Impact

      Clean water, cleaner energy: Penn State powering renewable energy technologies

      Penn State researchers are discovering ways to turn wastewater treatment into a renewable source of clean energy.

      “Energy demand is not going to be met in any one way,” said Bruce Logan, Evan Pugh University Professor in Engineering and Stan and Flora Kappe Professor of Environmental Engineering at Penn State. “It’s going to have to be a multipronged approach. What we’re doing is investigating and inventing new technologies that can fundamentally alter how we’re meeting energy demands.” Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

      UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Among renewable sources of energy, humans have long recognized the power of water. At the places where freshwater and saltwater meet, for example, there are vast amounts of potential energy to be tapped — enough, in theory, to supply 40 percent of global electricity needs.

      The process is called salinity gradient energy, and it’s a new area of focus for environmental engineer Bruce Logan. But it’s also a continuation of the work he’s been doing at Penn State for 20 years.

      READ MORE about Logan's work with renewable energy technologies at impact.psu.edu. 

      Last Updated June 11, 2019

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