Development of reverse osmosis technology and opportunities for renewable energy integration in the Greek islands

Eftihia Tzen, Evagelos Rikos, Ifigenia Karga, Panagiotis Papadopoulos, Nikolaos Stefanatos, Dimitris Theofiloyiannakos

https://doi.org/10.5004/po2024121

Development of reverse osmosis technology and opportunities for renewable energy integration in the Greek Islands

Eftihia Tzen*, Evangelos Rikos, Ifigenia Karga, Panagiotis Papadopoulos, Nikolaos Stefanatos, Dimitris Theofiloyiannakos

Centre for Renewable Energy Sources & Saving (CRES), 19th km Marathonos Av, Pikermi, Greece

*Corresponding author

https://doi.org/10.5004/po2024121

ABSTRACT

The Greek Islands, particularly those in the Aegean and Ionian seas, benefit from strong winds and abundant sunshine, especially during the summer months when water demand is highest. The reduction in available natural water resources and the explosive growth of tourism in the Greek Islands have led even those islands, traditionally known for their natural water sources to be concerned and seek alternative solutions, such as desalination. Over the last two decades, reverse osmosis, primarily of seawater, has become the main source of water on many Greek Islands. Small to medium-sized reverse osmosis plants, with average water capacities ranging from 250 m³/d to around 2000 m³/d, serve the public, with a few exceptions of larger plants. The full automation of these systems, the use of energy recovery devices to reduce energy consumption, and the modularity of reverse osmosis technology, which accommodates with the seasonal variations in water demand, make this technology an ideal solution for the islands. Additionally, combining wind energy, solar energy, and energy storage with reverse osmosis technology can minimize carbon emissions and significantly reduce the environmental impact on islands’ sensitive environments and water resources. Despite these advantages, only a few desalination plants powered by renewable energy currently exist on the Greek Islands. This paper presents the current status of desalination in the Greek Islands and analyses two case studies on the combination of wind and solar energy to power reverse osmosis plants on two Aegean Islands. Additionally, it analyzes the current barriers to integrating renewable energy on non-interconnected islands, which lack connections to the mainland's electricity network, and on the opportunities of the expected electrical interconnection, as it will increase the potential for electricity generation from renewables.

Keywords: Wind energy; Solar energy; Reverse osmosis; Islands