Electrodialysis desalination, resource and energy recovery from water industries for a circular economy

Abstract

The water industries (WIN) are now approaching towards sustainability of resource use, recovery process, and water and energy management based on the circular economy (CRE) framework. Thus, the integration of electrodialysis (ED) technology in the WIN with a CRE paradigm should be recommended for ensuring the sustainability of ED desalination, resource, and energy recovery (EDDRER). According to the literature review, and to the best of our knowledge, there is no systematic study devoted to the sustainable EDDRER; hence a comprehensive and critical knowledge generation of EDDRER is essential for further technological advancements of ED. Consequently, this review paper investigated the plausible incorporation of ED in the WIN for a CRE of EDDRER. The recent progress of EDDRER has been described comprehensively and critically. Moreover, an all-inclusive techno-economics and environmental sustainability analysis of EDDRER from WIN for a CRE has been carried out. This paper marks the first instance in which energy recovery techniques employing ED have been reported and critically discussed. In addition, the latest case studies of EDDRER in the WIN have been discussed critically, and the significant scaling-up issues of EDDRER have been assessed based on the state-of-the-art recent scientific findings. Furthermore, the potential mitigation measures for the scaling-up issues have also been addressed. This study is the first comprehensive assessment of EDDRER from WIN for a closed-loop economy. The novel insights of this study could be essential for the development of a sustainable CRE-based EDDRER process for WIN to attain sustainable development goals (SDGs). © 2023 Elsevier B.V.