Energetic Valorisation of Saltworks Bitterns via Reverse Electrodialysis: A Laboratory Experimental Campaign
Concentrated bitterns discharged from saltworks have extremely high salinity, often up to 300 g/L, thus their direct disposal not only has a harmful effect on the environment, but also generates a depletion of a potential resource of renewable energy. Here, reverse electrodialysis (RED), an emerging...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2023-02-01
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| Series: | Membranes |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/13/3/293 |
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| author | Syed Abdullah Shah Roberta Cucchiara Fabrizio Vicari Andrea Cipollina Alessandro Tamburini Giorgio Micale |
| author_facet | Syed Abdullah Shah Roberta Cucchiara Fabrizio Vicari Andrea Cipollina Alessandro Tamburini Giorgio Micale |
| author_sort | Syed Abdullah Shah |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Concentrated bitterns discharged from saltworks have extremely high salinity, often up to 300 g/L, thus their direct disposal not only has a harmful effect on the environment, but also generates a depletion of a potential resource of renewable energy. Here, reverse electrodialysis (RED), an emerging electrochemical membrane process, is proposed to capture and convert the salinity gradient power (SGP) intrinsically conveyed by these bitterns also aiming at the reduction of concentrated salty water disposal. A laboratory-scale RED unit has been adopted to study the SGP potential of such brines, testing ion exchange membranes from different suppliers and under different operating conditions. Membranes supplied by Fujifilm, Fumatech, and Suez were tested, and the results were compared. The unit was fed with synthetic hypersaline solution mimicking the concentration of natural bitterns (5 mol/L of NaCl) on one side, and with variable concentration of NaCl dilute solutions (0.01–0.1 mol/L) on the other. The influence of several operating parameters has also been assessed, including solutions flowrate and temperature. Increasing feed solutions’ temperature and velocity has been found to lower the stack resistance, which enhances the output performance of the RED stack. The maximum obtained power density (corrected to account for the effect of electrodic compartments, which can be very relevant in five cell pairs laboratory stacks) reached around 10.5 W/m<sup>2</sup><sub>cellpair</sub>, with FUJIFILM Type 10 membranes, temperature of 40 °C, and a fluid velocity of 3 cm s<sup>−1</sup> (as empty channel, considering 270 μm thickness). Notably, the present study results confirm the large potential for SGP generation from hypersaline brines, thus providing useful guidance for the harvesting of SGP in seawater saltworks all around the world. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T06:12:22Z |
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| id | doaj.art-7b76bd9ad97e4ef5a7e972319c71d23a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-0375 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T06:12:22Z |
| publishDate | 2023-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Membranes |
| spelling | doaj.art-7b76bd9ad97e4ef5a7e972319c71d23a2023-11-17T12:34:30ZengMDPI AGMembranes2077-03752023-02-0113329310.3390/membranes13030293Energetic Valorisation of Saltworks Bitterns via Reverse Electrodialysis: A Laboratory Experimental CampaignSyed Abdullah Shah0Roberta Cucchiara1Fabrizio Vicari2Andrea Cipollina3Alessandro Tamburini4Giorgio Micale5Dipartimento di Ingegneria, Università degli studi di Palermo, Viale delle Scienze ed. 6, 90129 Palermo, ItalyResourSEAs SRL, Viale delle Scienze ed. 16, 90128 Palermo, ItalyResourSEAs SRL, Viale delle Scienze ed. 16, 90128 Palermo, ItalyDipartimento di Ingegneria, Università degli studi di Palermo, Viale delle Scienze ed. 6, 90129 Palermo, ItalyDipartimento di Ingegneria, Università degli studi di Palermo, Viale delle Scienze ed. 6, 90129 Palermo, ItalyDipartimento di Ingegneria, Università degli studi di Palermo, Viale delle Scienze ed. 6, 90129 Palermo, ItalyConcentrated bitterns discharged from saltworks have extremely high salinity, often up to 300 g/L, thus their direct disposal not only has a harmful effect on the environment, but also generates a depletion of a potential resource of renewable energy. Here, reverse electrodialysis (RED), an emerging electrochemical membrane process, is proposed to capture and convert the salinity gradient power (SGP) intrinsically conveyed by these bitterns also aiming at the reduction of concentrated salty water disposal. A laboratory-scale RED unit has been adopted to study the SGP potential of such brines, testing ion exchange membranes from different suppliers and under different operating conditions. Membranes supplied by Fujifilm, Fumatech, and Suez were tested, and the results were compared. The unit was fed with synthetic hypersaline solution mimicking the concentration of natural bitterns (5 mol/L of NaCl) on one side, and with variable concentration of NaCl dilute solutions (0.01–0.1 mol/L) on the other. The influence of several operating parameters has also been assessed, including solutions flowrate and temperature. Increasing feed solutions’ temperature and velocity has been found to lower the stack resistance, which enhances the output performance of the RED stack. The maximum obtained power density (corrected to account for the effect of electrodic compartments, which can be very relevant in five cell pairs laboratory stacks) reached around 10.5 W/m<sup>2</sup><sub>cellpair</sub>, with FUJIFILM Type 10 membranes, temperature of 40 °C, and a fluid velocity of 3 cm s<sup>−1</sup> (as empty channel, considering 270 μm thickness). Notably, the present study results confirm the large potential for SGP generation from hypersaline brines, thus providing useful guidance for the harvesting of SGP in seawater saltworks all around the world.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/13/3/293brinesalinity gradient powerREDsalty water |
| spellingShingle | Syed Abdullah Shah Roberta Cucchiara Fabrizio Vicari Andrea Cipollina Alessandro Tamburini Giorgio Micale Energetic Valorisation of Saltworks Bitterns via Reverse Electrodialysis: A Laboratory Experimental Campaign Membranes brine salinity gradient power RED salty water |
| title | Energetic Valorisation of Saltworks Bitterns via Reverse Electrodialysis: A Laboratory Experimental Campaign |
| title_full | Energetic Valorisation of Saltworks Bitterns via Reverse Electrodialysis: A Laboratory Experimental Campaign |
| title_fullStr | Energetic Valorisation of Saltworks Bitterns via Reverse Electrodialysis: A Laboratory Experimental Campaign |
| title_full_unstemmed | Energetic Valorisation of Saltworks Bitterns via Reverse Electrodialysis: A Laboratory Experimental Campaign |
| title_short | Energetic Valorisation of Saltworks Bitterns via Reverse Electrodialysis: A Laboratory Experimental Campaign |
| title_sort | energetic valorisation of saltworks bitterns via reverse electrodialysis a laboratory experimental campaign |
| topic | brine salinity gradient power RED salty water |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/13/3/293 |
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