I've wondered why desal hasn't also paired up with ocean mineral extraction. It seems like the two would go well together.
Even when talking about RO, you'd think diverting all or part of the brine water for evaporation would reduce the cost of extraction. You'd have water with more concentrated minerals which would give you a higher yield per evaporation cycle.
Also, it'd be nice if we could bring back magnesium extraction from ocean water.
Solar desalination looks pretty good in terms of efficiency. The problem is that the solar energy must now be collected at the shoreline. This means that a lot of coastal real estate gets turned into a desalination plant. Alternatively, you transport the water, but pumping seawater requires corrosion and fouling resistant materials throughout the system.
Even when talking about RO, you'd think diverting all or part of the brine water for evaporation would reduce the cost of extraction. You'd have water with more concentrated minerals which would give you a higher yield per evaporation cycle.
Also, it'd be nice if we could bring back magnesium extraction from ocean water.
Just do direct evaporation like it's been done for thousands of years. If you don't like brine, leave it to dry out too.
If there is not enough sunlight, use direct nuclear heat.