I would like to know if there would be a way to make sea water safe for drinking. And would this end the thought of running out of fresh water. And, or could it be used to irrigate the dryest climates
2006-07-01 18:18:23 · 19 answers · asked by Anonymous in Environment
Not only feasible but it's already a well-established practice.
The process is known as distillation. What is done is sea water is boiled. The steam is captured and condensed back into liquid water. Any impurities are left behind as they didn't evaporate with the water.
2006-07-01 18:24:00 · answer #1 · answered by QWERTY 3 · 11⤊ 3⤋
Machines like this already exist. I believe they use them on ships and submarines to provide fresh water for the crews. The problem is that the machines involved are kind of expensive.
The easiest way to make sea water safe for drinking is to evaporate the water in a sealed container. When the water evaporates, the salt is left behind as a mineral deposit. This method is used by people stranded at sea.
2006-07-02 01:25:44 · answer #2 · answered by libaram 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Several types of desalination systems are available.One I have read about are offshore domes that that use passive -solar energy to evaporate seawater that condenses and drips down the dome into a ring shaped catch basin around the base. These structures float on the surface of the sea, and in theory can be made any size, permanent , semi-permanent, rigid, collapsible, portable and sized for personal survival. I do not know where to obtain one.
2006-07-02 01:37:01 · answer #3 · answered by Emee 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A machine like that does exist but if it were to be used everywhere then the seas would get too salty causing even more problems.
So no it is not feasible to use in large scale.
2006-07-02 01:31:50 · answer #4 · answered by Man 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Get a bucket, put some plastic wrap over the top after you put a cup in the middle of the bucket and fill it with seawater. Put some rocks in the middle of the plastic wrap so it is over the cup. Wait a few hours and evaporation will do the rest.
2006-07-02 01:24:10 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, it is in use. Hong Kong produces 25% of its water supply from a 'flash distillation plan't near Castle Peak and the city of Tampa is considering the same to augment its failing water supplies.
2006-07-02 01:23:45 · answer #6 · answered by Frank 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, they are doing this in Hawaii right now. They use reverse osmosis to take the salt out of the water. This is not cheap however so it's uses elsewhere may be limited.
2006-07-03 08:15:37 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's done in several countries; they are known as desalination plants. Although the cost supposedly is prohibitive, we may be left with no other choice as fresh water becomes more scarce.
2006-07-02 01:22:16 · answer #8 · answered by magic621a 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sure. It's been done. If you were stranded on an island surrounded by salt water, you could make your own to have the sun evaporate or rather, leave the salt behind.
2006-07-02 06:03:00 · answer #9 · answered by soozemusic 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Being done in the Middle East right now. Yes, it works. However unless you are as rich as an OPECer, it's cost prohibitive.
2006-07-02 01:23:00 · answer #10 · answered by sparkletina 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