.

Humidification dehumidification (HDH) technology is an effective pattern to separate freshwater from seawater or brackish water. In this paper, a closed-air open-water (CAOW) desalination unit coupled with plate heat exchangers (PHEs) is applied to recover the waste heat from the gas exhaust. Sensitivity analysis for the HDH desalination unit as well as the PHEs from the key parameters including the top and initial temperature of the seawater, operation pressure, and the terminal temperature difference (TTD) of the PHEs are accomplished, and the corresponding performance of the whole HDH desalination system is calculated and presented. The simulation results show that the balance condition of the dehumidifier is allowed by the basic thermodynamic laws, followed by a peak value of gained-output-ratio (GOR) and a bottom value of total specific entropy generation. It is concluded that excellent results including the system performance, heat recovery effect and investment of the PHEs can be simultaneously obtained with a low top temperature, while the obtained desalination performance and the heat recovery effect from other measures are always conflicting. Different from other parameters of the desalination unit, the terminal temperature difference of the PHEs has little influences on the final value of GOR.