ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Damian Palin - Biological miner
Damian Palin is developing a way to use bacteria to biologically "mine" minerals from water -- specifically, out of the brine left over from the desalinization process.

Why you should listen

Research engineer Damian Palin has long been fascinated by the process of biomineralization–with particular attention on the mechanisms involved for mineral precipitation. At the Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (in collaboration with Nanyang Technical University, Singapore), he conducts experiments to assess the ability of microorganisms to mine selected minerals out of seawater desalination brine. This study was based on compelling and burgeoning evidence from the field of geomicrobiology, which shows the ubiquitous role that microorganisms play in the cycling of minerals on the planet. 

He says: "It is my aim to continue to research in the field of biomineralization, while exploring the mechanisms responsible for mild energetic mineral (including metal) precipitation for the production of mineral composites."

Read our in-depth Q&A with Damian Palin >>

More profile about the speaker
Damian Palin | Speaker | TED.com
TED2012

Damian Palin: Mining minerals from seawater

Damian Palin: Vađenje minerala iz morske vode

Filmed:
1,002,297 views

Svijetu je potrebna pitka voda, a mi je sve češće uzimamo iz oceana, desaliniziramo je i pijemo. No, što učiniti s rasolom koji ostaje iza desalinizacije? U ovom kratkom i intrigantnom predavanju TED Kolega Damian Palin iznosi sljedeću ideju: Iz rasola vaditi minerale koji nam trebaju, uz pomoć posebnih suradnika - bakterija.
- Biological miner
Damian Palin is developing a way to use bacteria to biologically "mine" minerals from water -- specifically, out of the brine left over from the desalinization process. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:16
I collaboratesurađivati with bacteriabakterija.
0
312
2138
Ja surađujem s bakterijama.
00:18
And I'm about to showpokazati you
1
2450
882
Pokazati ću vam neke od snimaka
00:19
some stop-motionanimirani footagesnimka that I madenapravljen recentlynedavno
2
3332
2180
dobivenih spajanjem fotografija
00:21
where you'llvi ćete see bacteriabakterija accumulatinggomilaju mineralsminerali
3
5512
2234
na kojima možete vidjeti kako bakterije nakupljaju minerale
00:23
from theirnjihov environmentokolina
4
7746
1550
iz svoje okoline
00:25
over the periodrazdoblje of an hoursat.
5
9296
1934
kroz period od sat vremena.
00:27
So what you're seeingvidim here
6
11230
1365
Dakle, ono što ovdje vidite
00:28
is the bacteriabakterija metabolizingmetabolizmu,
7
12595
2218
su bakterije koje metaboliziraju
00:30
and as they do so
8
14813
1199
i u tom procesu
00:31
they createstvoriti an electricalelektrična chargenaplatiti.
9
16012
1606
stvaraju električni naboj.
00:33
And this attractsprivlači metalsmetali
10
17618
2333
A to privlači metale
00:35
from theirnjihov locallokalne environmentokolina.
11
19951
2167
iz njihove okoline.
00:38
And these metalsmetali accumulateakumulirati as mineralsminerali
12
22118
2917
Ti se metali akumuliraju kao minerali
00:40
on the surfacepovršinski of the bacteriabakterija.
13
25035
1917
na površini bakterija.
00:42
One of the mostnajviše pervasiveprožima problemsproblemi
14
26952
2167
Jedan od najraširenijih problema današnjice
00:45
in the worldsvijet todaydanas for people
15
29119
1749
za ljude u cijelom svijetu
00:46
is inadequateneadekvatna accesspristup
16
30868
1417
jest nedovoljan pristup
00:48
to cleančist drinkingpiće watervoda.
17
