Regeneration of dimethyl ether as a draw solute in forward osmosis by utilising thermal energy from a solar pond

Abstract

Utilisation of solar thermal energy in forward osmosis (FO) can provide an attractive method for seawater desalination. This study presents a novel process for the regeneration of dimethyl ether (DME) as a draw solute in FO using thermal energy from a solar pond. The location considered for this process is Chabahar (Iran) which benefits from a very high solar irradiance and access to an abundance of seawater from the Sea of Oman making it an ideal location for the proposed process. The average daily volume of desalinated water produced using this process coupled to a solar pond of 10,000 m2 was determined. It is indicated that a solar pond of such moderate size can drive a forward osmosis plant to provide 5,210 m3 of freshwater in the first two years of operation in Chabahar. The proposed process provides freshwater at varying rates throughout the year and benefits from a very low electricity consumption rate of 0.46 kWh per cubic metre of desalinated water offering a viable option for solar desalination. Considering that there are vast uninhabited coastal areas particularly in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, the proposed method can contribute towards addressing the growing potable water scarcity

Experimental analysis of the temperature and concentration profiles in a salinity gradient solar pond with, and without a liquid cover to suppress evaporation

“…A significant number of studies has focused on using SGSPs as an energy source for applications beyond desalination that require only low-grade heat (Ranjan and Kaushik, 2014;Zaragoza et al, 2014;Bozkurt and Karakilcik, 2012;Ziapour et al, 2016;and Abbassi Monjezi and Campbell, 2017b). It is vital that if the potential of these applications is to be realised, the fundamental issues with solar pond performance, efficiency and cost are tackled.…”

Forward Osmosis Membrane Technology in Wastewater Treatment

“…heating [22] 1--Cyclohexylpiperidine (CHP) heating [23] Organic compounds Micellar solution UF [24] oxalic acid complexes with Fe/Cr/Na nanofiltration (NF) [25] trimethylamine-carbon dioxide heating [26] CO2-responsive polymers (PDMAEMA) UF [27] poly(sodium styrene-4-sulfonate-co-Nisopropylacrylamide) (PSSS-PNIPAM) MD [28] Switchable polarity solvent (SPS) RO [29] polyelectrolyte incorporated with triton-x114 MD [30] dimethyl ether heating with solar energy [31] poly(4-styrenesulfonic acid-co-maleic acid) NF [32] Super hydrophilic nanoparticles UF [33] hydrophilic superparamagnetic nanoparticles magnetic separation [34] Functional nanoparticles magnetic core-hydrophilic shell nanosphere magnetic separation [35] thermoresponsive Magnetic Nanoparticle magnetic separation [36] dextran-coated MNPs magnetic separation magnetic separation [37] hyperbranched polyglycerol coated MNPs magnetic separation [38] In addition to fouling of membrane, concentration polarization has an impact on the water flux, particularly at the support layer, which leads to the severity in internal concentration polarization (ICP). A low ICP requires a low S-value (structural parameter) [43,77].…”

Recent Advance on Draw Solutes Development in Forward Osmosis

“…NaCl reverse osmosis (RO) [33] inorganic fertilizer direct use [45] potassium sulfate (K 2 SO 4 ) RO [33] sodium nitrate (NaNO 3 ) direct use [46] aluminum sulfate (Al 2 (SO 4 ) 3 ) precipitation [47] magnesium sulfate (MgSO 4 ), copper sulfate (CuSO 4 ) precipitation [48,49] Organic compounds Switchable polarity solvent (SPS) RO [50] sodium polyacrylate (PAA-Na) ultrafiltration (UF), membrane distillation (MD) [51,52] CO 2 -responsive polymers (PDMAEMA) UF [53] poly(sodium styrene-4-sulfonate-co-N-isopropylacrylamide) (PSSS-PNIPAM) MD [54] poly (aspartic acid sodium salt) MD [55] N,N-dimethylcyclohexylamine (N(Me) 2 Cy) heating [56] 1-Cyclohexylpiperidine (CHP) heating [57] Micellar solution UF [58] oxalic acid complexes with Fe/Cr/Na nanofiltration (NF) [59] 2-Methylimidazole compounds MD [60] trimethylamine-carbon dioxide heating [61] glucose, fructose RO [62][63][64] polyelectrolyte incorporated with triton-x114 MD [65] dimethyl ether heating with solar energy [66] poly(4-styrenesulfonic acid-co-maleic acid) NF [67] Functional nanoparticles…”