Work

Adaptive NF–RO hybrid systems for tailored irrigation water: Sustainable desalination of brackish groundwater

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Irrigation water quality is a key factor influencing agricultural productivity, soil health, and long-term environmental sustainability. The issue is particularly important in regions increasingly dependent on saline and brackish groundwater. Reverse osmosis (RO) is the dominant desalination technology due to its scalability and relatively low specific energy consumption (SEC). However, its large-scale application in irrigation is constrained by concentrate management, nutrient depletion, and high energy demand. Hybrid nanofiltration–reverse osmosis (NF–RO) systems offer an alternative by integrating selective ion retention with improved water recovery and concentrate management. Previous NF–RO irrigation studies have primarily focused on static blending strategies to achieve target irrigation water quality, while adaptive control of blending ratios remains limited. This review evaluates conventional and emerging NF–RO systems for irrigation-oriented brackish water desalination. Their performance is benchmarked against standalone NF and RO systems in terms of water quality, energy efficiency, and concentrate management. To overcome the limitations of fixed blending strategies, an integrated NF–RO platform with adaptive feedback-controlled blending is proposed to produce dual-stream irrigation water with tailored salinity. The model-predicted feasibility of the proposed framework was evaluated through simulation using representative brackish groundwater with total dissolved solids (TDS) of 2721 mg L⁻ 1 . Across the investigated NF–RO configurations, the maximum NF concentrate blending ratio reached 4.49%, while SEC and variable operating expenditure (OPEX) varied between 0.99–1.20 kWh m⁻ 3 and 0.13–0.15 USD m⁻ 3 , respectively. This study highlights trade-offs among water recovery, irrigation water quality, and energy–economic efficiency and outlines future research directions for sustainable agricultural water supply systems.

Source: Journal of environmental chemical engineering

DOI: 10.1016/j.jece.2026.124563

Authors: Abelneh Terefe Mekuria, Melkamu Birlie Genet, Girma Daba Deme, Áron Bóna, Tamás Kucserka, Ildikó Galambos

Institution: University of Pannonia

Language: English

Topic: Membrane Separation Technologies

Subfield: Water Science and Technology

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Clean water and sanitation, Zero hunger, Affordable and clean energy

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,350