63
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
this post was submitted on 03 Oct 2023
63 points (95.7% liked)
Science
13257 readers
39 users here now
Subscribe to see new publications and popular science coverage of current research on your homepage
founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS
You don't have to dump it undiluted in the ocean. You can mix it with an outgoing treated wastewater stream if your system doesn't recycle it (or if you do recycle it then you have less need for more fresh water so your desalination plant can be smaller), or disperse it over a larger area for a gentler salinity gradient.
The real problem, as with anything, is the cost that would add. But if this technology can produce water for a negligible ongoing cost, that might be worthwhile.
This Practical Engineering video gives a great overview of the challenges and some of the existing solutions with desalination, including how to get rid of concentrated saltwater waste (in the context of reverse osmosis desalination, which this tech is kind of a hybrid of reverse osmosis and distillation).