Research and Development Office

Desal 101 is a one day course offered to the public that covers the basics of desalination and is taught by BGNDRF staff along with professors from New Mexico State University. The curriculum begins with general information on water scarcity and the need for desalination; then it explores specific desalination technologies, such as reverse osmosis and electrodialysis.

Desal 101 Curriculum Topics	Subtopics
Introduction to Desalination	The Need Source Water (Non-Traditional Water) Science of Dissolving Salts Minimum Theoretical Energy Process (including Pretreatment and Post Treatment) Global Application
Reverse Osmosis (RO)	How It Works History of Development Operational Considerations and Monitoring Various RO Innovation 3 Major Challenges for RO
Electrodialysis (ED)	Explanation of the Concept Technology Niche Technology Uses Various ED Innovations
Sampling of Other Desalination Technologies	Various Thermal Processes (MSF, MED) Capacitive Deionization (CapDI) Forward Osmosis (FO) Membrance Distillation (MD) Nanofiltration (NF) Others
Useful Calculations for Desalination	Recovery Salt Rejection Simulation Programs
Concentrate Management	The Need and Challenges Technologies and Processes in Development Example of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Desalination Plant

Since 2016, over 2,600 third graders have visited BGNDRF during Discovering Desal and participated in learning stations related to the importance of fresh water, how water becomes salty, using reverse osmosis and electrical charges to remove dissolved salts from water, how renewable energy powers desalination technologies, and more.

The event reaches all third graders in the Alamogordo Public School system, as well as private schools, homeschool groups, and students from the New Mexico School for the Blind and Visually Impaired.

Discovering Desal also includes an on-the-road event for summer school students to small towns near the eastern border of New Mexico.

Reclamation's video "Making Desal Cool: How Reclamation's Brackish Groundwater National Desalination Research Facility Teaches 3rd Graders the Science of Turning Salty Water into Freshwater" was selected for the 2019 Water Environment Federation's Annual Technical Exhibition Conference.

The Water Environment Foundation (WEF) is a not-for-profit association that provides technical education and training for thousands of water quality professionals.

The video production was a collaborative effort across Reclamation's Research and Development Office, the Washington D.C. Public Affairs Office, and BGNDRF staff and volunteers.