Italian PhD Course on "Photovoltaics"
Dottorato Nazionale in “Photovoltaics”
Where: University of Trieste
Trieste, Italy
Application deadline: 29 August 2023, 15:00 (Italian time)
Curriculum: B - “Module and system design and integration”
Project title: Sun to Sustain – innovative photovoltaic-based sustainable desalination systems
Short description: the project aims at studying a photovoltaic-based desalinization system. The system uses green electricity to remove salt and impurities from the sea water.
The reverse osmosis process used in the project is based on a semi-permeable membrane to separate water molecules from impurities. The advantage of producing fresh water with this process is that the sea water is practically inexhaustible. Nevertheless, the reverse osmosis process is energy intensive so that the produced water has a high impact from both the environmental and the economic point of view. Another aspect to consider is the production of brine that can affect the chemical properties of the sea. Thus, the aim of the project is to study ways to reduce the impact of such type of systems also by optimizing the performance of the photovoltaic generator powering the desalination process. The work will include a survey on the 8,300 km of the Italian coast to develop a proper water supply network powered by photovoltaic systems. A LCA analysis will be used to understand the impact of such a system with particular reference to the production of electricity and brine.
Industrial partner involved: Fototherm (https://www.fototherm.com/)
Call for application: https://web.unisa.it/uploads/rescue/226/11418/bando-di-concorso-xxxix-ciclo.pdf (IT) - https://web.unisa.it/uploads/rescue/277/11422/call-for-phd-courses-xxxix-cycle.pdf (EN)
More details: https://sites.google.com/unisa.it/phd-dn-pv
Contact: Prof. Alessandro Massi Pavan
Thesis tutor: Prof. Alessandro Massi Pavan
Thesis co-tutors: Dr. Nicola Blasuttigh and Dr. Andrea Mio