Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Tecnológicas - Plataforma Solar de Almería

www.ciemat.es

www.psa.es

The Solar Energy Programme of CIEMAT includes the Plataforma Solar de Almería (PSA) as main national research center. Formally considered as a European Large Scientific Installation, the Plataforma Solar de Almería is also the largest European Laboratory for solar energy applications. The PSA participates actively in demonstrative applications of different solar technologies, at national and international levels, with the main objective to improve the technology cost and efficiency and make possible the efficient collection of solar energy for electricity production, development of chemical applications, development and testing of materials under extreme conditions, desalination, wastewater detoxification, drinking water potabilisation, bioclimatic applications, etc.

Universidad de La Laguna

www.ull.es

The University of La Laguna (ULL) is located in Tenerife, one of the seven islands that form the Canarian Archipelago found in the Atlantic Ocean northeast of the African continent. The Canary Islands is one of the seven autonomous communities that make up the Spanish State and is divided into two provinces, Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Las Palmas. Tenerife is the largest island and its orography is dominated by the Teide Peak, the highest peak in Spanish territory. La Laguna is currently the second largest city in Tenerife. Its founding blueprint, which dates back to the 15th Century, was a model for the new cities that were built in America after its colonisation. This is why UNESCO included La Laguna as a cultural property on the World Heritage List.

Most of the university centres and faculties are located at four different campuses on La Laguna (Central, Anchieta, Guajara and Ofra) and some others at Santa Cruz de Tenerife (the largest city of the Island). The ULL has a teaching staff of 1,839 professors (data from December, 2005). This staff is organised in 63 departments and teaches 55 official degrees.

Key persons to be directly involved within MEDESOL project will be: Lourdes García Rodríguez , Vicente Romero Ternero, Isabel Martín Mateos and Ricardo Guerrero Lemus, from the Department of “Fundamental and Experimental Physics, Electronics and Systems” and the Department of “Basic Physics”, sited in the Mathematics-Physics faculties. Their teaching activities are carried out at the Civil and Industrial Engineering School, specialising in Mechanics and also in Physics Degree.

Main experience and knowledge of the team to be applied to the present project is related to the following topics: Solar distillation, reverse osmosis desalination, renewable energy-powered desalination, solar thermal and photovoltaic systems.

Acciona Infraestructuras S.A.

www.acciona-infraestructuras.es

The ACCIONA Group was founded in 1997, and its main activities are structured around six different areas of business: Construction and Real Estate, Infrastructure concessions, Energy, Logistics and Airport services, Urban and Environmental services and other businesses. ACCIONA INFRAESTRUCTURAS, S.A. is the head of the Construction and Real Estate Division. The activities of ACIONA INFRAESTRUCTURAS, S.A. extend to all areas and specialised fields in construction.

Its R&D Department, founded in 1992, is formed by 83 high qualified professionals. Currently, the main areas of investigation are: nanotechnologies, new construction materials, products and systems, ICTs, energy efficiency and environment for building and civil infrastructures.

ACCIONA Infraestructuras R&D Department has been involved in several European and National projects and is currently executing 5 projects of the 5th Framework Programme, and 8 projects of the 6th Framework Programme. R&D Department is leading 8 national projects. An especially important project is PROMETEO: Development of knowledge and intelligent technology in organic and ceramic materials, focus on the increase of productivity and business creation in sustainable building, which is its Key project.

Acciona Infraestructuras has a wide presence in Europe through R&D Department coleading the Focus Area of Cities and Buildings and leading the Working Group of Composites in the Focus Area of Materials and the Working Group of Enterprise in the Focus Area of Processes and ICTs. Also coleads the Working Group of Energy and Environment in the focus areas of cultural heritage. Participate in others Focus Area such as: quality of life, underground construction and networks.

Aguas de las Cuencas Mediterráneas S.A.

www.acuamed.com

The Sociedad Estatal de Aguas de las Cuencas Mediterráneas (ACUAMED, www.acuamed.com) is a public company. On July 22, 2005 Spain’s Council of Ministers agreed and approved the purpose of the state owned company, ACUAMED, as being the contracting, construction, acquisition and operation of all types of hydraulic works, particularly those in the general public interest undertaken in compliance with the new Law 11/2005 that amended the previous National Hydrological Plan on the transfer of water resources. Further purposes include the management of all contracts for studies, projects, construction, acquisition and operation of the works as prescribes under this law, and all preparatory and complementary works, or works arising from these former. This established the basic legal framework for ACUAMED to undertake the actions urgently needed in the hydrographic basins of the Rivers Sur, Segura Júcar, Ebro and the Internal Basins of Catalonia contemplated in the Royal Decree Law 2/2004. The goal of these actions and the new legislative package is to ensure sustainable water management in Mediterranean basins in the short term, in accordance with the European Water Framework Directive, guaranteeing a stable, economically feasible year to year water supply regardless of rainfall.

