Battery-Based Desalination Method

Feb-05-16 A desalination method inspired by the principles of a sodium ion battery can desalinate salt water more effectively than reverse osmosis, while also using less energy.

Created by a team from the University of Illinois, the battery was inspired by the design of conventional sodium ion batteries, which use salt water. In conventional two-chambered sodium ion batteries, the sodium and chloride ion are drawn into one chamber as the battery discharges, leaving behind desalinated water in the other. When the current flows in the other direction, however, the ions move back.

To keep the ions from re-entering the desalinated water, the team installed a membrane in the device that “blocks sodium between the two electrodes,” and keeps it from returning to the now-pure water. The system not only uses less energy than reverse osmosis, but can also be built to different sizes and can be adjusted for water flow more easily.

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[GIZMAG.COM]
[NEWS.ILLINOIS.EDU]

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