What the study found
A double-pass reverse osmosis system integrated with a renewable hydrogen setup was found to produce electricity and freshwater for a remote island setting. The study reports levelised costs of electricity and hydrogen of $0.165/kWh and $40.5/kg, respectively.
Why the authors say this matters
The authors conclude that the system offers a scalable way to provide simultaneous freshwater and electricity in remote and resource-constrained regions. They also say it addresses the freshwater needed for electrolysis, which is the process of using electricity to split water to make hydrogen.
What the researchers tested
The researchers carried out a techno-economic analysis of an integrated system for a remote island in southeast Australia. The system included photovoltaic panels, wind turbines, a proton exchange membrane electrolyser, fuel cell stacks, hydrogen storage tanks, lithium-ion batteries, and a double-pass reverse osmosis system modelled in MATLAB.
What worked and what didn't
The electrolyser used 4,148.9 MWh/year of excess electricity and produced 63,110 kg of hydrogen annually, requiring 1,073 m3 of freshwater. The double-pass reverse osmosis model gave a specific energy consumption of 5.96 kWh/m3 for the first pass pump and 1.69 kWh/m3 for the second pass pump. Sensitivity analysis showed that feed pressure in the first pass and the number of elements per pressure vessel could significantly affect the economics; water production cost ranged from $4.34/m3 to $6.90/m3, while its impact on hydrogen cost was marginal.
What to keep in mind
The abstract does not describe all possible limitations beyond the sensitivity to feed pressure and number of elements per pressure vessel. The results are specific to the studied system design and the remote island context described in the paper.
Key points
- The integrated system was reported to produce electricity and freshwater for a remote island application.
- The study found levelised costs of electricity and hydrogen of $0.165/kWh and $40.5/kg.
- The double-pass reverse osmosis model had water production costs between $4.34/m3 and $6.90/m3.
- Feed pressure in the first pass and the number of elements per pressure vessel significantly affected system economics.
- The abstract says water production cost had only a marginal impact on the levelised cost of hydrogen.
Disclosure
- Research title:
- Integrated desalination-renewable hydrogen system produced electricity and freshwater
- Authors:
- Pranjal Kumar, Abhijit Date, Bahman Shabani
- Institutions:
- RMIT University
- Publication date:
- 2026-02-14
- OpenAlex record:
- View
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