ACUAMED has designed over 100 action plans within its A.G.U.A. Program for Mediterranean Basins focused around three objectives:

• To provide 850 cubic hectometres. Sources include 50% from the desalination of sea and salt affected waters, 20 %from treated wastewater, 15% from improved irrigation facilities, and 15% from more efficient use of superficial resources, ground waters and other water management improvements.
• Modernization of urban and irrigation supply in a number of areas. Major efforts include the metropolitan areas of Valencia, Malaga/Costa del Sol, and the Plana of Castellón that will benefit around 6 million inhabitants with a guaranteed supply of good quality water.
• Environmental recovery of major Mediterranean wetland ecosystems, particularly the Ebro River Delta, the Albufera wetlands and the Mar Menor, and also recovery of stretches of rivers.

The most important action plans of ACUAMED to increase supply availability are expected to be solved through the execution of different project desalination plants, all of them located in coastal areas. The A.G.U.A. Program expects a production capacity of 500 cubic hectometres annually, 83% from seawater and 17% from the desalination of brackish water. Some of these plants are located in the Segura river Basin (Torrevieja, Águilas and Mojón), in the Jucar river Basin (Denia, Marina Baja, Jávea, Moncofar, Sagunto), in the Internal basins of Catalonia (Tordera) and in the Andalusian Mediterranean Basin (Almanzora, Adra, Campo de Dalías, Costa del Sol).

ACUAMED is developing other important projects related to the improvement of water management through the reuse of wastewater for industrial, agriculture, urban gardening, street cleaning, and modernization of irrigation system. Activities are also related to environmental restoration improving wetlands, reconditioning shorelines and habitats, and improving general water quality, with several major projects: the cleaning up chemical pollution in the Flix reservoir (Tarragona), restoring downstream riverbanks, channelling fresh water into the Delta bays, providing new water supplies to the Albufera wetlands in Valencia, and environmental recovery of the stretch of the Segura River located between Ojós and Contraparada.

Ao Sol Energias Renovaveis, SA

http://www.aosol.pt

AO SOL - ENERGIAS RENOVÁVEIS SA (www.aosol.pt), is a private Portuguese company, manufacturer of solar energy collectors of the non-evacuated compound parabolic concentrator (CPC) type with applications in water heating, heating and cooling of buildings and steam production for industry. The technology was a awarded with a national price within the National Program for new industrial ideas sponsored by the Portuguese Government.

AO SOL was created in 1998 to be a manufacturer of CPC solar concentrators. These are stationary and have low cost, with the same ease of installation as conventional flat plates and a higher thermal performance. AO SOL was recently bought from the Portuguese oil and gas group, GALP, by the company ENERPURA, S.A., with an ambitious program to develop solar thermal use in Portugal and the export of CPC technology abroad. This recent (October 2005) strategic take-over establishes a new and very important phase for both companies and for the development of Solar Energy in Portugal.

At present AO SOL is installed in a large production facility in a 3500 m2 building in Porto Alto, 40 km Northeast of Lisbon. It has 20 employees, including administration, manufacture, engineering R&D and commercial departments. The main product being currently manufactured was designed for the production of hot water, with the capability of being used in thermosyphon systems as well as in forced circulation ones, large or small. With its growing market penetration and production capacity, AO SOL is already the leading manufacturer of solar collectors in Portugal.

AO SOL has a product which is in the front line of solar thermal energy today, and wants to keep up its technology, to conserve that status on a world wide scale. For that reason, AO SOL has a standing collaboration agreement with the Renewable Energies Department of INETI (Ministry of Economy). Besides, present main market for solar active thermal applications is the production of hot water; there are other potential interesting markets, like solar cooling (and heating if done together with cooling) of homes and buildings, steam production for industry, desalination, for drinking water production, for irrigation and other applications. These markets require different products, with higher performance at higher temperatures. Other applications like water treatment by U.V. and solar cooking are interesting for the company, which is at this stage developing special products dedicated to them.

