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tahanson43206

Moderator

Registered: 2018-04-27

Posts: 17,130

Ocean salty Sea water to Fresh

For SpaceNut .... you created this topic to discuss California wildfires, and the topic has expanded to include Australia's fires.

I'd like to offer a statement which I think is correct, and I invite correction, if appropriate.

Statement: There is nothing in the Laws of Physics to prevent use of solar panels to make enough fresh water to serve the entire continent of Australia.

This is NOT intended to be a discussion about practicality.

I am strictly asking for correction if the premise given above needs adjustment.

Hopefully there is someone in the active membership who is interested in the question and willing to perform the calculations to see what it would take to achieve the objective.

It will be obvious to everyone that Ma Nature delivers fresh water to the entire surface of the Earth, as random factors dictate.

Human beings are intelligent enough to be able to imagine bringing  consistency to what is otherwise a random process.

That's a long way from being capable of actually DOING it.

(th)

SpaceNut

Administrator

From: New Hampshire

Registered: 2004-07-22

Posts: 28,863

Re: Ocean salty Sea water to Fresh

Nice suggestion to see what technology can be use out there on the shelf for a practical useage.

To try and keep politics out we do realise that just about every one needs water at some level and at a cost that is affordable but that is not the case as many towns or cities have you paying quite a bit for the service and if you think that having your own well of any source type is free its not so as it is still expensive as not all water is drinkable. We have seen the issue for cities and towns with contaminated water supplies as the Flynn city has.

Going beyond this we have storm drainage which collect contaminated rain water that goes into streams, sewer systems and even to the oceans. We know that we need water but water containing fluids from a vehicle means death long term.
Why are we not collecting and processing it so as to lower the contamination of water? The proessed water is just that in that its something that could be sold or used for the watering of these forest areas as to reduce the chances for burning.

The dryness of forests is from the climate change as we have seen as its on the increase just by the number of them and how large the burn areas are.

Now to the processing of the water from the sea which is happening in the very arid areas of the world but its got a cost even though you could sell the salts and minerals with in the evaporated sea water. Then for the dispersal of that processed water for the forests is the same issue as before we will not want to give it away for free even though its going to protect all in the long run.

Using free energy sources after they have been paid back is the means to lowering the cost of processing as well but the water should not be a high charge as that is the current issues for dispensing the water for the good of earth and of its people.

SpaceNut

Administrator

From: New Hampshire

Registered: 2004-07-22

Posts: 28,863

Re: Ocean salty Sea water to Fresh

Polluted wastewater in the forecast? Try a solar umbrella

tahanson43206

Moderator

Registered: 2018-04-27

Posts: 17,130

Re: Ocean salty Sea water to Fresh

For SpaceNut re #3

Nice catch!   I can see an immediate application for Mars.  In one of the recent posts here in the forum, there was a description of the annual cycle of Martian seasons based upon the planet's 25 degree spin axis, similar to that of the Earth.  The article pointed out the presence of significant quantities of water at the poles.  The technique reported in the "solar umbrella" post could be used to melt ice if ice has the same response to IR as is reported for free flowing water.

As a related observation ... UV radiation is harmful to plants (and people for that matter), so UV blocking glass is needed for greenhouses.  However, if light can be downgraded from visible to IR, then (presumably) it can be downgraded from UV to visible, which would increase the available sunlight at Mars.

(th)