15/12/2025
🌍 Welcome to our Group! 🎓
We are delighted to welcome Aarón Raúl Poyatos Bakker as a new PhD student in our research group. Aarón will be supervised by Patricia Palenzuela Ardila and Lidia Roca from the Plataforma Solar de Almería - CIEMAT.
💧⚡ His doctoral research addresses one of the most pressing global challenges: water scarcity and its strong connection to energy demand. As population growth, increasing consumption, and climate change intensify the water–energy nexus, his work aims to develop integrated and sustainable solutions for both sectors.
🔬 The thesis focuses on desalination technologies, with particular attention to Reverse Osmosis (RO) and Membrane Distillation for brine concentration, while tackling the environmental impact associated with conventional energy use and CO₂ emissions.
☀️ Aarón’s research explores the integration of renewable energy, highlighting Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) as a key technology due to its thermal energy storage and dispatchability—advantages that make it especially suitable for desalination in water-stressed regions.
🏗️⚙️ The overall objective of the thesis is to demonstrate the feasibility of CSP-powered desalination systems, combining RO, Membrane Distillation, and a mini solar tower coupled with a Brayton cycle, supported by advanced modelling, optimization, and control strategies.
We are excited to have Aarón on board and look forward to the outcomes of his research! 🚀