The R&D Department of AO SOL is under the direction of Prof. Dr. Manuel Collares Pereira, a leading specialist in Solar Energy and in particular in CPC technology. Abroad, AO SOL has managed to have a number of collaborations with other solar companies and research institutions, as, for instance, the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy in Freiburg, DLR in Koln, ILK in Dresden, CIEMAT and its Plataforma Solar Almeria, as well as INTA in Spain, etc. The company is involved with these and other institutions with the goal of expanding its offer of products in the future, such as solar collectors for Photo Catalysis and Photo Fenton technologies, solar cookers and water desalinators. These R&D activities are carried out with financing coming out from R&D programs like CYTED or specific EU funded projects with names like SOLARDETOX, CADOX, SOLWATER, AQUACAT, as well as specific Portuguese Government funds.

Universitaet Stuttgart - Institut für Thermodynamik und Wärmetechnik

www.uni-stuttgart.de

www.itw.uni-stuttgart.de

The Institute of Thermodynamics and Thermal Engineering (www.itw.uni-stuttgart.de) is part of the University of Stuttgart. For many years, the institute has focused its research activities on the two areas of advanced heat transfer processes and solar thermal systems for domestic applications. At present, the institute employs 35 staff out of which 25 are research scientists and engineers. With more than 25 years of experience and more than 150 related publications, ITW is one of the world´s leading institutions with respect to the investigation on deposit formation (i.e. scaling). Present work in this area is focused on the development of non-fouling surface coatings by advanced techniques such as magnetron sputtering. In the area of solar thermal water and space heating, ITW operates Germany´s largest research and testing centre for industrial collectors and storages. This is complemented by theoretical and pilot-scale investigations on solar-supported district heating systems with seasonal heat storage. The Institute for Thermodynamics and Thermal Engineering has extensive laboratory infrastructure with modern instrumentation and equipment. It also enjoys close cooperation with the Institute of Technical Thermodynamics of the German Aerospace Centre, which is located on the same campus in Stuttgart.

Tinep S.A. de C.V.

http://www.tinep.com/

TINEP S.A. de C.V. is a medium private company, founded in 1987 and with its headquarters located Mexico Distrito Federal, specialised in public drinking water supply systems, including design and installation of superficial and groundwater potabilisation plants. Company activity also covers the design and installation of complete water treatment systems to the reuse of municipal and industrial wastewaters. The company current staff is formed by 115 people. Commercial activity of the company is taking place mainly within Mexico, addressed to both the public and private sectors, at federal, state and municipal levels. Nevertheless, in addition to Mexico, the actual market of the company also covers the Southern States of the USA, Chile and Costa Rica. At present TINEP is involved in negotiations that will permit its participation within relevant projects in the North of the United States and the South of Canada by the year 2003 and in the European Union, with a scheduled initiation in Spain in the year 2004.

The Departamento de Proyectos Especiales (Special Projects Department), with a total staff of 16 people fully devoted to the research and development of company own technology, would be the one directly involved in the present project. The principal activities of this department are related with TINEP growth and consolidation; these main activities are: i) technology development, ii) elaboration of basic engineering and processing appropriate for the required operating conditions and available raw materials and, iii) design of equipment and systems for public or private service including the preparation of market studies and project viabilities.

Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

Centro de Investigación en Energía - Energy Research Center

www.unam.mx

www.cie.unam.mx

The Centro de Investigación en Energía (CIE; Energy Research Center, www.cie.unam.mx), of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM; National University of Mexico) is an institution committed to research, development and graduate education on the topic of energy, with an emphasis on renewable energy technologies. It was created in 1996 from the former Laboratorio de Energía Solar of UNAM´s Instituto de Investigación en Materiales. The research staff of CIE is formed by 55 persons, working in diverse fields, several of whom are outstanding members of the Mexican scientific community and have been awarded with the highest ranks in UNAM and in SNI (National System of Researchers). This personnel is organized in three research departments: Energetic Systems, Solar Materials and Thermal Sciences.

The research capacities of CIE-UNAM with regards to solar energy projects include expertise in general areas like heat transfer and fluid mechanics, both theoretical and experimental, heat exchangers, heat pumps, solar concentrating systems, solar process heat, PV systems integration, material sciences, and the assessment of social, economic and environmental impacts of energy technologies.

The personnel of CIE-UNAM has experience in developing and testing solar systems for different applications, which include refrigeration and cooling, crops drying, water detoxification, disinfection and desalination, process heat, water heating, PV rural electrification and water pumping. CIE-UNAM is one of the most recognized institutions in solar energy research in Mexico.

