Improving the energy efficiency of industrial wastewater treatment

The system is 50 per cent more efficient than existing technologies and recovers 75 to 85 per cent of water

Spotted: New data suggests that urban methane emissions may have been inadvertently underreported by a factor of three to four. When assessed across cities around the world that have populations of two million or more, the amount of underreported methane emissions could be nearly 22 per cent of the global total. Interestingly, the amount of methane correlates with the “estimated rates of untreated wastewater.” 

Treating wastewater is an expensive process and is estimated to use up to three per cent of global energy output. As a means of reducing the carbon footprint of the water treatment industry, UK’s Salinity Solutions has created a system, called SAM50, with such a small footprint that it fits inside a 20-foot shipping container.  

The SAM50 system’s efficiency is extremely high, using approximately 0.8 kilowatt hours (kWh) per cubic metre of water. Each unit processes up to 26 cubic metres of water per day and has been designed for quick installation and plug-and-play use. The system uses reverse osmosis technology to treat effluent and brine, extract minerals, and produce reusable water. Salinity Solutions’ patented pressure exchange process significantly reduces the amount of energy required to run the system, and the reverse osmosis separates highly concentrated volumes of minerals and other materials from the water.  

Salinity Solutions’ first in-field trial of the system was held in Cornwall with Cornish Lithium and concentrated the lithium found in shallow geothermal waters. 

Water is such an important global resource that Springwise is spotting a range of innovations making it easier and more sustainable to clean it, like a solar-powered method and a system that also generates energy during the purification process.

Written By: Keely Khoury