Cost Analysis of Electro Dialysis Cell for Desalinating Brackish Water

Abstract

ABSRACTFreshwater resources are becoming increasingly limited due to current uses and growing demands. The use and development of non-conventional water resources such as brackish water could be a possible solution to overcome the imminent shortages of freshwater. In this paper, Electro dialysis, a technique based on the transport of ions through selective membranes under the influence of an electrical field, was utilized to desalinate highly concentrated Al Ain brackish groundwater. A number of lab experiments were conducted to test the effect of different design parameters on the configured cell and evaluate different operational schemes. The tested parameters were the ED applied voltage, initial salt concentration and the ratio of the concentrate to dilute volume in the compartments. The operating energy of the tested schemes was also evaluated to help in selecting the system achieving the desired efficiency with the lowest possible energy. Cost analysis for running and maintaining the tested system was performed and the cost was then compared to the corresponding cost of other desalination membrane techniques.