„Clean water,
 our Passion.“
Returning valuable resources
Separating ressources from wastewater

Our Membrane Distillation (MD) process utilizes modern technology to recover valuable resources in the industry. MD is powered by heat and can be used to concentrate wastewater and separate volatile substances. The result is clean water at low energy costs.

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Drinking water

Our compact systems provide households and communities with the possibility of producing low-cost drinking water. These solar powered systems are self-cleaning and can turn very dirty water into pure and clean drinking water. Besides particles, our drinking water systems remove even viruses, bacteria and microorganisms are safely by an integrated 5 step process. Designed for regions with low or no infrastructure, easy service and maintenance are guaranteed.

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Services

Tailormade process design from lab scale to industry

We design your individual water treatment solution from the first feasibility test in our lab to the full- scale system integrated into your process. Installation and commissioning are included in our service as well as maintenance and support.

Applications

Where others stop, we are just beginning

Companies active in the metallurgical industry, applying zero liquid discharge (ZLD) systems or treating waste water will successfully be able to use our products for water and process solution treatment and recovery of valuable resources.

Communities, Hotel Resorts and Private Households profit from our water treatment systems, rain water purification and the supply of drinking water at a high quality. We have installed systems in India, Columbia, Peru, Spain and Afrika.

Research Institutes, Universities and Labs use our membrane distillation equipment for their own research and analyses for which we provide support if requested. Some of our research systems are located in Qatar, Riad and Spain.

Where conventional waste water treatment methods reach a dead end or the disposal of process fluids exceeds the financial scope, we bring in our membrane distillation technology. Or in case you are located far away from any infrastructure, our solar powered filtration systems might very well save your day, even if the water source is contaminated with viruses and bacteria.

Technology

The company

Founded in 2009 as a spin-off of the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems in Freiburg, Germany, the SolarSpring GmbH, membrane solutions has grown into a world market leader for membrane distillation technology.

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Our core team of 6 engineers and scientists, most of which have been with the company since “day one”, is entirely committed to water treatment and drinking water production.

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SolarSpring systems can be found all over the world and are built at our company venue the “Solarhaus” in Freiburg, Germany.

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We cooperate and network internationally with smart and creative individuals, but since we value the preservation of resources and local partnerships most of our suppliers are regional.

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As a reward for our innovative ideas and developments we were awarded the “Land of Ideas” prize in 2012 and the “Technology-Transfer-Prize” in 2014

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Our Team

Daniel Pfeifle

„The Allrounder“
After my apprenticeship as a motocycle technician I studied Renewable Energy Systems at the university of Applied Science in Nordhausen which I completed as a Dipl. Ing. (FH). Starting in 2009, I worked at the Fraunhofer ISE designing and constructing membrane distillation systems and commissioned many plants around the world including in Namibia, Spain and Italy. Since 2012 I have been responsible for MD system manufacturing at SolarSpring and took over the position of CEO in 2016. I have two lovely daughters and spend a lot of time outdoors with my family.

Alexander Wolf

„The Perfectionist“
I joined SolarSpring for my Diploma Thesis titled “Planning, development and construction of a solar-powered Ultrafiltration System for drinking water production” and have been part of the company ever since. I am a specialist for membrane filtration proud creator of the SolarPurification product line and father of two children.

Lorenz Bauer

„The Inventor“
I joined SolarSpring in 2012 and immediately focused on module construction and development. My long-term experience as a carpenter is really an asset for the responsibilities I have in the company and my passion for technical design and smart manufacturing is put into practice on a daily basis. Even though I miss my hometown, Berlin, I greatly value the options that Freiburg has to offer for a Dipl. Ing (FH) of Renewable Energy Systems.

Philipp Siegmann

„The Quarterback“
For some years now I have been dedicated to the combination of sun, water and … coffee, which resulted in the friendly takeover of not only the systems manufacturing and marketing department, but also the main administration of SolarSpring’s very fine Italian Espresso machine. Before joining the company, I studied Renewable Energy Management (Dip. Ing. / FH) and founded the company NeoEnergy which sells PV-systems.

Rebecca Schwantes

„The MemBrain“
I am a trained motorcycle technician, mechanical engineer (Dipl. Ing. (FH)) and graduate from Uni Braunschweig’s M.Sc. program “ProWater”, but moreover I am dedicated to the scientific depths of MD and how to bring the technology forward. That’s why SolarSpring put me in charge of our research projects which are brim filled with hard and fast deadlines. The upkeep of a high work morale would be impossible without my two loyal canine supporters who have full access to the SolarSpring premises, but will ward of unwanted intruders if necessary.

Kirtiraj Chavan

„The Batsman“
With a background in chemical engineering (VIT Pune, India) and after working for some years as a process design engineer, my transition to membrane distillation was very smooth and started with a Master Thesis for completion of the M.Sc. programme „Process Engineering“ (Offenburg) in 2016. I stayed on at SolarSpring and dove straight into research on the more “chemical” new applications for MD and the economic potential evaluations for the technology. I really like life in Freiburg but have noticed a strong lack of good street food and cricket.

Paul-Louis Wöhrlin

„The Investigator“
Coming from a family of craftspeople, I brought a lot of solid hands on experience to the table when I started my internship at SolarSpring in 2017. After finishing my engineering degree at Offenburg University of Applied Science and halve a year of experience in the SolarSpring research lab, I was immediately catapulted into my own research assignment in membrane distillation which I am tackling heads on in order to fulfill the busy project deadlines.

Manuela Verini

„Queen of Accounts“
Manuela runs our books and makes the cliché of a boring bookkeeper seem absurd. Make sure to catch the latest news on her extensive Grandfondo cycling career next time you meet her.

Anna-Lena Wagner

„The Admin“
Anna-Lena supports our project administration and keeps an eye on every deadline.

Jumana Sabbagh

„The Artist“
Jumana makes us look good in print as well as online.

Johannes Hofstätter

„Man of Action“
Johannes is an essential and talented craftsmann and assembles SolarSpring’s systems.

„The Interns“

Julian Bross – SolarPurification department Simon Meyer – Research Lab Dennis Drücker – MD systems