Dr. Taeyoung Kim, an Assistant Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering with a joint appointment to the Institute for a Sustainable Environment at Clarkson University, along with his collaborator, Dr. Soryong Chae, Associate Professor of Chemical and Environmental Engineering at the University of Cincinnati have received a $250,000 award from the Department of the Interior for their research project titled, “Low Energy and High Water Recovery Desalination of Brackish Groundwater Using a Compact and Redox-Driven Electrochemical System”.
Drs. Kim and Chae’s goal for the project is to develop an electrochemical separation process driven by a redox couple, called redox flow desalination (RFD), for low energy (< 0.5 kWh/m3) and high water recovery (> 80%) desalination of brackish groundwater (BGW) at a practical productivity range (~ 45 L/m2/hr).
The team will use the funds to use actual groundwater sources, pretreatment, and multiple cell pairs for long-term operation. The work will reduce energy consumption and lower the cost of desalination and develop novel approaches or processes to desalinate water in a way that reduced primary energy use because the use of a compact and modular desalination system will achieve low energy desalination at high water recovery as well as minimized pretreatment costs. The development of cost-effective and energy-efficient technologies to transform brackish groundwater into high-quality water offers a sustainable avenue for future water supply.