32285
1751
čistoj pitkoj vodi.
00:49
And the desalinationza desalinizaciju processpostupak
18
34036
1666
Procesom desalinizacije
00:51
is one where we take out saltssoli.
19
35702
1784
iz vode vadimo soli.
00:53
We can use it for drinkingpiće and agriculturepoljoprivreda.
20
37486
2515
Tu vodu koristimo za piće i za navodnjavanje.
00:55
RemovingUklanjanje the saltssoli from watervoda --
21
40001
2085
Izdvajanje soli iz vode --
00:57
particularlynaročito seawatermorska voda --
22
42086
1261
pogotovo morske --
00:59
throughkroz reversepreokrenuti osmosisosmoza
23
43347
1604
reverzibilnom osmozom
01:00
is a criticalkritično techniquetehnika
24
44951
1318
je presudna tehnologija
01:02
for countrieszemlje who do not have accesspristup to cleančist drinkingpiće watervoda
25
46269
3232
za sve zemlje svijeta koje nemaju dovoljno
01:05
around the globeGlobus.
26
49501
1119
čiste pitke vode.
01:06
So seawatermorska voda reversepreokrenuti osmosisosmoza
27
50620
1464
Dakle, reverzibilna osmoza morske vode
01:07
is a membrane-filtrationmembranske filtracije technologytehnologija.
28
52084
2167
jest proces membranske filtracije.
01:10
We take the watervoda from the seamore
29
54251
2570
Uzimamo morsku vodu
01:12
and we applyprimijeniti pressurepritisak.
30
56821
1531
i izlažemo ju visokom pritisku.
01:14
And this pressurepritisak forcessnaga the seawatermorska voda
31
58352
2924
Zbog tog pritiska
01:17
throughkroz a membranemembrana.
32
61276
1300
morska voda prolazi kroz membranu.
01:18
This takes energyenergija,
33
62576
1435
Proizvodnja čiste vode
01:19
producingproizvodnju cleančist watervoda.
34
64011
2532
zahtjeva mnogo energije.
01:22
But we're alsotakođer left with a concentratedkoncentriran saltsol solutionriješenje, or brinenositelja topline.
35
66543
3701
A kao nusprodukt imamo koncentriranu otopinu soli, ili rasol.
01:26
But the processpostupak is very expensiveskup
36
70244
1413
Ovaj postupak je veoma skup
01:27
and it's cost-prohibitiveonemogućavaju for manymnogi countrieszemlje around the globeGlobus.
37
71657
2634
i za mnoge zemlje svijeta zbog toga nedostupan.
01:30
And alsotakođer, the brinenositelja topline that's producedizrađen
38
74291
1782
Isto tako, dobiveni rasol
01:31
is oftentimesčesto just pumpedpumpa back out into the seamore.
39
76073
2884
se veoma često jednostavno vraća natrag u more.
01:34
And this is detrimentalštetne to the locallokalne ecologyekologija
40
78957
2548
To je veoma štetno za morski okoliš
01:37
of the seamore areapodručje that it's pumpedpumpa back out into.
41
81505
2435
u kojeg se rasol baca.
01:39
So I work in SingaporeSingapur at the momenttrenutak,
42
83940
2016
Trenutno radim u Singapuru.
01:41
and this is a placemjesto that's really a leadingvodeći placemjesto
43
85956
2767
Singapur je vodeće mjesto
01:44
for desalinationza desalinizaciju technologytehnologija.
44
88723
2001
kada govorimo o tehnologiji desalinizacije.
01:46
And SingaporeSingapur proposespredlaže by 2060
45
90724
2550
Namjera im je do 2060. godine
01:49
to produceproizvoditi [900] millionmilijuna literslitara perpo day
46
93274
3099
proizvoditi 900 milijuna litara
01:52
of desalinateddesalinacijom morska watervoda.
47
96373
1833
desalinizirane vode na dan.
01:54
But this will produceproizvoditi an equallyjednako massivemasivan amountiznos
48
98206
3350
No, to će stvoriti jednako ogromne
01:57
of desalinationza desalinizaciju brinenositelja topline.
49
101556
1753
količine rasola.
01:59
And this is where my collaborationkolaboracija with bacteriabakterija comesdolazi into playigrati.
50
103309
3198
I ovdje ulazi u igru moja suradnja s bakterijama.
