August 2006
Desalinization
The ADU-RES Project
ADU-RES is a Coordination Action aiming to bridge the gap
between successful R&D work and commercialisation of
renewable energy powered desalination systems.
The work is focused on stand alone systems, which will cover part of the pressing water needs of arid rural areas in the Mediterranean region. The international consortium has focused its work on the following two main objectives:
Further development of integrated plant designs for mature and cost efficient
Formulation of political strategies for boosting implementation of autonomous desalination units within the existing political and legislative frameworks in the Mediterranean
1. Many pilot autonomous desalination units powered by renewable energy with outputs of a few cubic meters per day are operating successfully under the supervision of research institutes. Still, commercial applications remain rare. Now is the time to strengthen and unite research work for the design of robust and cost-effective desalination plants that operate autonomously on RES. Some of the remaining scientific and technical challenges are:
Radical cost reduction
Advanced management and control system
Improved long-term reliability
Environmentally sound set-ups
2. Wide-scale implementation of autonomous desalination units require favourable legislative and institutional framework conditions. ADU-RES examined the relevant legislation in the EU and in various Mediterranean countries and elaborate a policy initiative for boosting renewable energy based desalination. Concrete suggestions for how to improve existing EU legislation, such as the EU Water Framework Directive, were formulated.
ADU-RES will reach policy makers and think tanks, providing them with expert analysis and recommendations for the promotion of desalination units. Widespread circulation of reports, methodology and guidelines amongst the research and industry communities will initiate and maintain a fruitful interdisciplinary dialogue on the issue.
Dear colleagues,
the coordination action ADU-RES is aiming to bridge the gap between successful R&D
work and commercialisation of renewable energy powered desalination systems. Technical,
policy and socio-economic issues were analysed and the results were documented in reports
that will be soon available on the project website (www.adu-res.org).
On the 19th of September 2006 we are organising a seminar in Amman (Jordan) where our
results will be presented and discussions will be held on the improvements of the
institutional and policy conditions required for supporting the development of the
technology. We would like to invite you to join our seminar and take part in the
discussions. Please find attached the programme of the seminar and the contact details for
registration.
[mena-water] Upcoming seminar:
"Desalination based on Renewable Energy"
Attachment: Jordan_seminar_programme_2006_08_30.pdf (0.33 MB)
"MENA Region Water Resources and Wastewater Network"
Michael Papapetrou michael.papapetrou@wip-munich.de
Wednesday, August 30, 2006