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Desalination system could produce freshwater that is cheaper than tap water (news.mit.edu)

submitted 2 years ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Engineers at MIT and in China are aiming to turn seawater into drinking water with a completely passive device that is inspired by the ocean, and powered by the sun.

In a paper appearing today in the journal Joule, the team outlines the design for a new solar desalination system that takes in saltwater and heats it with natural sunlight.

The researchers estimate that if the system is scaled up to the size of a small suitcase, it could produce about 4 to 6 liters of drinking water per hour and last several years before requiring replacement parts. At this scale and performance, the system could produce drinking water at a rate and price that is cheaper than tap water.

https://www.cell.com/joule/fulltext/S2542-4351(23)00360-4

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[–] [email protected] 20 points 2 years ago (8 children)

Where's the cheaper part?

[–] [email protected] 13 points 2 years ago (7 children)

It's just a giant plastic bag. They catch the runoff with a giant cup.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 years ago (5 children)

As soon as I saw the words “powered by the sun” in the synopsis, I knew what this was. I learned this during survival training, it’s a great way to turn piss (or any other undrinkable water) into clean water. And yeah, all you need is some plastic and a cup. Let the water evaporate (power of the sun) and collect the droplets in something. Had no idea that needed a science paper.

Here’s the problem with desalination, tho: what do you do with the leftover super-brine? It’s pretty gnar stuff, like almost poison. Wide-scale desalination would produce tons of it every day. Most solutions i’ve heard are like “just dump it back in the ocean!” Which, yeah, how could that ever go wrong?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 years ago

Did you read the article? You reject the slightly saltier water.

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