Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 21, 2026

Ion-Exchange Membranes for the Fabrication of Reverse Electrodialysis Device
Published on: July 20, 2021
Microbial desalination cells packed with ion-exchange resin to enhance water desalination rate
Alexandre Morel1, Kuichang Zuo, Xue Xia
1State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, PR China.
Abstract:
A novel configuration of microbial desalination cell (MDC) packed with ion-exchange resin (R-MDC) was proposed to enhance water desalination rate. Compared with classic MDC (C-MDC), an obvious increase in desalination rate (DR) was obtained by R-MDC. With relatively low concentration (10-2 g/L NaCl) influents, the DR values of R-MDC were about 1.5-8 times those of C-MDC. Ion-exchange resins packed in the desalination chamber worked as conductor and thus counteracted the increase in ohmic resistance during treatment of low concentration salt water. Ohmic resistances of R-MDC stabilized at 3.0-4.7 Ω. By contrast, the ohmic resistances of C-MDC ranged from 5.5 to 12.7 Ω, which were 55-272% higher than those of R-MDC. Remarkable improvement in desalination rate helped improve charge efficiency for desalination in R-MDC. The results first showed the potential of R-MDC in the desalination of water with low salinity.
More Related Videos
07:28An Efficient Method for Selective Desalination of Radioactive Iodine Anions by Using Gold Nanoparticles-Embedded Membrane Filter
Published on: July 13, 2018
09:39Proof-of-Concept for Gas-Entrapping Membranes Derived from Water-Loving SiO2/Si/SiO2 Wafers for Green Desalination
Published on: March 1, 2020
Related Concept Videos
Ion Exchange
Ion-Exchange Chromatography
Osmosis and Osmotic Pressure of Solutions
Dialysis
Potentiometry: Membrane Electrodes
Concentration Cells