Water Desalination and Reuse Center, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal 23955, Saudi Arabia.
Water Desalination and Reuse Center, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal 23955, Saudi Arabia; Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS). DHA, Lahore 54792, Pakistan.
Water Res. 2021 Dec 1;207:117794. doi: 10.1016/j.watres.2021.117794. Epub 2021 Oct 25.
As a byproduct of desalination plants, brine is increasingly becoming a threat to the environment, and the design of zero-liquid discharge (ZLD) systems is gaining increasing attention. Existing ZLD systems are limited by a high energy intensity and high plant costs of their crystallizers. This study proposes a novel crystallization method based on the humidification-dehumidification (HDH) process, which exhibits the advantages of a low energy consumption, low component costs and a reduced scaling and fouling potential. A simple experimental setup is first designed to demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed system. Brine concentration and salt crystallization are successfully achieved with air heated to 40 °C as the heat source. Afterwards, a thermo-economic analysis is conducted for the whole system. The specific thermal energy and electricity consumption levels are found to range from 700-900 and 5-11 kJ, respectively, per kg of feed brine. The energy consumption is 56% lower than that of a conventional evaporative crystallizer, and the initial plant cost is reduced by 58%.
作为海水淡化厂的副产品，盐水对环境的威胁越来越大，因此零液体排放（ZLD）系统的设计受到了越来越多的关注。现有的 ZLD 系统受到其结晶器高能耗和高设备成本的限制。本研究提出了一种基于增湿-去湿（HDH）过程的新型结晶方法，该方法具有能耗低、部件成本低以及结垢和结垢潜力降低的优点。首先设计了一个简单的实验装置来验证该系统的可行性。以加热至 40°C 的空气作为热源，成功实现了盐水浓缩和盐结晶。然后，对整个系统进行了热经济学分析。发现每公斤进料盐水的比热能耗和电耗分别在 700-900 和 5-11 kJ 范围内。与传统的蒸发式结晶器相比，能耗降低了 56%，初始设备成本降低了 58%。
