It is common in many industries that various materials or mixtures of materials require drying at some stage of processing. One example is the drying of (i.e. the removal of water from) coal and coal wash fines in the mining industry. Traditionally, industrial drying has been accomplished through application of heat to bring a moisture laden material to elevated temperatures so that the moisture will evaporate and/or boil away from the material. This approach, however, requires large amounts of energy to produce and apply the heat. This energy is usually derived from the burning of fossil or other fuels, which is not very efficient, is not generally eco-friendly, and in fact is a pollution generator in its own right. At least partially for these reasons, the burning of fossil fuels in the coal mining industry to dry material such as coal wash fines is strictly regulated.
In addition to drying needs, there are industrial needs for transitioning a substance with a vapor pressure threshold from one phase to another phase. Examples include, distilling, mixing, desalinating, recovering oil from oil shale and oil sands, recovering purified distilled water from contaminated water, distilling alcohols from a mash or other mixture, and many others. Desalinization of seawater to produce potable water is one example of a desalinating application. Traditional techniques for desalinizing seawater have tended to require large amounts of externally generated energy in the form of heat, which, again, usually involves the burning of fossil fuels, is exceedingly inefficient, and generally is not eco-friendly. Artificial snow-making also is an industry where the making of artificial snow from water is energy intensive and inefficient, and produces a poor substitute for natural snow. Pond evaporation is another example of an industry that consumes large amounts of energy to produce heat for boiling water or other substances, pollutes the atmosphere, and is generally inefficient. The above examples represent only a few throughout various industries.
A need exists for methods and systems to perform these and many other related industrial tasks more efficiently, using much less energy, requiring the addition of little or no externally generated heat or thermal energy, and in a manner that produces little or no harmful atmospheric emissions and thus is eco-friendly. It is to the provision of such methods and systems that the present disclosure is primarily directed.