pIRS is written in C++ and Perl, and is freely available at ftp://ftp.genomics.org.cn/pub/pIRS/.

16Seawater desalination is an important option for addressing the world's water supply 17 challenges. Current desalination plants use enormous quantities of energy and cause a 18 number of environmental issues. Renewable energy options, mostly solar and geothermal 19 systems, have been examined in detail to supply the energy needed for water 20 desalination. The co-location benefit of energy derived from the ocean to power seawater 21 desalination processes is appealing. However, the promise and potential of ocean-based 22 power generation for desalination systems has not been investigated in detail. The 23 development of such systems has been limited due to technological and economic 24 limitations of energy harvesting and transport as well as device maintenance under water. 25 In this paper, we review the state of the art of ocean energy in desalination. It explores 26 different sources of energy from the ocean that include electricity generation, as well as 27 2 mechanical force and thermal energy and salinity gradients that can also be directly 28 harnessed for powering the desalination processes. We also examine recent advances 29 in scaling up for commercial deployment, and discuss relevant cost, environmental and 30 social concerns. The great potential of ocean energy for seawater desalination in terms 31 of diverse energy forms, flexible integration methods and various deployment strategies 32 can provide important environmental, water and social benefits for seawater desalination, 33 thus promote sustainability in water-energy nexus. The use of ocean energy in 34 desalination applications could benefit the future development of ocean energy 35 technology in renewable energy sector. 36 37 Ocean salinity gradient; Sustainability 39 40 Contents 41 1. Introduction 42 2. Current desalination technologies 43 2.1 Desalination with phase change 44 2.2 Desalination without phase change 45 3. Ocean energy for seawater desalination 46 3.1 Energy consumption in seawater desalination 47 3.2 Niches of ocean energy in seawater desalination 48 3.2.1 Ocean thermal energy for seawater desalination 49 3.2.2 Ocean mechanical energy for seawater desalination 50 3.2.3 Ocean chemical energy for seawater desalination51 4. State and prospects of ocean energy technology 52 5. Environmental, social and economic impacts 53 3 5.1 Environmental impacts 54 5.2 Social impacts and economic concerns 55 6. Conclusion and future prospects 56 1. Introduction 57Desalination has been an increasing part of the water supply mix for urban and industrial 58 use globally. Comparing with the capacity of 8.09 million m 3 /day in 1980 [1], the global 59 contracted desalination capacity by 2014 has increased more than 10 fold in 34 years to 60 90.07 million m 3 /day. About 53% of the total capacity was installed in the past 10 years 61 since 2005 [1], and currently desalination plants operate in more than 120 countries. 62The largest use of desalinated water is in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region 63 (due to the extreme freshwater s...

Traditional seed pretreatment methods cause secondary pollution for the application of various chemicals. This study investigated the effect of dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) cold plasma on seedling growth. Effects of plasma-activated tap water (PATW) and plasma-activated seeds (PAS) were compared for germination rates, seedling height, dry weight, and chlorophyll content. Results show that compared with controls these growth parameters were all increased by more than 50%. The yields and contributions of hydrogen peroxide, nitrate, nitrite, and ammonium were quantified. Hydrogen peroxide and nitrate have an important role in seedling growth. By etching, the seed epidermis free radicals can reduce the apparent contact angle and increase the water absorption of the seeds. In addition to the low cost of PATW and PAS compared with commercial fertilizers, DBD does not involve any chemical addition. Thus, both PATW and PAS can be an alternative for improvement of agricultural production.