Rejected brine recycling in hydroponic and thermo-solar evaporation systems for leisure and tourist facilities. Changing waste into raw material

Current available treatment technologies for saline wastewater and land‐based treatment as an emerging environment‐friendly technology: A review

“…The ease of operation and implementation of solar evaporation ponds shows their candidature for the best suitable technology for the disposal of wastewater, keeping in mind that there is no seepage in the evaporation ponds, so as to prevent soil salinization (Shahid et al, 2018b). Disposal and recovery of salts from the hypersaline wastewater (brine rejects) have also been successfully demonstrated by solar‐based evaporation ponds (Jiménez‐Arias et al, 2020; Panagopoulos et al, 2019). Countries like China, Australia, United States, Europe (the Mediterranean), and the Middle East have also successfully implemented the evaporation ponds which were found to be economically viable owing to inexpensive land and a suitable climate (Juby et al, 2008; Mickley, 2008; Tong & Elimelech, 2016).…”

Applying Biostimulants to Combat Water Deficit in Crop Plants: Research and Debate

“…Therefore, water scarcity is a critical concern in agriculture due to its direct impact on crop yield, which directly affects the worldwide economy [5]. Water supply can be achieved using new technologies-for example, desalination facilities [6], particularly in the Mediterranean region [7]. Beyond some other disadvantages amplified by the public, environmentalists and opinion [8], water acquisition via desalination technology is twice as expensive as from groundwater [9].…”

Exploring the agricultural reutilisation of desalination reject brine from reverse osmosis technology

“…Previous work [30] demonstrated that, with simple modifications, reject brine can be used as a nutritive solution for crop production in a hydroponic system. As a bonus, fruits produced in this way had better organoleptic parameters after growth under saline conditions.…”

“…Consequently, soilless agriculture and horticulture should be considered as alternative reuse channels for part of this brine, as it has significant advantages over traditional cultivation methods. For instance: i) sites can be located near desalination facilities, avoiding the problem of low availability of agricultural land [31,32], ii) this also avoids soil degradation by brine due to its excessive ionic content [27], iii) brine minerals can be used to reduce the quantity of nutrients needed to produce a balanced complete hydroponic solution [30]. As mentioned before, reject seawater brine contains considerable amounts of minerals essential for plant growth, such as Ca 2+ , Mg 2+ , and K + , commonly known as macronutrients [30].…”

“…For instance: i) sites can be located near desalination facilities, avoiding the problem of low availability of agricultural land [31,32], ii) this also avoids soil degradation by brine due to its excessive ionic content [27], iii) brine minerals can be used to reduce the quantity of nutrients needed to produce a balanced complete hydroponic solution [30]. As mentioned before, reject seawater brine contains considerable amounts of minerals essential for plant growth, such as Ca 2+ , Mg 2+ , and K + , commonly known as macronutrients [30]. Use of brine in hydroponic systems installed near desalination facilities can yield other profitable benefits and savings.…”