Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment (한국물환경학회지)

Korean Society on Water Environment (한국물환경학회)
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Study on Korean Seawater Characterization and Crystallization for Seawater Desalination Brine Treatment

해수담수화 농축수 처리를 위한 한국 해수 특성 및 결정화 연구

  • Jeong, Sanghyun (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Pusan National University) ;
  • Eiff, David von (School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong) ;
  • Byun, Siyoung (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Pusan National University) ;
  • Lee, Jieun (Institute for Environment and Energy, Pusan National University) ;
  • An, Alicia Kyoungjin (School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong)
  • 정상현 (부산대학교 사회환경시스템공학과) ;
  • ;
  • 변시영 (부산대학교 사회환경시스템공학과) ;
  • 이지은 (부산대학교 환경.에너지 연구소) ;
  • Received : 2021.08.31
  • Accepted : 2021.11.08
  • Published : 2021.11.30
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Abstract

Seawater desalination is a technology through which salt and other constituents are removed from seawater to produce fresh water. While a significant amount of fresh water is produced, the desalination process is limited by the generation of concentrated brine with a higher salinity than seawater; this imposes environmental and economic problems. In this study, characteristics of seawater from three different locations in South Korea were analyzed to evaluate the feasibility of crystallization to seawater desalination. Organic and inorganic substances participating in crystal formation during concentration were identified. Then, prediction and economic feasibility analysis were conducted on the actual water flux and obtainable salt resources (i.e. Na2SO4) using membrane distillation and energy-saving crystallizer based on multi-stage flash (MSF-Cr). The seawater showed a rather low salinity (29.9~34.4 g/L) and different composition ratios depending on the location. At high concentrations, it was possible to observe the participation of dissolved organic matter and various ionic substances in crystalization. When crystallized, materials capable of forming various crystals are expected. However, it seems that different salt concentrations should be considered for each location. When the model developed using the Aspen Plus modular was applied in Korean seawater conditions, relatively high economic feasibility was confirmed in the MSF-Cr. The results of this study will help solve the environmental and economic problems of concentrated brine from seawater desalination.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

이 과제는 부산대학교 기본연구지원사업(2년)에 의하여 연구되었음.

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