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REVIEW article

Front. Membr. Sci. Technol.
Sec. Membrane Modules and Processes
Volume 3 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/frmst.2024.1414721
This article is part of the Research Topic Reviews in Membrane Modules and Processes View all 4 articles

Review on reverse electrodialysis process-A pioneering technology for energy generation by salinity gradient

Provisionally accepted
NALAN KABAY NALAN KABAY 1*Taha F. Gül Taha F. Gül 1Minel Akalın Minel Akalın 1Eda N. Sönmezler Eda N. Sönmezler 1Ahmet Bolat Ahmet Bolat 1Aydın Cihanoğlu Aydın Cihanoğlu 1*Enver Güler Enver Güler 2*
  • 1 Ege University, Bornova, Türkiye
  • 2 Atılım University, Ankara, Ankara, Türkiye

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Blue energy obtained by salinity gradient can be generated by mixing two saline solutions having different salt concentrations. According to researchers working in this area, about 80% of the current global electricity demand could potentially be covered by this energy source. There are basically two membrane technologies so-called pressure-retarded osmosis (PRO) and reverse electrodialysis (RED) that are capable to generate electrical energy from salinity gradient. The pressure driven PRO process is more suitable for energy generation from highly concentrated brines. However, RED is more favorable for power generation by mixing seawater and river water.In RED process, ion exchange membranes (IEMs) placed between two electrodes in a stack were employed for transport of ions. Thus, an electrical current is obtained at the electrodes by electron transport through redox reactions. This review gives an overview of RED as a pioneering technology for salinity gradient energy (SGE) generation. The review summarizes the recent improvements of IEMs employed for RED studies, membrane fouling and RED stack design.

    Keywords: Salinity gradient energy, blue energy, Reverse electrodialysis, Ion exchange membranes, fouling

    Received: 09 Apr 2024; Accepted: 06 Aug 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 KABAY, Gül, Akalın, Sönmezler, Bolat, Cihanoğlu and Güler. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    NALAN KABAY, Ege University, Bornova, Türkiye
    Aydın Cihanoğlu, Ege University, Bornova, Türkiye
    Enver Güler, Atılım University, Ankara, 06830, Ankara, Türkiye

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.