In the report Meeting the Needs of the Water-Energy Nexus, have stressed on the importance of shielding the interdependent relationship of water and energy. As the world population soars, food, energy and water are increasingly becoming scarce. Water and energy are two most important things to sustain a productive and healthy society. The two are deeply interlinked. It is this inextricable nature of the water and energy that is also a big challenge for businesses and governments worldwide. A lack of technology, poor management, and/or inefficiencies in one inadvertently affects the other. It is important to understand the know-how of optimizing the use of the two. This can be done in two (2) ways: (1) minimizing the use of water in energy production, and (2) minimizing the use of energy in water production. Chemical engineering helps recycle and reuse the graywater or sewage water for cooling in industries. For water production, chemical engineering helps reduce energy consumption at two (2) steps: (1) water treatment, and (2) wastewater for reuse. The three (3) technologies that are effective and economic in achieving this are: (1) reverse osmosis, (2) ion exchange, and (3) ultrafiltration. Of the three, reverse osmosis finds the widest applications and is the most economic. However, there is room for improvement in the areas of pumping motors, friction and pressure drop losses in pipes, and separation units. While little can be done in the cases of pumps and pipes, energy consumption can be greatly reduced at the separation units through development of better filtration systems and thinner membranes.
Works Cited
Desai, Snehal and David A. Klanecky. "Meeting the Needs of the Water-Energy Nexus." White paper. 2011. electronic.
