> In the meantime, the leftover salt continues to circulate through and out of the device, rather than accumulating and clogging the system.
I don't want to detract from the innovation of this, however my understanding is that one of the largest unsolved problems with desalination is what to do with the waste product: usually incredibly salty brackish water. Dumping it back into the ocean can be disruptive to the local ecosystem.
I don't want to detract from the innovation of this, however my understanding is that one of the largest unsolved problems with desalination is what to do with the waste product: usually incredibly salty brackish water. Dumping it back into the ocean can be disruptive to the local ecosystem.
A quick search turned up this Scientific American article about the issue: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/slaking-the-world...
"The excess salt decreases dissolved oxygen in the water, suffocating animals on the seafloor"
"In addition to harming sea life, extreme salinity also makes desalinating the water more difficult and expensive."