The two pilot solutions that will be implemented during 2022 at the facilities of the Technological Institute of the Canary Islands in Pozo Izquierdo, Gran Canaria, are aimed at offering alternatives to reverse osmosis, a seawater desalination technology widely used globally. Specifically, it is planned to achieve an energy consumption ratio below 1.5 kWh/m3 of desalinated water, half of the current consumption, as well as minimize the volume of brine discharge and the use of chemicals.
The Pre-Commercial Public Procurement (CPP) initiative in desalination, the first of its kind in the autonomous region of the Canary Islands, has led to the contracting of two Spanish research centers, the Tecnalia and Eurecat Foundations, to carry out the analysis of the feasibility, design, development and validation of two pilot solutions for optimized desalination performance, with the financial support of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria.
This contracting is structured in 3 exclusive phases. In the first of these, with an execution period until the end of May, the pilot-scale design and the feasibility of the solution on an industrial scale will be defined. Once this initial stage has been completed, between June and December 2022, the tasks of construction, installation and operation of the pilot will be carried out at the ITC's experimental facilities in Pozo Izquierdo. According to the planned schedule, in January 2023 the results achieved will be presented and, based on them, the commercial proposal of the solution and the analysis of potential business development scenarios will be activated.
Experimental development of desalination technologies
Tecnalia, the largest applied research and technological development center in Spain, has been contracted for the development and validation of an advanced electrochemical desalination technology, based on the operating concept of a battery. The main advantages of this technical solution are high desalination efficiency and reduced energy consumption.
Eurecat, a private non-profit foundation for specialized services and R&D&I projects, through its Water, Air and Soil Technological Unit, proposes an innovative seawater desalination scheme with low energy consumption, low use of reagents and minimal liquid discharge from the combination of a desalination system based on an innovative reverse osmosis system, to be validated in a relevant way in a real environment and with a pilot that integrates the new treatment scheme with adapted modular commercial equipment.