02:02
So what we're doing at the momenttrenutak
51
106507
1949
Dakle, ono što u ovom trenutku činimo
02:04
is we're accumulatinggomilaju metalsmetali
52
108456
2666
jest to da akumuliramo metale
02:07
like calciumkalcijum, potassiumkalij and magnesiummagnezij
53
111122
1984
kao što su kalcij, kalij i magnezij
02:09
from out of desalinationza desalinizaciju brinenositelja topline.
54
113106
2234
iz rasola ostalog nakon desalinizacije.
02:11
And this, in termsUvjeti of magnesiummagnezij
55
115340
2282
U primjeru magnezija
02:13
and the amountiznos of watervoda that I just mentionedspominje,
56
117622
2550
i sa količinom vode koju sam sada spomenuo
02:16
equatesizjednačava to a $4.5 billionmilijardi
57
120172
2950
to iznosi i do 4,5 milijardi američkih dolara.
02:19
miningrudarstvo industryindustrija for SingaporeSingapur --
58
123122
2399
Rudarstvo u Singapuru --
02:21
a placemjesto that doesn't have any naturalprirodni resourcesresursi.
59
125537
2534
mjestu koje nema nikakvih prirodnih resursa.
02:23
So I'd like you to imageslika a miningrudarstvo industryindustrija
60
128071
2650
Pokušajte zamisliti rudarstvo
02:26
in a way that one hasn'tnema existedpostojala before;
61
130721
2089
kakvo do sada nikada nije postojalo:
02:28
imaginezamisliti a miningrudarstvo industryindustrija
62
132810
2166
zamislite rudarstvo
02:30
that doesn't mean defilingoskvrnjivanja the EarthZemlja;
63
134976
2267
koje ne oskrvnjuje Zemlju;
02:33
imaginezamisliti bacteriabakterija helpingpomoć us do this
64
137243
2111
zamislite kako nam u tome pomažu bakterije
02:35
by accumulatinggomilaju and precipitatingutvrđenih precipitirajućih
65
139354
3472
kroz akumulaciju
02:38
and sedimentingtaloži mineralsminerali
66
142826
2417
i ubrzanu sedimentaciju minerala
02:41
out of desalinationza desalinizaciju brinenositelja topline.
67
145243
1849
iz desalinizacijskog rasola.
02:42
And what you can see here
68
147092
1418
Ovo što gledate
02:44
is the beginningpočetak of an industryindustrija in a testtest tubecijev,
69
148510
2482
jest početak industrije u epruveti
02:46
a miningrudarstvo industryindustrija that is in harmonysklad with naturepriroda.
70
150992
3350
rudarstvo koje je u harmoniji s prirodom.
02:50
Thank you.
71
154342
1351
Hvala.
02:51
(ApplausePljesak)
72
155693
3632
(Pljesak)
Translated by SIBELA KESAC
Reviewed by Tilen Pigac - EFZG

▲Back to top

ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Damian Palin - Biological miner
Damian Palin is developing a way to use bacteria to biologically "mine" minerals from water -- specifically, out of the brine left over from the desalinization process.

Why you should listen

Research engineer Damian Palin has long been fascinated by the process of biomineralization–with particular attention on the mechanisms involved for mineral precipitation. At the Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (in collaboration with Nanyang Technical University, Singapore), he conducts experiments to assess the ability of microorganisms to mine selected minerals out of seawater desalination brine. This study was based on compelling and burgeoning evidence from the field of geomicrobiology, which shows the ubiquitous role that microorganisms play in the cycling of minerals on the planet. 

He says: "It is my aim to continue to research in the field of biomineralization, while exploring the mechanisms responsible for mild energetic mineral (including metal) precipitation for the production of mineral composites."

Read our in-depth Q&A with Damian Palin >>

More profile about the speaker
Damian Palin | Speaker | TED.com