Patent ID: 8778065

Claim:
A humidification-dehumidification system comprising: a humidifier including a carrier-gas inlet and a carrier-gas outlet; a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet, wherein the feed-liquid inlet is coupled with a feed-liquid source; and a humidifier chamber in which feed liquid introduced from the feed-liquid source via the liquid inlet can contact a carrier gas that is introduced from the carrier-gas inlet in a counterflow arrangement and in which a portion of the feed liquid can vaporize into the carrier gas; and a bubble-column vapor mixture condenser including at least a first stage and a second stage, wherein each stage includes: a carrier-gas inlet; a carrier-gas outlet; and a condenser chamber containing a condensing bath in fluid communication with the carrier-gas inlet and the carrier-gas outlet, wherein the carrier-gas inlet is positioned to bubble carrier gas from the carrier-gas inlet up through the condensing bath, overcoming a hydrostatic head of the condensing bath, wherein the carrier-gas outlet is positioned with an opening for carrier-gas extraction above the condensing bath, wherein the first-stage carrier-gas inlet is in fluid communication with the carrier-gas outlet of the humidifier, wherein the first-stage carrier-gas outlet is in fluid communication with the carrier-gas inlet of the second stage, and wherein the second-stage carrier-gas outlet is in fluid communication with the carrier-gas inlet of the humidifier to facilitate flow of the carrier gas from the humidifier through the condensing bath in the chamber of the first stage and then through the condensing bath in the chamber of the second stage before returning to the humidifier.