Assessing the Energy Footprint of Desalination Technologies and Minimal/Zero Liquid Discharge (MLD/ZLD) Systems for Sustainable Water Protection via Renewable Energy Integration

Argyris Panagopoulos ()
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Argyris Panagopoulos: School of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 9 Iroon Polytechniou St., Zografou, 15780 Athens, Greece

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 4, 1-17

Abstract: Water scarcity necessitates desalination technologies, yet their high energy demands and brine disposal challenges hinder sustainability. This research study evaluates the energy footprint and carbon emissions of thermal- and membrane-based desalination technologies, alongside Minimal/Zero Liquid Discharge (MLD/ZLD) frameworks, with a focus on renewable energy source (RES) integration. Data revealed stark contrasts: thermal-based technologies like osmotic evaporation (OE) and brine crystallizers (BCr) exhibit energy intensities of 80–100 kWh/m 3 and 52–70 kWh/m 3 , respectively, with coal-powered carbon footprints reaching 72–100 kg CO 2 /m 3 . Membrane-based technologies, such as reverse osmosis (RO) (2–6 kWh/m 3 ) and forward osmosis (FO) (0.8–13 kWh/m 3 ), demonstrate lower emissions (1.8–11.7 kg CO 2 /m 3 under coal). Transitioning to RES reduces emissions by 90–95%, exemplified by renewable energy-powered RO (0.1–0.3 kg CO 2 /m 3 ). However, scalability barriers persist, including high capital costs, RES intermittency, and technological immaturity in emerging systems like osmotically assisted RO (OARO) and membrane distillation (MD). This research highlights RES-driven MLD/ZLD systems as pivotal for aligning desalination with global climate targets, urging innovations in energy storage, material robustness, and circular economy models to secure water resource resilience.

Keywords: desalination; zero liquid discharge (ZLD); minimal liquid discharge (MLD); energy; renewable energy; brine; brine treatment; brine valorization; energy footprint; carbon footprint (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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