Sea4Value: Novel technologies in seawater desalination plants to extract minerals and metals from seawater brines

SEA4Value: Development of radical innovations to recover minerals and metals from seawater desalination brines is a european project that aims to deliver a Multi-mineral Modular Brine Mining Process for the recovery of valuable metals and minerals from brines produced by seawater desalination plants. The project tested the feasibility of next generation technologies (including advanced concentration, crystallization and highly selective separation processes) for the recovery of Magnesium (Mg), Boron (B), Scandium (Sc), Indium (In), Vanadium (V), Gallium (Ga), Lithium (Li), Rubidium (Rb), Molybdenum (Mo), and set the basis for their future assimilation as a third source of raw materials in seawater desalination plants.  The SEA4VALUE consortium of 16 members represents the entire value chain -from Water Infrastructure Operator to Processing Industry, working extensively since 2020 to prove that the innovations and technologies developed and piloted are competitive, technically feasible, and will contribute to broader circular economy strategies and sustainability goals.

Programme

10.00 Welcome and introduction of the session 
Aina Amengual, R&D Project Manager at Catalan Water Parnership (CWP)

10.05 Sea4Value: Novel technologies in seawater desalination plants to extract minerals and metals from seawater Brines – Project Concept 
David Sanchez, sustainability researcher at EURECAT

10.15 Sea4value Technologies results

• Advanced Nanofiltration Membranes for Brine Pretreatment.
Arto Pihlajamäki, Associate professor at LUT School of Engineering

• Advanced Fully Polymer-Based Evaporator. 
Heike Glade, Senior researcher at University of Bremen

• Advanced evaporator with integrated vacuum steam heat supply system.
Panagiotis Pappas, Technology Development Leader at SEALEAU B.V. (online)

• Electrodialysis with bipolar membranes (EDBP) for selective recovery of Boron (B)
Mariana Figueira, PhD at UPC & researcher at EURECAT

10.50 Sea4Value Technologies implementation and Moving-lab results
Naiara Hernández, Project Manager at the R&D department of AQUALIA (on-line)

11.00 Closure
Aina Amengual, R&D Project Manager at Catalan Water Parnership (CWP)