A team of researchers at the University of Sheffield in the UK and Port Said University in Egypt are working together to develop a way to desalinate water using entirely renewable energy.
Energy 2050, an energy research institute based at the University of Sheffield, is combining biogas, a renewable energy source produced from waste and manure, and solar energy to develop a sustainable way to provide potable water to poor, rural communities in Egypt.
Desalination projects require enormous amounts of energy, and solar energy alone, due to inconsistent sunlight, can’t efficiently power a desalination system. To resolve the solar energy deficiency, researchers will develop a cheap and plentiful solar-biogas hybrid. “Whole solar energy has been used extensively in water desalination applications,” said Mark Walker, research associate at Energy 2050. “The application of biogas from anaerobic digestion as a backup to solar energy is an entirely new idea.”
“This project will investigate the design and operation of desalination systems based on energy supplied by an off-grid integrated renewable energy system,” Walker informed TUN.
Egypt is in the middle of a huge water crisis, and its population rises simultaneously with the poverty rate. This, combined with Egypt’s high percentage of brackish and salt water, makes Egypt ideal for a desalination project. Energy 2050 is partnering with Port Said University because researchers “have expertise in solar energy and desalination systems and an interest in looking at off-grid freshwater production for rural areas of Egypt,” said Walker.
Initial demonstrations of the system will be conducted in Egypt and overseen by researchers from Energy 2050 and Port Said University. If deemed successful, the desalination systems will be implemented throughout poor, salt-water rich regions of Egypt.
Environmental and Economic Advantages
Creating fresh drinking water through sustainable methods has both environmental and economic advantages. “The system will be powered by renewable energy from solar and biomass resources and therefore will not be associated with greenhouse gas emissions,” said Walker. “Furthermore, the system will reduce the demand for freshwater from currently available sources while providing a solution to local organic waste management. Access to freshwater and biogas are associated with reductions in poverty levels in rural areas through increases in health and quality of life prospects.”
This project takes us one step closer towards sustainability because it eliminates the consumption of fossil fuels while producing drinking water. Also, “anaerobic digestion, which produces biogas, can provide a sustainable option for the management of organic wastes and convert them into a nutrient rich biofertiliser, which can increase the sustainability of local farming,” said Walker.
Potential for Growth
This hybrid energy system is still in research stages, but has vast potential to grow. “Initially the system would be designed for rural Egypt, such as the Sinai and Red Sea areas, as well as poor communities without access to clean water in the Nile-Delta and Upper Egypt,” said Walker. “However, the developed technology would be applicable to many areas of the world where freshwater resources are scarce but seawater or brackish water is available.”
Projects like this one have the potential to remedy fresh drinking water shortages in poor rural regions close to salt water, such as Egypt. Desalination has been around for years, but eats up a lot of energy. If the combination of biogas and solar energy successfully makes desalination environmentally sustainable, it would solve a major water issue.
