Webinar on Oceans as Green Energy Source
Description
Blue Economy’, the emerging concept represents the interlinked activities and establishments related to oceans, seas and coasts; and the sustainable use of oceanic resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and jobs while preserving the health of ocean ecosystem. The ocean constitutes an unconventional reserve of naturally-occurring technology metals that could be harvested for future energy needs. The exploration of oceans for harvesting the technology minerals is a key challenge and any progress in this scenario will boost the concept of Blue economy. With recent advances in ‘Desalination technologies’ and ‘Resource recovery’, it has been established that brine and seawater are important and largely untapped sources of critical metals and elements. The coupling of selective recovery of trace metals from seawater/brine with desalination plants gives an added advantage of energy credits to desalination plants. Research and technological developments that are required to reduce the cost of desalinated water will be discussed. Oceans can serve as green energy source by recovery of nuclear fuel materials and other energy minerals.
In this webinar, status review on the material design/ properties for the recovery of important trace metals and other alkali metals will be discussed by the researchers working in this area.