ISTC looks for innovative ways to reduce water consumption, reuse water, and prevent pollution.
Although three-quarters of the Earth is covered by water, less than one percent is available for human use. This scant one percent is found in our lakes, rivers, and aquifers and, as populations grow and weather becomes more variable, fresh water is increasingly scarce.
In Illinois, water supplies are unlikely to disappear in the near future, but projections by the Illinois State Water Survey show they will be unable to keep up with population growth in urban areas. As demand grows, extracting fresh water from surface and subsurface sources will become more difficult and more costly. If municipalities do not explore alternative water sources and implement stronger conservation measures, the region could face significant shortages that affect human use and aquatic systems.
This makes research into reducing water consumption in Illinois more important than ever. Preserving the water supply will benefit human and wildlife populations, and innovative conservation techniques can also deliver significant cost savings.
Past Water Use and Reuse Projects
ISTC has over three decades of research experience in water, from pollution prevention to reducing water consumption.
- Aquapod© – A new forward osmosis technology developed at ISTC by researchers Kishore Rajagopalan and Vinod Patel. It uses a noncorrosive, nontoxic, stable osmotic solution to raise osmotic pressure, saving a lot of energy compared with traditional reverse osmosis. (US Patent No. US8852436)
- Striped Bass Saline Aquaculture in Illinois (2015) – Saline water is prominent as wastewater effluent from injection into deep saline aquifers. To look at uses for this water, ISTC researchers created artificial saline water at natural concentrations and used it to raise striped bass. Researchers concluded that water displaced from saline aquifers is suitable for growing saline species for aquaculture.
- One Billion Gallon Water Challenge (2015) – To build awareness among businesses, industries, communities, and the general public about water conservation, ISTC funded projects focused on using water more efficiently, reusing water, and keeping existing water resources clean.
- Use of Treated Effluent Water in Cellulosic Ethanol Production (2013) – ISTC researchers found that treated wastewater was a feasible substitute for freshwater in multiple steps of the ethanol production process, thereby reducing the overall water consumption of ethanol production.