Gradiant Corporation

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals

Maximus G St John

Prakash Narayan Govindan

Steven Lam

Karim M Chehayeb

Jonn-Ross Andrews

Mark Zaloudek

John H Lienhard

Samar Shah

Looh Tchuin Choong

Mostafa Hamed Elsharqawy

Anurag Bajpayee

Windsor Sung

Mohammed Mirhi

Richard Stover

Conor Thomas Wilson

Swati Maini

Mostafa Elsharqawy

John-Ross Andrews

The present disclosure is related to hybrid desalination systems and associated methods. The hybrid desalination system can comprise a first desalination unit comprising a reverse osmosis unit and a second desalination unit fluidically connected to the first desalination unit, wherein the second desalination unit comprises a humidification-dehumidification desalination apparatus. The present disclosure is also related to systems and methods for the formation of solid salts using a humidifier. According to certain embodiments, the flow velocity of a gas in the humidifier can be relatively high during the formation of the solid salt. In some embodiments, the humidifier comprises a multi-stage bubble column humidifier.

Hybrid desalination systems and associated methods

Liquid solution concentration systems, and related methods, are generally described. In some embodiments, the system is an osmotic system comprising a plurality of osmotic modules. For example, the osmotic system can comprise a feed osmotic module configured to produce an osmotic module retentate outlet stream having a higher concentration of solute than the retentate inlet stream transported to the feed osmotic module. The osmotic system can also comprise an isolation osmotic module fluidically connected to the feed osmotic module. The osmotic system can also optionally comprise a purification osmotic module fluidically connected to the feed osmotic module and/or the isolation osmotic module. Certain embodiments are related to altering the degree to which the feed osmotic module retentate outlet stream is recycled back to the retentate-side inlet of the feed osmotic module during operation. Additional embodiments are related to the manner in which the retentate-side effluent from the isolation osmotic module is distributed among the system modules during operation.

Liquid solution concentration system comprising isolated subsystem and related methods

Provided herein are osmotic desalination methods and associated systems. According to certain embodiments, multiple osmotic membranes may be used to perform a series of osmosis steps, such that an output stream having a relatively high water purity&#x2014;compared to a water purity of an aqueous feed stream&#x2014;is produced. In some embodiments, multiple draw streams can be used to produce aqueous product streams having sequentially higher purities of water. Certain embodiments are related to osmotic desalination systems and methods in which forward osmosis is used to produce a first product stream having a relatively high water purity relative to an aqueous feed stream, and reverse osmosis is used to perform a second step (and/or additional steps) on the first product stream. In some embodiments, multiple reverse osmosis steps can be used in series to perform a net desalination process.

Osmotic desalination methods and associated systems

Turbines and associated components, systems, and methods are described. In some embodiments, the turbine blades and turbines are configured to convert kinetic energy present in fluid (e.g., water) to other forms of energy (e.g., in a hydrokinetic energy system in a river or ocean) relatively efficiently and/or at relatively low cut-in speeds. The turbine blades may have a shape and/or include structural features that contribute at least in part to relatively high efficiency and/or relatively low cut-in speeds. In some embodiments, the turbine blades have a geometry similar to the geometry of a maple seed.

Turbines and associated components, systems and methods

A feed liquid flows into a second-stage humidifier chamber to form a second-stage humidifier bath. A first remnant of the feed liquid from the second-stage humidifier chamber then flows into a first-stage humidifier chamber to form a first-stage humidifier bath having a temperature lower than that of the second-stage bath. A second remnant of the feed liquid is then removed from the first-stage humidifier. Meanwhile, a carrier gas is injected into and bubbled through the first-stage humidifier bath, collecting a vaporizable component in vapor form from the first remnant of the feed liquid to partially humidify the carrier gas. The partially humidified carrier gas is then bubbled through the second-stage humidifier bath, where the carrier gas collects more of the vaporizable component in vapor form from the feed liquid to further humidify the carrier gas before the humidified carrier gas is removed from the second-stage humidifier chamber.