Kunglica Tekniska Hoegskolan - Royal Institute of Technology

Department of Energy Technology

http://www.kth.se/

http://www.energy.kth.se/

The Royal Institute of Technology (Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan), KTH, is responsible for one-third of Sweden’s capacity for engineering studies and technical research at post-secondary level. The university has over 12,000 undergraduate students, 1,600 active postgraduate students and a staff of 3,000 people.
KTH conducts top-notch education and research of a broad spectrum – from natural science to all branches of technology, including architecture, industrial economics, urban planning, work science and environmental technology. Apart from research performed at the Institute departments, a large number of competence centres are housed here at KTH. Strategic research foundations are also funding other research programmes or graduate schools.

KTH is a public university founded in 1827. Now it is the largest of Sweden’s universities of technology. Since 1917 KTH has been housed in central Stockholm in beautiful buildings which today have historical monument status, and associated colleges etc. are also found in various places in the Stockholm surroundings – Haninge, Kista, Södertälje.
In Kista, the main Swedish resource centre of information technology, KTH co-operates with Stockholm University, other research centres, and with industry.
Extensive co-education schemes are also carried out with a number of regional university colleges, where many of the MSc engineering students may complete their first two years before going to KTH in Stockholm.

The Department of Energy Technology, at The Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden, covers a wide area of energy conversion and energy utilization. It hence covers subjects from basic thermodynamics and heat transfer to engineering applications in heating and ventilating of buildings, cooling and refrigeration, heat and power technology, gas turbines. Within the department, a reesearch group has been working with Membrane distillation for water purification since 2003. The research topics include system-wide performance assessments, laboratory investigations, and pilot plant testing in conjunction with Idbäcken Cogeneration Unit (Vattenfall). Applications include water treatment for boilers, district heating networks, and flue gas condensate; ultrapure water production in the semiconductor industry; and solar desalination.

Scarab Development AB

www.scarab.se

Scarab Development AB (www.scarab.se) was founded in 1973 in order to exploit low temperature distillation technology concepts developed by research at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden. This development lead to the invention of what today is called Air Gap Membrane Distillation, which was patented for the first time by Scarab in 1981. The technology was licensed to the Swedish National Development Company (SU), a subsidiary of Statsföretag AB – an umbrella concern for the Swedish Government’s industrial undertakings. When Statsföretag was privatized in 1987, SU was disbanded and Scarab recovered the license. From that time Scarab has developed applications in the semiconductor industry, process industries, desalination and drinking water purification. Scarab Development AB, is a private research company engaged in development of membrane distillation technology and other technology projects. It has founded and is part owner of the following companies:

• HVR Water Purification AB (publ), a public company developing household equipment based on membrane distillation technology.
• Purity AB (publ), a public company developing household equipment based on de-gassing technology.
• Xzero AB (publ), a public company developing water purification equipment for the semiconductor industry based on membrane distillation, de-gassing and other technologies.
• Medea AB, a private company developing desalination technology based on membrane distillation.

Scarab also heads several development projects in the water area. Current active projects are the following:

• Seminars: Electricity + Water = the Good Life – held at the Royal Institute of Technology to promote the development of sustainable local co-generation solutions.
• The Arsenic Foundation – to provide a solution to the arsenic contamination of well water
• ORS – to promote efficient solutions to treat dehydration
• THM – study to fins ways to avoid disinfection by-products in drinking water
• Life Keeper – design of a co-generation equipment (electricity, heat and pure water) for relief operations
  

Ibérica de Estudios e Ingeniería S.A.

http://www.iberinsa.es/

IBERINSA, Ibérica de Estudios e Ingeniería, was founded in Madrid in 1960. It is a consulting firm which activities cover all fields of civil, hydraulic, industrial and environmental engineering and consultancy.

IBERINSA considers the Research & Development & Innovation (R&D&I) activities a fundamental tool to generate the necessary knowledge for the innovation and the increase of the company competitiveness. IBERINSA R&D&I activities are focused in 3 main areas: environment, sustainable development and sustainable construction. We have successfully participated in a number of EU R&D projects such as ITSAEM (Integrated telematic system for administration environmental management), FOMFIS (Forest fire management and fire prevention system), E-FIS (European on-line decision support system for forest fires), ENINFO (Environmental venture investment information) and INTRANSNET (Network of European Medium and Large-scale Transport Research Facilities Operators).

Currently IBERINSA is participating in several R&D projects, such as PROMETEO (Development of new knowledge and intelligent technology on organic and ceramic materials to upgrade the productivity and create new business opportunities in the field of sustainable building), financed by the Spanish Centre for Industrial Technological Development (CDTI), “Use of shredded waste tires as fill material: mechanical properties and engineering applications”, for the Spanish Ministry of Environment, and MEDESOL (Seawater desalination by innovative solar-powered membrane-distillation system), financed by the European Commission.