Brussels, Belgium, 3 February 2019: The Zero Brine project, which aims to advance circular economy business models by redesigning the value and supply chain of water and minerals through the recovery of resources from brine generated by process industries, has announced the release of its Online Brine Platform (OBP), through a Press communiqué. The OBP is an interactive web service that connects brine owners with mineral and water users and technology providers to promote the reuse of secondary raw materials and water, the communiqué said. Through the OBP, brine effluents are mapped alongside raw materials (minerals), water streams used by process industries, as well as effective brine treatment technology providers and waste heat streams, the communiqué said.

John Harinck, Programme Manager, Institute for Sustainable Process Technology (ISPT), said, “Many process industries emitting brine streams are investigating possibilities for salt or water recovery and are interested and willing to matchmake with stakeholders on a platform, such as the Zero Brine Online Brine Platform.”

The OBP establishes a network of interested stakeholders that, via an online forum, can contact prospective business partners, the communiqué said. The platform also identifies potential business matches based on the profiles of those registered, further facilitating the transition towards a circular economy within process industries, the communiqué further said. In addition to the OBP, a dedicated web portal offers information specific to the field of saline wastewater management and reuse of secondary raw materials, the communiqué added.

Registered users will have access to information on the available quantities and qualities of saline wastewater, recovered materials and resources needed by the end users, as well as the location and proximity to industrial sites, the communiqué said. This will enable industries to make informed decisions regarding the management of their own resources, while encouraging industrial symbiosis, the communiqué further said.

The communiqué said browsing the portal will be free for all visitors and full access to all OBP data is reserved for registered users. The communiqué further said this online service will be supplemented with the organisation of workshops and meetings that will take place at industrial clusters in the Netherlands, including Delfzijl, Emmen, Chemelot, Amsterdam and Zeeland. The communiqué added, for more information on the Online Brine Platform, visit: https://zerobrine.eu/.