Overcoming Water Scarcity Through Solar – Driven Distillation: A Sustainable Solution for Home use

Abstract

Water demand from the municipal sector experienced a considerable increase and will continue growing as populations urbanize. In developing countries, poor water quality is due to the lack of water treatment facilities. As of 2022, 2.2 billion people were without access to safely managed drinking water (SDG Target 6.1) (Statistics | UN World Water Development Report, 2024.). The research addresses the pressing concern of clean drinking water scarcity, driven by industrial contamination and the insignificant upkeep of existing water filtration plants for urban households. The methodology presents research and development of a sequential schematic process to address the problem. To identify current condition of drinking water availability, testing and analysis of samples collected from different areas of Lahore, Pakistan was conducted. Thereafter, the design optimization for the development of a portable water purification system powered by solar energy was performed. It integrates a parabolic sunlight concentrator with a solar tracking system which maximizes efficiency to distillate brackish groundwater, reducing contaminants while minimizing energy consumption by employing renewable energy. The study will not only provide a framework to improve water quality and public health but also align with the sustainable development goals (SDG 3, SDG 6, SDG 7) ultimately contributing towards worldwide sustainable water management practices.