Purdue Research Foundation

Sandra Cordoba

David Martin Warsinger

Abhimanyu Das

A method of desalinating water, including the steps of when electricity costs between a first predetermined price and a second predetermined price, fill water is pumped into a reverse osmosis desalination unit to yield desalinated permeate and saltwater having a first salinity, when electricity costs less than the first predetermined price, fill water is pumped into a reverse osmosis desalination unit to yield desalinated permeate and saltwater having a second salinity, and when electricity costs greater than the second predetermined price, pure water is flowed into a reverse osmosis unit to yield pressurized saltwater which is run through a turbine to generate electricity. The first salinity is lower than the second salinity.

Salinity gradient grade-scale energy storage method and apparatus

An assembly for reverse osmotically desalinating water, including a source containing feed water to be desalinated, a high-pressure tank having a first portion and a second portion and a movable piston wall operationally connected therebetween, a first portion inlet operationally connected to the first portion and a second portion inlet operationally connected to the second portion, a first portion outlet operationally connected to the first portion and a second portion outlet operationally connected to the second portion, a first valve having a first first valve inlet, a second first valve inlet, a first first valve outlet in fluidic communication with the first portion inlet and a second first valve outlet in fluidic communication with the second portion inlet, a high-pressure pump operationally connected to the source and to the first first valve inlet, a second valve having a first second valve inlet in fluidic communication with the first portion outlet and a second second valve inlet in fluidic communication with the second portion outlet and a second valve outlet, at least one reverse osmosis module having at least one reverse osmosis module inlet connected in fluidic communication with the second valve outlet, at least one brine outlet and at least one desalinated water outlet, a circulation pump having a circulation pump inlet port connected in fluidic communication with the brine outlet and a circulation pump outlet connected in fluidic communication with the second first valve inlet, and an electronic controller operationally connected to the first valve, to the second valve, to the high-pressure pump and to the circulation pump.

Growing community of inventors

West Lafayette, IN, United States of America

Sandra Cordoba