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Smart & Sustainable Society INNOVATION
Energy-efficient desalination by combining reverse osmosis with pre-desalination by (assisted) (reverse) electrodialysis
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Market Maturity: Tech Ready
These are innovations that are progressing on technology development process (e.g. pilots, prototypes, demonstration). Learn more
Market Creation Potential
This innovation was assessed by the JRC’s Market Creation Potential indicator framework as having a Noteworthy” level of Market Creation Potential. Only innovations that are showing multiple signals of market creation potential are assigned a value under this indicator system. Learn more
Women-led innovation
A woman had a leadership role in developing this innovation in at least one of the Key Innovator organisations listed below.
Go to Market needs
Needs that, if addressed, can increase the chances this innovation gets to (or closer to) the market incude:
  • Prepare for Market entry
  • Secure capital
  • Scale-up market opportunities
Location of Key Innovators developing this innovation
Key Innovators
UN Sustainable Development Goals(SDG)
This innovation contributes to the following SDG(s)
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOAL 3
Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages

The UN explains: "Significant strides have been made in increasing life expectancy and reducing some of the common killers responsible for child and maternal mortality.

Major progress has also been made on increasing access to clean water and sanitation, reducing malaria, tuberculosis, polio and the spread of HIV/AIDS.

However, many more efforts are needed to control a wide range of diseases and address many different persistent and emerging health issues."

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOAL 6
Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

The UN explains: "Clean water is a basic human need, and one that should be easily accessible to all. There is sufficient fresh water on the planet to achieve this. However, due to poor infrastructure, investment and planning, every year millions of people — most of them children — die from diseases associated with inadequate water supply, sanitation and hygiene."

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOAL 9
Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation

The UN explains: "Investments in infrastructure – transport, irrigation, energy and information and communication technology – are crucial to achieving sustainable development and empowering communities in many countries. It has long been recognized that growth in productivity and incomes, and improvements in health and education outcomes require investment in infrastructure."

The EU-funded Research Project
This innovation was developed under the Horizon 2020 project REvivED water with an end date of 31/07/2020
  • Read more about this project on CORDIS
Description of Project REvivED water
The REvivED water project will establish electrodialysis (ED) as the new standard providing a source of safe, affordable, and cost-competitive drinking water, using less than half the energy required by state-of-the-art Reverse Osmosis (RO) plants. The innovations of the project constitute a technology platform with a very wide field of potential applications. All components and systems have reached at least TRL4 and will be further developed reaching at least TRL7. The main focus of the project will be on the following applications: 1. A simplified ED system that can be used for brackish water desalination (8 pilots in developing countries) or for tap-water softening (2 pilots in Germany and the Netherlands). 2. A multistage ED system for industrial-scale seawater desalination, which will be demonstrated to reach energy consumption as low as 1.5 kWh/m3 (1 pilot in the Netherlands) 3. Combinations of the multistage ED system with the latest salinity gradient power systems (Reverse ElectroDialysis - RED), which can further reduce energy consumption for seawater desalination to the region of 1 kWh/m3 (1 pilot in the Netherlands) 4. The versatile nature of the developed innovations will be demonstrated by testing their combinations with Reverse Osmosis (RO) systems (1 pilot in Spain). This will allow initial market introduction, without the need to replace the extensive RO infrastructure. The pilot systems in developing countries will be located in critical areas where the project partner PHAESUN has local offices in Africa (Eritrea, Ivory Coast, Somalia, Djibouti and Ethiopia), Asia (Dubai, and India) and Latin America (Panama). The consortium brings together leading partners covering the whole value chain and ensuring exploitation of the results. It is clearly industry driven, and it gives European industry the chance to take the lead of the ED revival and face the competition from the US that is also actively pursuing this important growth market.

Innnovation Radar's analysis of this innovation is based on data collected on 15/09/2020.
The unique id of this innovation in the European Commission's IT systems is: 17965