This project seeks to address two seemingly disparate problemsbrine management and greenhouse gas emissions from cement manufacturing

This Cooperative Agreement award from the U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Reclamation under the Water Desalination Research and Development Program (CFDA 15.506) seeks to address two key challenges: brine management and greenhouse gas emissions from cement manufacturing. The $312,777.83 award to New Mexico State University (NMSU) aims to develop an innovative approach that precipitates calcium hydroxide from impaired waters, which can then be used as a primary ingredient in a non-Portland-based cement. This would help address the brine management issue while also reducing the carbon emissions associated with traditional cement production. NMSU, a Hispanic-serving, land-grant research university, will leverage its expertise in water treatment technologies, materials science, and cement manufacturing to conduct laboratory studies, pilot testing, and technological demonstrations as part of this 2-year project. The federal grant program focuses on advancing cost-effective and sustainable solutions to augment the nation's usable water supply through desalination and water treatment innovations.

Over the last decade saline wastewaters other than seawater and brackish groundwater including agricultural tile drainage power plant cooling tower blowdown water reverse osmosis brines and oil and gas produced waters have received increasing interest because desalinating these waters could augment freshwater sources for landlocked communities. These alternative waters contain elevated concentrations of sparingly soluble salts that prevent high recovery using conventional approaches. At the same time the manufacturing of portland cement the most widely used cement in the world generates 7 to 8% of the global carbon dioxide CO2 emissions each year. This project proposes to address brine management challenges by selectively precipitating out calcium hydroxide thereby softening the water and enabling high recovery and using this calcium hydroxide as a main ingredient for creating a nonportlandbased cement.