Application of Electrodialysis Desalination Technique of the Red Seawater to Utilize in Aquacultural, Industrial, Agricultural and Municipal Usages

The global shortage of freshwater resources worldwide, particularly in KSA, has tremendously influenced the development of desalination technologies, with electrodialysis desalination (ED) being one of the most well-known and respected techniques. In this study, a module was designed for an experiment on electrodialysis desalination. Under batch mode, operation factors including applied voltage, flow rate and feed concentration were investigated. The optimal operating parameters were 20 V of applied voltage, 200 ml/min of flow rate, and 40000 mg/L of dosage. With a high saline concentration of 40000 mg/L NaCl diluted to 1560 mg/L, the ED achieves a removal efficiency of 97.05% and an energy consumption of 2.03 Wh/L. In Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where the salinity of the Red Seawater is 42420 mg/L, we utilize these optimal conditions to desalinate the water and produce water with a salinity of 1272 mg/L valid for aquacultural, industrial, agricultural, and municipal usage with a removal efficiency of 97 %, a recovery percentage of 83.33% and an energy usage of 2.03 Wh/L. The RO unit we utilize generates water with a removal efficiency of 97.74%, a recovery percentage of 64% and an energy consumption of 3.2 Wh/L.  We observed that the ED unit uses less energy, costs less, and wastes less water when we compared its performance to that of a RO unit. If solar energy is used instead of DC electricity, we can save more money and energy.