A new solar desalination system takes in saltwater and heats it with natural sunlight. The system flushes out accumulated salt, so replacement parts aren’t needed often, meaning the system could potentially produce drinking water that is cheaper than tap water.
  • space_comrade [he/him]
    ·
    1 year ago

    The researchers estimate that if the system is scaled up to the size of a small suitcase, it could produce about 4 to 6 liters of drinking water per hour and last several years before requiring replacement parts. At this scale and performance, the system could produce drinking water at a rate and price that is cheaper than tap water.

    Sounds too good to be true tbh but I'd very much like to be wrong.

    • Adkml [he/him]
      ·
      1 year ago

      That pesky word could popping up repeatedly is a big old red flag.

      But yea just from like a conservation of energy standpoint doesn't make a lot of sense.

      Desalination is hard because it takes energy tonget the bad stuff and the good water away from each other.

      I don't see any way it's easier to do that with saltwater than regular water. It's why we don't do it with salt water even though that's the majority of water.

      Saying it can reliably produce 4 to 6 litres an hour would be super impressive.

      Saying you can do it with less resources than if you were using fresh water is another matter entirely.