2023-12-02 00:00:00
Salt is one of the most abundant resources on the planet and an essential mineral for the body’s balance. Over the course of their life, a Belgian will consume on average 10.5 g per day, more than double the amount recommended by the WHO.
However, of the 290 million tonnes of salt produced and processed worldwide each year, between underground mines and salt marshes, only a tiny part ends up on our plate. Sodium chloride is in fact used in the composition of countless substances, such as cleaning products, fertilizers or medicines.
This precious element can, however, present dangers for the body and for nature, particularly when its concentration becomes too high. Excessive salinity, linked to the infiltration of seawater into rivers or the overexploitation of groundwater, can kill crops and unbalance an entire ecosystem. With climate change, these risks are already starting to materialize…
But salt also offers astonishing technical applications. In the Netherlands, a site is successfully experimenting with the phenomenon of osmosis, which produces “blue energy” by mixing salt water and fresh water. After decades of research, teams have developed a promising battery containing table salt.
As for seawater desalination techniques, which are still too energy-intensive, they remain a challenge for the future of capital importance.
This article appeared in Le Télépro on 11/30/2023
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