Multi-stage bubble column humidification and dehumidification

Systems and methods related to desalination systems are described herein. According to some embodiments, the desalination systems are transiently operated and/or configured to facilitate transient operation. In some embodiments, a liquid stream comprising water and at least one dissolved salt is circulated through a fluidic circuit comprising a desalination system. In some embodiments, a portion of the desalination system (e.g., a humidifier) is configured to remove at least a portion of the water from the liquid stream to produce a concentrated brine stream enriched in the dissolved salt. In certain cases, the concentrated brine stream is recirculated through the fluidic circuit until the concentrated brine stream reaches a relatively high density (e.g., at least about 10 pounds per gallon) and/or a relatively high salinity (e.g., a total dissolved salt concentration of at least about 25 wt %). In certain embodiments, additional salt is added to the concentrated brine stream to produce an ultra-high-density brine stream (e.g., a brine stream having a density of at least about 11.7 pounds per gallon). Some aspects relate to a system that is configured to promote energy efficiency by recovering heat from the recirculated concentrated brine stream upon discharge from the fluidic circuit.

Production of ultra-high-density brines using transiently-operated desalination systems

A counter-flow simultaneous heat and mass exchange device is operated by directing flows of two fluids into a heat and mass exchange device at initial mass flow rates where ideal changes in total enthalpy rates of the two fluids are unequal. At least one of the following state variables in the fluids is measured: temperature, pressure and concentration, which together define the thermodynamic state of the two fluid streams at the points of entry to and exit from the device. The mass flow rate of at least one of the two fluids is changed such that the ideal change in total enthalpy rates of the two fluids through the device are brought closer to being equal.

Feedback control optimization of counter-flow simultaneous heat and mass exchange

Embodiments described herein generally relate to humidification-dehumidification desalination systems, including apparatuses that include a vessel comprising a humidification region (e.g., a bubble column humidification region) and a dehumidification region (e.g., a bubble column dehumidification region), mobile humidification-dehumidification (HDH) desalination systems (e.g., systems having a relatively low height and/or a relatively small footprint), and associated systems and methods. Certain embodiments generally relate to methods of operating, controlling, and/or cleaning desalination systems comprising a plurality of desalination units (e.g., HDH desalination units).

Humidification-dehumidification desalination systems and methods

Selective scaling in water treatment systems in which desalination is performed is generally described. According to certain embodiments, the location of the formation of solid scale within a water treatment system is controlled by adjusting one or more system parameters, such as the temperature and/or flow velocity of a saline stream within the water treatment system.

Selective scaling in desalination water treatment systems and associated methods

A counter-flow simultaneous heat and mass exchange device is operated by directing flows of two fluids into a heat and mass exchange device at initial mass flow rates where ideal changes in total enthalpy rates of the two fluids are unequal. At least one of the following state variables in the fluids is measured: temperature, pressure and concentration, which together define the thermodynamic state of the two fluid streams at the points of entry to and exit from the device. The flow rates of the fluids at the points of entry and/or exit to/from the device are measured; and the mass flow rate of at least one of the two fluids is changed such that the ideal change in total enthalpy rates of the two fluids through the device are brought closer to being equal.

Systems and methods related to desalination systems are described herein. According to some embodiments, the desalination systems are hybrid systems comprising one or more first desalination units and one or more second desalination units. In some embodiments, the one or more second desalination units, which may form a fluidic circuit that is located downstream from the one or more first desalination units, may be configured to desalinate higher salinity liquid streams than the one or more first desalination units. In certain embodiments, the one or more first desalination units are operated under steady-state conditions and/or configured to operate under steady-state conditions. In certain embodiments, the one or more second desalination units are transiently operated and/or configured to facilitate transient operation. In some embodiments, a liquid stream comprising water and at least one dissolved salt is flowed through the one or more first desalination units, which are configured to remove at least a portion of the water from the liquid stream to form a first concentrated brine stream enriched in the dissolved salt. In some embodiments, at least a portion of the first concentrated brine stream is fed to a fluidic circuit comprising the one or more second desalination units. In some embodiments, the one or more second desalination units are configured to remove at least a portion of the water from the first concentrated brine stream to produce a second concentrated brine stream further enriched in the dissolved salt. In certain cases, the second concentrated brine stream is recirculated through at least a portion of the fluidic circuit until the second concentrated brine stream reaches a relatively high density (e.g., at least about 10 pounds per gallon) and/or a relatively high salinity (e.g., a total dissolved salt concentration of at least about 25 wt %).

Growing community of inventors

Boston, MA, United States of America

Maximus G St John