Comments on: New Low Energy Water Treatment Purifies, Desalinates and Makes Hydrogen, Too

By: New PNNL Algae Biofuel Study Shows Promise For US Algae Market

New PNNL Algae Biofuel Study Shows Promise For US Algae Market — Wed, 22 May 2013 16:04:23 +0000

[…] which could help solve part of the water scarcity issue. Aside from salt-friendly strains of algae, solar powered desalination technology is beginning to make seawater-to-freshwater conversion a more cost effective […]

By: MIT Researchers Use Graphene for Energy Efficient Desalination

MIT Researchers Use Graphene for Energy Efficient Desalination — Fri, 06 Jul 2012 16:22:05 +0000

[…] different approach is illustrated by the University of Colorado, where researchers are working on a microbial fuel cell that can run on seawater or wastewater. Aside from generating electricity, the new fuel cell would desalinate and purify […]

By: Martha Booz

Martha Booz — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 20:17:12 +0000

This technology, if development pans out, could make a huge difference in resolving our energy and waste water problems, as well as our fresh water problems. Please keep us informed about future innovations on microbial fuel cells.

By: Tina Casey

Tina Casey — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 22:51:21 +0000

To “dust bowl farmer:” Thanks for your comment. You are right, we need solutions that can address multiple problems at the same time without creating new problems and new expenses. The EPA’s AgStar program is another good example of finding solutions that help farmers cut cuts while reducing pollution.

By: dust bowl farmer

dust bowl farmer — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 18:31:44 +0000

I am a farmer and wish this technology were available commercially already.

East Cherry Creek Water and Sanitation District, located in the southern Denver suburbs, hatched up a plan to put highly saline reverse osmosis discharge water into an aquifer dozens of farmers depend on for irrigation.

This technology would be perfect for them and me as well, as they then wouldn’t have the need to externalize their brine water disposal costs onto farmers.

By: Zachary Shahan

Zachary Shahan — Sat, 04 Dec 2010 22:40:01 +0000

nice points, Bill. Really, I think a large-scale water crisis will be the most critical issue of the coming century if we don’t scale up such technologies and find other solutions fast. (though, food scarcity, natural disasters, and other climate-change-induced issues will probably give water a good run for its money in that critical-issue race if we don’t make fast progress on this general topic)

By: Tina Casey

Tina Casey — Sat, 04 Dec 2010 19:10:46 +0000

Thank you, Bill. We’ve covered Desertec a few times at CleanTechcnica, too:
http://cleantechnica.com/2010/04/18/new-solar-thermal-plant-in-egypt-could-yield-clue-to-sucess-of-massive-desertec-project/
http://cleantechnica.com/2009/06/22/half-a-trillion-dollars-to-build-huge-desertec-plan/
http://cleantechnica.com/2009/11/02/desertec-560-billion-renewable-energy-project-moving-forward/

By: Bill Hewitt

Bill Hewitt — Sat, 04 Dec 2010 18:09:58 +0000

Fantastic story, Tina. A quadruple play indeed. I hope this sort of technology will scale all the way up. Desertec (http://www.desertec.org/), for one, certainly is looking to desalination as a key element in its scheme. Clean water (http://www.worldwaterday.org/) is a scarce resource, as we know, in much of the world.