The disclosure provides systems methods and apparatus for purifying water. A purification device includes a heating vessel adapted to receive impure water and output water or water vapor. The device further includes at least one heating element arranged outside and in thermal contact with the heating vessel, configured to provide heat to the impure water. The device also includes at least one heat exchanger to exchange heat between the impure water and the water vapor to raise the temperature of the impure water. In some example implementations, the at least one heating element can include a Peltier cell.

A multi-functional slurry processing system (“VARCOR”) and associated methods is disclosed. The present examples provide a multi-functional slurry processing system incorporating systems and methods for separating liquid and solid components in slurries. In particular the systems and methods described herein produce clean water, dried solids, and potential concentration of desirable constituents with a boiling point lower than water. At least one example of the multi-functional slurry processing system provides a self-contained processing facility configured to efficiently convert high water-content slurries into its constituent solid and liquid fractions and subsequently generating and collecting clean water and concentrating desirable constituents with a boiling point lower than water. The multi-functional slurry processing system advantageously applies thermodynamic principles in a system which may include various combinations of a preheater, a degassing unit, a dryer, a steam filter, a compressor, a concentrating tower, and a condensation unit.

Equipment and procedure for extraction of solids from contaminated fluids whose basic purpose is to obtain the crystallised solids from the contaminated fluids, without any type of rejection in order to valorize them and to obtain purified water in a single stage, all in a continuous adiabatic/sonic process with evaporation/crystallisation and with low energy consumption and where the procedure is characterised by being constituted basically by at least three circuits fully interconnected as a single piece of equipment where the first circuit, the principal circuit, is constituted by an inlet duct of the contaminated fluid to be treated (1) followed by a pre-filter (2) followed by a filter for fine particles (3), a heat exchanger of preheated contaminated fluid (5) in the heat exchanger (4), followed by a fluid feedback pump (6) to a nozzle formed by an injector (7) and an ejector (8), which introduce the fluid to an evaporation chamber (9), where the steam that exits is introduced into a closed-loop electromagnetic servomechanism (26), an saturated steam ejector outlet (32), driven to the heat exchanger (4), outlet (13) as purified water from the saturated steam (22).

A distillation apparatus for removing a solvent from a feed solution and producing a concentrated solute with mechanical recompression of vapor. A pre-heating heat exchanger receives and heats the feed solution from a previously produced intermediate instance of the vapor. A heat exchanger receives the feed solution from the pre-heating heat exchanger, to further heat the feed solution from heat in the vapor, and there from produce the vapor and the concentrated solute. A separator separates the vapor and the concentrated solute. And a compressor receives and compresses the vapor.

A cooling and desalination system includes a humidification-dehumidification (HDH) system and an ejector cooling cycle (ECC) system. The HDH system includes a heater for heating saline water, a humidifier for humidifying a carrier gas using the saline water, and a dehumidifier for dehumidifying the carrier gas to obtain desalinated water. The ECC system includes a generator for generating a primary flow of a refrigerant, an evaporator for cooling and providing a secondary flow of the refrigerant, an ejector for the primary flow and the secondary flow to pass through to obtain a super-heated stream, and a condenser. The heater and the generator are configured to connect to a heat source. The ECC system and the HDH system are connected at the condenser for heat exchange between the super-heated stream and the saline water to pre-heat the saline water.

A multimode system for cooling and desalination includes a humidification-dehumidification (HDH) system, an ejector cooling cycle (ECC) system and valves. The HDH system includes a heater, a humidifier and a dehumidifier. The ECC system includes a generator, an evaporator, an ejector and a condenser. The valves are configured to connect to inlets and outlets of the heater, the generator and a heat source so that by selectively opening and closing the valves, the heat source is connected to the heater while disconnected from the generator, or connected to the generator while disconnected from the heater, or connected to both the heater and the generator, or disconnected from both the heater and the generator. The ECC system and the HDH system are connected at the condenser for heat exchange.

A cooling system utilizes an organic ionic salt composition for dehumidification of an airflow. The organic ionic salt composition absorbs moisture from an inlet airflow to produce an outlet airflow with a reduce moisture from that of the inlet airflow. The organic ionic salt composition may be regenerated, wherein the absorbed moisture is expelled by heating with a heating device. The heating device may be an electrochemical heating device, such as a fuel cell, an electrochemical metal hydride heating device, an electrochemical heat pump or compressor, or a condenser of a refrigerant cycle, which may utilize an electrochemical pump or compressor. The efficiency of the cooling system may be increased by utilization of the waste heat the cooling system. The organic ionic salt composition may circulate back and forth or in a loop between a conditioner, where it absorbs moisture, to a regenerator, where moisture is desorbed by heating.

The invention is a method for liquid, gaseous or supercritical phase chromatography which involves circulating, on a chromatograph (6) containing a stationary phase, a load (1) comprising components to be separated entrained by a carrier fluid (2), said method being characterized in that it involves: (a) obtaining, at the outlet of the chromatograph, a plurality of chromatographic fractions (3, 4) comprising at least one component of the load and the carrier fluid in a first fluid phase, (b) imposing a change of state on at least one of said chromatographic fractions (3, 4) so as to obtain at least one fraction of purified carrier fluid in a second fluid phase different from the first fluid phase by separating said carrier fluid from the component of the load, (c) imposing a change of state in a reverse direction to that of step (b) on at least one fraction of purified carrier fluid obtained in step (b) so as to obtain at least one fraction of purified carrier fluid in a third fluid phase different to the second fluid phase, and in that it involves coupling the change-of-state energies from the first fluid phase to the second fluid phase and from the second fluid phase to the third fluid phase of the same or of another fraction of purified carrier fluid, said coupling comprising a transfer of heat using a heat pump.

A cooling system utilizes an organic ionic salt composition for dehumidification of an airflow. The organic ionic salt composition absorbs moisture from an inlet airflow to produce an outlet airflow with a reduce moisture from that of the inlet airflow. The organic ionic salt composition may be regenerated, wherein the absorbed moisture is expelled by heating with a heating device. The heating device may be an electrochemical heating device, such as a fuel cell, an electrochemical metal hydride heating device, an electrochemical heat pump or compressor, or a condenser of a refrigerant cycle, which may utilize an electrochemical pump or compressor. The efficiency of the cooling system may be increased by utilization of the waste heat the cooling system. The organic ionic salt composition may circulate back and forth or in a loop between a conditioner, where it absorbs moisture, to a regenerator, where moisture is desorbed by heating.

A solar distillation system for producing a distillate and providing cooling for a structure or appliance, and a method of using the system to produce a distillate and cool a structure or appliance. The system includes a distillate cooling coil, a secondary cooling coil, an expansion valve which is capable of controlling an amount of a coolant that flows through each of the coils. The system also includes a compressor, a plurality of sensors including a temperature sensor and a distillate flow sensor, and a controller which receives input from the sensors and controls the activity of the compressor and expansion valve. The system is capable of producing distillate at night in the absence of solar radiation.