The invention provides a method of treating waste comprising the steps of: providing an electrochemical cell comprising a cathode, and an anode; supplying a waste stream comprising an organic compound which is a liquid or dissolved in a solvent and contacting the anode and cathode with the waste stream; electrochemically oxidising the organic compound at the anode; supplying oxygen to the cathode; electrochemically reducing the oxygen at the cathode; wherein the cathode comprises a poison resistant oxygen reduction catalyst.

A system and method for vacuum distillation and desalination contains integrated vacuum generation. Latent heat and a vacuum produced with steam condensation are used for distillation and desalination of liquid. The distillation and desalination system could comprise a spray evaporator and a condenser for receiving a feed stream for distillation or desalination. Produced are water flow condensate and concentrated liquid flow. A vacuum pump is actuated with condensation-induced dual-action piston-cylinder vacuum generation technology. The vacuum generator is configured to transfer latent heat from condensing steam vapor in its cylinder to the feed stream. Steam is also configured to transfer latent heat directly to the feed stream circulated through evaporators and condensers. A distillation and desalination method with active vacuuming and self-distillation in staggered multi-stage arrangement provides for efficient energy recovery. Use of multi-stage arrangement maximizes thermal energy usage for increased distillation capacity and applicability.

The present invention relates to water purification using solar energy. More specifically, systems and methods according to the present invention collect solar energy to heat non-potable water in a super-insulated structure. Compressed heated air is injected to evaporate water vapor out of brackish water, saltwater, or dirty water, thereby creating saturated air. The saturated air is drawn through a cooling tower and distilled water is precipitated. The systems and methods employ heat recovery and recycling processes to maximize energy efficiency.

A wastewater treatment system includes a circulating fluidized bed evaporator defining a longitudinal axis vertical with respect to gravity. The evaporator has a wastewater inlet to provide wastewater to the circulating fluidized bed evaporator. A heat inlet is axially below the wastewater inlet to provide heat to the circulating fluidized bed evaporator for evaporating the wastewater. An outlet is axially above the wastewater inlet and the heat inlet.

Disclosed is an automated aquaponics apparatus. The aquaponics apparatus may include at least one fish holding tank configured to contain water. Further, the aquaponics apparatus may include at least one hydroponic unit. Further, the aquaponics apparatus may include a bio-digester. Further, the aquaponics apparatus may include an atmospheric water generator and a desalination reverse osmosis system. Further, the aquaponics apparatus may include an energy production system configured to generate energy. Further, the aquaponics apparatus may include at least one sensor configured to sense at least one variable. Further, the aquaponics apparatus may include a control unit configured to control an operational state of one or more of the at least one fish holding tank, the at least one hydroponic unit, the bio-digester, the desalination reverse osmosis system and the energy production system.

The present invention relates to a seawater desalination system for desalinating seawater by removing salinity from the seawater and an energy recovery apparatus which is preferably used in the seawater desalination system. The energy recovery apparatus includes a cylindrical chamber (CH) being installed such that a longitudinal direction of the chamber is placed in a vertical direction, a concentrated seawater port (P1) for supplying and discharging the concentrated seawater, a seawater port (P2) for supplying and discharging the seawater, a flow resistor (23) provided at a concentrated seawater port (P1) side in the chamber (CH), and a flow resistor (23) provided at a seawater port (P2) side in the chamber (CH). Each of the flow resistor (23) provided at the concentrated seawater port (P1) side and the seawater port (P2) side comprises at least one perforated circular plate, and each perforated circular plate has a plurality of holes formed in an outer circumferential area outside a circle having a predetermined diameter on the perforated circular plate.

Energy may be stored by injecting fluid into a fracture in the earth and producing the fluid back while recovering power and/or desalinating water. The method may be particularly adapted to storage of large amounts of energy such as in grid-scale electric energy systems. The fracture may be formed and treated with resin so as to limit fluid loss and to increase propagation pressure. The fluid may be water containing a dissolved salt or fresh water and a portion or all of the water may be desalinated using pressure in the water when it is produced.

A process for desalinating water is disclosed. The process comprises the steps of passing a feed stream of saline solution 2 in a first desalination step through a reverse osmosis membrane desalination plant 3 comprising at least one reverse osmosis desalination unit 4 to form a first product water stream 5 having a reduced salt concentration relative to that of the feed stream of saline solution 2 and a first byproduct stream 6 having an increased salt concentration relative to that of the feed stream of saline solution 2 characterized in that the first byproduct stream 6 is passed in a second desalination step through a falling film crystallization unit 7 to form a second product water stream 8 having a reduced salt concentration relative to that of the first byproduct stream 6 and a second byproduct stream 9 having an increased salt concentration relative to that of the first byproduct stream 6. The invention further relates to an apparatus 1 for carrying out said process. The present invention further relates also to the use of the process or apparatus 1 for the reduction of the volume of the first byproduct stream 6 of a reverse osmosis membrane desalination plant 3, preferably an in-land desalination plant 3, or in a device or plant or process for producing desalinated water, for salt production, for co-production of power and desalinated water, or for air conditioning.

In order to treat a flow of waste water, there is applied to this flow, after at most an optional pre-treatment of screening/degritting or deoiling, a filtration treatment by means of microfiltration or ultrafiltration membranes, by causing the flow to circulate tangentially to the membranes at a velocity of at least 0.1 m/s, in the presence of an organic sequestering agent composed based on organic phosphate at a concentration that is effective for sequestering metal ions contained in the flow and minimizing the formation of calcium carbonate, with a differential pressure on either side of the membranes that is less than or equal to 5 bar.

The device is designed for production of light, highly pure water with a high content of light molecules .sup.1H.sub.2 .sup.16O.

The technical results are productivity increasIIITII of the device and a reduction in energy costs per unit of the finished product.

The device is equipped with a heat pump, the distillation column consists of two coaxial tubes of diameter D1 and D2 with a layer of random packing located in the gap between them, where (D1D2)/2<300 mm, and the liquid distributor at the top of the column has at least 800 irrigation points per square meter of the cross-sectional area of the packing part of the column.