Marine fish will die if placed in fresh water and they cannot live in simple salt water either. Instead they need water that contains a mixture of different ingredients, as found in natural seawater. Conventional methods of making artificial seawater have shortcomings, because the water so achieved is only composed of mineral elements without organic components similar to those in natural seawater.
After a decade-long research into high value utilization of brine, Prof. Sun Huili and his colleagues at the CAS South China Sea Institute of Oceanology have succeeded in developing a full extraction process of natural seawater, making artificial seawater similar to the natural one and providing a solid guarantee for the development of the marine industry. Recently, they have signed a 10 million yuan agreement with Guangdong Salt Company (Group) to commercialize the patented technology.
Brine refers to the mother liquid of seawater concentrates after salt has been extracted from it. The key of its exploitation lies in the isolation of various valuable components. In addition to inorganic elements such as Br, I and Sr, brine contains various vitamins and other bio-activated substances including seaweed polysaccharide, oligosaccharide and carotene. The contents of the active substance in the brine are dozens of times higher than those in seawater. A precious resource endowed by the sea, many of the brine’s derivatives can raise the adaptability and immunity of marine life. For industrial use, they may be used as the raw materials for abstracting top-performance seawater additives while the trace elements and inorganic salts are ideal natural tonics for invalids to keep fit.
After many years of hard work, Prof. Sun and his colleagues have succeeded in the development of a technology for extracting the additives and bathing salt, including their optimized mode and technical integration so that China has gained access in attaining a niche in the ranks among the advanced countries of the world in this regard. In order to reduce the high cost for isolating a single derivative, the researchers have developed a technique for extracting polyphysio active matter from the brine, as well a recipe for concocting artificial seawater for aquatic breeding. By now, the seafood products yielded from the farms has been marketed to consumers with satisfactory results.
The technology is noted for its wide applicability and marketing potential. A center for research and development of Marine Salt resources has been jointly established by South China Sea Institute of Oceanology and Guangdong Salt Company (Group). It is expected to further the efforts for producing high valued-added commodities such as ecotype seawater crystals.
