Solute migration mechanisms and their prediction for melting brackish water ice using gravity-induced desalination techniques

Freshwater scarcity is one of the most serious challenges worldwide. The melting process of brackish water ice has more desalination effect than the formation process of brackish water ice. In this experiment, ice crystals produced by single-stage progressive freezing under different conditions of i...

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Main Authors: Yuhui Yang, Hairui Wang, Weixiong Huang, Zhaoyang Li, Xin Rong, Zhan Song, Xiaomei Dong
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-09-01
Series:Results in Engineering
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590123025024806
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author Yuhui Yang
Hairui Wang
Weixiong Huang
Zhaoyang Li
Xin Rong
Zhan Song
Xiaomei Dong
author_facet Yuhui Yang
Hairui Wang
Weixiong Huang
Zhaoyang Li
Xin Rong
Zhan Song
Xiaomei Dong
author_sort Yuhui Yang
collection DOAJ
description Freshwater scarcity is one of the most serious challenges worldwide. The melting process of brackish water ice has more desalination effect than the formation process of brackish water ice. In this experiment, ice crystals produced by single-stage progressive freezing under different conditions of icing temperature and raw water solute concentration were utilized to carry out gravity-induced desalination (GD) and conventional ice melting tests. The migration pattern of TDS, Cl−, SO42−, CO32−+HCO3−, Na+, K+, Ca2+ and Mg2+ under the conditions of different ice crystal quality was explored. The results showed that the solute concentration of ice-melt water during the GD process showed an exponential decay, and the water type changed from Na·Mg-Cl to Na-Cl·SO4. The ion removal rate showed a distribution pattern of Na+ > Cl− > K+, Ca2+, Mg2+ > CO32−+HCO3− > SO42−. The key factors affecting the ion removal rate are ion relative mass, ion radius, icing temperature, and average ion concentration. The assumption of mixed ice-melt water for GD was proposed and predictive model was constructed. The model can be used to accurately predict the solute concentration of mixed ice-melt water. Using the mixed ice-melt water solute concentration as the target solute concentration for users’ demand can significantly improve water production rates. A case study was presented to illustrate the application of the predictive model, and the case showed a 27.40 % increase in water production rate.
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publishDate 2025-09-01
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spelling doaj-art-21b63a14c948481d9b09e47f4d592df72025-08-20T02:48:38ZengElsevierResults in Engineering2590-12302025-09-012710641010.1016/j.rineng.2025.106410Solute migration mechanisms and their prediction for melting brackish water ice using gravity-induced desalination techniquesYuhui Yang0Hairui Wang1Weixiong Huang2Zhaoyang Li3Xin Rong4Zhan Song5Xiaomei Dong6College of Hydraulic and Architectural Engineering, Tarim University, Alaer, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region 843300, ChinaCollege of Hydraulic and Architectural Engineering, Tarim University, Alaer, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region 843300, ChinaCollege of Hydraulic and Architectural Engineering, Tarim University, Alaer, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region 843300, China; School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, Hubei 430078, ChinaCollege of Hydraulic and Architectural Engineering, Tarim University, Alaer, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region 843300, China; Key Laboratory of Northwest Oasis Water-saving Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Areas, Shihezi 832061, ChinaCollege of Hydraulic and Architectural Engineering, Tarim University, Alaer, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region 843300, ChinaCollege of Hydraulic and Architectural Engineering, Tarim University, Alaer, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region 843300, ChinaCollege of Hydraulic and Architectural Engineering, Tarim University, Alaer, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region 843300, China; Institute of Farmland Irrigation, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Xinxiang, Henan Province 453002, China; Corresponding author.Freshwater scarcity is one of the most serious challenges worldwide. The melting process of brackish water ice has more desalination effect than the formation process of brackish water ice. In this experiment, ice crystals produced by single-stage progressive freezing under different conditions of icing temperature and raw water solute concentration were utilized to carry out gravity-induced desalination (GD) and conventional ice melting tests. The migration pattern of TDS, Cl−, SO42−, CO32−+HCO3−, Na+, K+, Ca2+ and Mg2+ under the conditions of different ice crystal quality was explored. The results showed that the solute concentration of ice-melt water during the GD process showed an exponential decay, and the water type changed from Na·Mg-Cl to Na-Cl·SO4. The ion removal rate showed a distribution pattern of Na+ > Cl− > K+, Ca2+, Mg2+ > CO32−+HCO3− > SO42−. The key factors affecting the ion removal rate are ion relative mass, ion radius, icing temperature, and average ion concentration. The assumption of mixed ice-melt water for GD was proposed and predictive model was constructed. The model can be used to accurately predict the solute concentration of mixed ice-melt water. Using the mixed ice-melt water solute concentration as the target solute concentration for users’ demand can significantly improve water production rates. A case study was presented to illustrate the application of the predictive model, and the case showed a 27.40 % increase in water production rate.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590123025024806Gravity-induced desalinationBrackish water iceSolutesModelingWater yield
spellingShingle Yuhui Yang
Hairui Wang
Weixiong Huang
Zhaoyang Li
Xin Rong
Zhan Song
Xiaomei Dong
Solute migration mechanisms and their prediction for melting brackish water ice using gravity-induced desalination techniques
Results in Engineering
Gravity-induced desalination
Brackish water ice
Solutes
Modeling
Water yield
title Solute migration mechanisms and their prediction for melting brackish water ice using gravity-induced desalination techniques
title_full Solute migration mechanisms and their prediction for melting brackish water ice using gravity-induced desalination techniques
title_fullStr Solute migration mechanisms and their prediction for melting brackish water ice using gravity-induced desalination techniques
title_full_unstemmed Solute migration mechanisms and their prediction for melting brackish water ice using gravity-induced desalination techniques
title_short Solute migration mechanisms and their prediction for melting brackish water ice using gravity-induced desalination techniques
title_sort solute migration mechanisms and their prediction for melting brackish water ice using gravity induced desalination techniques
topic Gravity-induced desalination
Brackish water ice
Solutes
Modeling
Water yield
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590123025024806
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