Electrical energy can be produced from the chemical potential difference of two liquids with dissimilar salinities. This source of energy is known as salinity gradient power. In this paper, the theory, the technologies used to exploit the power, the major challenges, and their development trends are first presented. Then a modeling of fluxes across semi permeable membranes is proposed and validated. Next, an energy balance study is done in order to estimate the power potential for a given

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... ty gradient system. By applying this study to several rivers in Quebec, the salinity power gradient potential is estimated to 45 TWh/yr based on the minimal flow rate of each river. V C 2012 American Institute of Physics. [http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4754439] JOURNAL OF RENEWABLE AND SUSTAINABLE ENERGY 4, 053113 (2012) FIG. 1. Principal of the pressure retarded osmosis. 053113-2 Y. Berrouche and P. Pillay J. Renewable Sustainable Energy 4, 053113 (2012) FIG. 2. Principal of the reversed electrodialysis. 053113-3 Y. Berrouche and P. Pillay J. Renewable Sustainable Energy 4, 053113 (2012) 053113-4 Y. Berrouche and P. Pillay J. Renewable Sustainable Energy 4, 053113 (2012) FIG. 3. Water and salt flux in osmosis reversed (OR) and PRO cases. 053113-5 Y. Berrouche and P. Pillay J. Renewable Sustainable Energy 4, 053113 (2012) 053113-9 Y. Berrouche and P. Pillay J. Renewable Sustainable Energy 4, 053113 (2012) FIG. 7. The selected rivers distributed in three watersheds in Qu ebec. 053113-12 Y. Berrouche and P. Pillay J. Renewable Sustainable Energy 4, 053113 (2012) 053113-16 Y. Berrouche and P. Pillay J. Renewable Sustainable Energy 4, 053113 (2012) 053113-17 Y. Berrouche and P. Pillay