New Process For Nanoscale Filtration Holds Promise of Cheap, Clean Water 116
New submitter Spinnakker writes "Lockheed Martin, traditionally known for its development of military systems and aircraft, has developed a process for perforating graphene (carbon sheets only one atom thick) that could potentially reduce the energy required for desalination by two orders of magnitude. The process tailors the hole size to the molecules being separated. In the case of desalination, one would create holes in the graphene large enough to allow water to pass but small enough to block the salt molecules. The advantage to using graphene comes from how extremely thin the material is compared to traditional filters. The thinner the filter, the less energy is required to facilitate reverse osmosis."
Re:Holy moly (Score:3, Funny)
It's very hard to keep prices up and maintain austerity measures if fresh, clean water becomes more abundant. Desalination seems like such a waste when we can collect, harvest, and distribute rain water. But low profit margins will keep that from happening. Making war and stealing other peoples' water is the market solution.
Re:expensive filter will get gummed up in no time (Score:5, Funny)
...how many holes?
Enough to fill the Albert Hall
Re:Waterworld (Score:5, Funny)