Waste brine is valuable and abundant
Most people do not think about the wastes produced by water desalination and drilling. That is because all they see is the end product. This waste is known as brine. The brine has many problems associated with it, including polluting the environment. There are ways to remove the liquids, which leave a substance that companies have found a way to turn into useful products. It is that heavily regulated, but once it is an area of the industry that has many useful applications that benefit people. This industrial brine has the ability to make a problem bring jobs and solutions. That is why people need to learn about this.
Origin Point
There are a few ways in which waste brine is created. One of these ways is the desalination of water to make it so people can drink it or for crops. The salt and other chemicals that make sea or wastewater harmful are then left to as waste. Another way that brine comes about is from the process of oil or gas fracturing. That is the process of opening up the areas that hold these products. It leaves behind waste that can contaminate groundwater. It has to be managed or it will contaminate an area.
Water Separation
The first step in the process to create the brine is to remove the liquids, specifically the water. One of the ways to get out the water and leave brine that can have other uses is evaporation. Most of the time this is done in large ponds that have to be created with many government, on several levels, regulations in mind. There are other ways to do this, but this is the one most people are aware of. The most cost effective is via the use of membranes. The liquids pass through the membranes and are filtered during a several step process.
Recycling waste
One of the ways that the industrial brine is made useful and profitable is by getting out chemicals that can be useful in several ways. Gold and other precious metals have been known to be in this waste. That means that companies have to separate what is valuable from what is not. There are several ways, but this is one way to show people how valuable a process such as seawater desalination is. The ocean holds many substances that are hard to find. It brings more value to the goal of keeping people and crops hydrated.
Chemical salts
People know that ice has to be removed from roads and walkways. The best way to do this is with salts. The waste brine can be turned into this salt. While it is not the edible version, it still does what is required. That means people are kept safe with waste. People may not be aware of where all of these products come from, but they are grateful to be able to walk down their road or get to work without an accident happening. The brine is made safe enough for this.
People do not know what happens when certain processes are done. They are also not aware that this waste is extremely valuable in several ways. Many of these ways are bringing new jobs that people are not aware of. San Diego has one of the seawater desalination plants that is making sure that crops are getting water, even when there is a drought occurring. Knowing all of this will make sure people are more comfortable when they hear about technologies they were unaware were helping their lives be better.