Humidification-dehumidification desalination is simple and can avoid membranes. However, it has a high energy consumption especially when assigned a dedicated energy source. This research proposes to serially couple the cathode airflow of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell directly to open loop humidification-dehumidification desalination, which recycles the waste heat of the fuel cell and additionally, the water vapor generated by the electrochemical reaction. A combined experiment and simulation approach is carried out to analyze the system. Several experimental trials involving different amounts of packing materials are carried out to assess the trade-off between higher humidification efficiency and increasing resistance against airflow. Then, after model validation via the experiment, simulation studies are carried out. Results reveal that an airflow rate-specific fuel cell output power of over 40 kJ/kg is recommended to ensure the exhaust gas is over 65°C and has a relative humidity of under 20 %, which are proper conditions for humidification-dehumidification desalination. Moreover, although increasing the packing material increases the humidification efficiency, it also impacts the airflow rate and heat exchange rate, which results in a worsening desalination rate. Finally, the experiment demonstrated a maximum desalination rate of 1.13 kg/h when the seawater temperature is 35°C.

中文翻译：

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燃料电池排气与加湿除湿耦合高效海水淡化参数分析

加湿除湿脱盐简单，可免膜。然而，它的能耗很高，尤其是在分配专用能源时。本研究提出将质子交换膜燃料电池的阴极气流直接与开环加湿除湿海水淡化串联耦合，回收燃料电池的废热以及电化学反应产生的水蒸气。采用实验和仿真相结合的方法来分析系统。进行了几项涉及不同数量的包装材料的实验，以评估更高的加湿效率和增加的气流阻力之间的权衡。然后，通过实验验证模型后，进行仿真研究。结果表明，建议采用40 kJ/kg以上的特定风量燃料电池输出功率，以保证废气温度在65℃以上、相对湿度在20%以下，这是加湿除湿海水淡化的适宜条件。此外，增加填充材料虽然提高了加湿效率，但也影响了风量和热交换率，导致脱盐率变差。最终，实验证明，当海水温度为35℃时，最大脱盐率可达1.13 kg/h。