Media Releases and Opportunities

Bobbing on the ocean surface, it could be mistaken for a bit of wayward marine debris: a clear dome sitting atop a black platform and slowly filling with water. But the floating contraption is an innovation that could address the shortage of safe drinking water around the globe.

Dalhousie University researchers have developed a low-cost, portable water desalination device powered by solar energy and aimed at combatting water scarcity in developing countries or remote areas in an environmentally responsible manner.

The team, led by associate professor and Killam Memorial Chair Dr. Mita Dasog and postdoctoral fellow Dr. Matthew Margeson, conceptualized and created the floating still prototype using upcycled tire waste that can both desalinate water and generate thermoelectricity.

The idea for the solar still stemmed from refractory plasmonics, which are good at capturing light and converting that light into heat.

The device works by bringing ocean water up to its foam surface, where it's evaporated by solar-heated plasmonic materials. With the salt left behind, the water recondenses on the clear plastic dome over the top of the device and is funneled down the sides where it’s collected in a sealed bag.

Tests in Halifax harbour resulted in daily water yields of up to 3.67 litres, a record-breaking amount for a passive floating solar still. It's also cost-efficient: the still can simultaneously desalinate, disinfect and decontaminate the water for less than one cent per litre. The findings were recently published in the open access journals, iScience.

Different types of carbon waste were sourced and tested, including coffee grounds and lobster shells, with tire rubber emerging as the best performer, as detailed in another recent research paper.

Next summer, the researchers plan to conduct further testing in South Asia, with the hope that it could eventually be made available across the world.

Dr. Dasog and Dr. Margeson will be available tomorrow to discuss their work and demonstrate the device, which could bring freshwater to places that desperately need it, while also generating a small amount of thermoelectricity.

Time: 11 a.m. AT
Location: Horseshoe Island Park, bottom of Quinpool Road
Date: Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024

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Media contact:

Alison Auld
Senior Research Reporter
Dalhousie University
Cell: 902-220-0491
Email: Alison.auld@dal.ca