Wind Power and Water Desalination Technology Integration

摘要

Many communities in the western and southwestern regions of the U.S. face both water quality and quantity issues. Depleting aquifers, and more stringent water quality standards, are contributing to the urgency of the problem. With the maturing of the wind energy industry to provide clean electric power at a firm price, significant wind and brackish water aquifer resources available throughout much of the region, and improving reverse osmosis (RO) technology at decreasing cost - the concept of providing an integrated wind-driven water desalination solution for municipalities in the region is appealing. Topics specifically addressed in this work included the following: background studies outlining previous work done in this area; a market analysis to provide an indication of the breadth and scope of the market for integrated windwater desalination systems for municipal applications; design parameters, system sizing, and optimization to include economic analysis and cost of water estimates for a specific municipality; and control issues that address the intermittency of the wind resource, water storage, and the usual steady power utilization of current RO system operation.