Desalinator

The goal of this project is to further develop and optimize an electromechanical process patented by Vorsana, Inc. that is intended to remove the salt from seawater.

Background
Severe droughts in many parts of the world along with demands for fresh water have depleted many of the natural aquifers. Approximately 71% of the world is covered by water but unfortunately, 96.5% of that water is undrinkable. Current methods of desalination use large amounts of energy. A device that can produce fresh water from seawater or reduce its salinity at a lower cost compared to current methods would ease many of these problems.

Deliverables

 * Mathematical models for predicting ion motion in brine under magnetic and/or electrical field


 * Extensive measurements on brine flows in channel/pipe under magnetic and/or electrical field


 * Extensive measurements on the patent-pending prototype machine


 * 15% reduction in salinity with a decent flow rate


 * Measurement of energy required to create that reduction in salinity

Specifications
This project doesn't have specifications for a final design. Rather, this project has been a series of experiments designed to develop specifications for a final prototype and process.

Client Interview

 * Wrote a list of technical, budget, and miscellaneous questions for client to make sure we approached this project fitting our client's needs
 * From the answers we obtained, we were able to build a better foundation for starting this project

Lead Instructor and Technical Advisor Meetings

 * Every week
 * Topics such as due dates, technical progress, budgets, and brainstorming are all discussed during these meetings

Capacitive Deionization



 * Technology to deionize water by applying an electrical potential difference over two porous carbon electrodes.
 * The main drawback of this technology is an inefficient discharge method.