MIT and Korean Researchers Create New Portable Desalination Device
Novel device in large numbers could provide clean water to remote areas of the world and used in times of natural disasters
A single unit of the new desalination device, fabricated on a layer of silicone. In the Y-shaped channel (in red), seawater enters from the right, and fresh water leaves through the lower channel at left, while concentrated brine leaves through the upper channel.
Photo: Patrick Gillooly/MIT
The desalination device was created using a new approach called ion concentration polarization, and works at a microscopic scale. Although each device is capable of processing just tiny amounts of water, a large array built with the devices (in thousands) would be able to produce 15 liters of water per hour. The researchers have been able to successfully test a single unit, converting seawater to drinking water. Before being desalinated, the seawater was also human-contaminated with small plastic particles and human blood. The novel unit removed more than 99% of the impurities, contaminants, and salt. In the future, the final product would expect to run on as much power as a conventional light bulb.
