University of Technology, Jamaica

CRAFTING WATER

CRAFTING WATER

Freshwater By Desalination

Roneil Napier – 9712441

Research Methodologies (RES 3001) Semester II

G. Junior Virgo

March 31st 2010

PROBLEM STATEMENT

This literature review analyzes the method of desalination, recent studies in its practice,

and compares the economic as well as the environmental consequences of its implementation on

a large scale to address the problem of freshwater scarcity.

INTRODUCTION

Clean drinking water ranks high among priorities for developing countries. United

Nations reports emphasize the dire consequences of drought and polluted water supplies for

human health and social stability. The over-exploitation of existing freshwater supplies is

becoming a problem in Jamaica and many parts of the world. There are many causes, the

principal ones being population growth, demands for higher living standards, growth of both

agriculture and industry, and climate change. Agriculture is a major user of water resources,

especially in countries which already suffer from water shortages (European Environment

Agency. 1996).

In several parishes across Jamaica, the rate of water usage is rising because of the

growing population, and the present rate of usage now outstrips the rate of water supply to

reservoirs, a situation which is seriously being exacerbated presently by an extended drought.

Water shortages are forecast to increase, especially in urban areas where the demand for water is

growing. In Kingston, potential problems with shortages in the water supply have been appearing

on a broad scale. Over half of the Mona dam’s available freshwater for example, has already

been depleted and the only viable solution until the drought breaks is to find alternative sources

of water supply (National Water Commission, 2009).

REVIEW OF CURRENT KNOWLEDGE ON DESALINATION SOLUTIONS

The problems of increasing water shortage can be tackled by: -

• reducing leakage and wastage of water during distribution and use;

• improving the efficiency of water use;

• recycling of water by both industrial and domestic users;

• the transfer of water from areas rich in water resources (example ground water reserves)

to areas of need.

Another approach is the reduction in the salt content of sea water to turn it into a drinkable

supply, or for use in other activities that require freshwater by a process called desalination.

Nearly three-quarters of the Earth’s surface is covered by water, but according to the

United Nations, more than 97 percent of it is present as salt-water in the oceans, unsuited for

human consumption or agriculture. Desalination of ocean water has long been considered a

desirable solution to potable water shortage. According to GOLDMANSACHS GROUP INC.

(GS), desalination is a $5 billion global market, with growth of 10 to 15 percent a year. Water

Desalination Report (2004), a trade journal, reports that there are over 15.000 desalination plants

in more than 120 countries. Half of the plants are located in the Middle East, about 3.5 percent in

the Caribbean, and the number is growing on a global scale. It has been estimated that there will

be a near 100 percent increase in the active installed capacity of desalination plants during the

period 2005-2015 (Media Analytics, 2004).

Freshwater by Desalination

Desalination usually refers to processes which reduce the quantity of dissolved

substances in source water. Sea water tastes excessively salty and in typical circumstances, it
cannot be consumed or used for everyday domestic purposes such as washing, cooking, or plant

and animal care. However, if this salt content is reduced to acceptable levels, it is possible to

produce water that would be suitable for the aforementioned purposes.

Natural water contains dissolved substances such as sodium chloride, calcium

bicarbonate, magnesium sulphate and a range of other naturally occurring substances. Water that

is devoid of these substances tastes "flat" or insipid. Equally, if the concentration of dissolved

substances is too high, as in sea water for example, the water will taste unpleasant. For normal

drinking water supplies, there has to be a balance between these two extremes. Table 1 shows the

palatability of water with different concentrations of dissolved solids expressed as milligrams per

litre (mg/L).

Table 1- Palatability as a function of dissolved solids (World Health Organization, 1984)

Palatability Dissolved solids (mg/L)

Excellent less than 300

Good between 300 and 600

Fair between 600 and 900

Poor between 900 and 1,200

Unacceptable greater than 1,200

Some seas can show wide variability in dissolved solids. The Caribbean Sea has an

average content of 48.000 mg/L while the salinity of the Dead Sea reaches 250.000 mg/L, a level

approximately seven times as high as that of the ocean, whereas the surface salinity of the Arctic

Ocean (i.e. the top 50 metres) can be as low as 20,000 mg/L (Johnson & Polyakov, 2001).
 Water produced by desalination may be used directly (e.g. make-up water in power plant

boilers) or may be mixed with water containing some dissolved solids and used for drinking

water, irrigation, or other purposes. Pure desalinated water is corrosive and acidic so it has to be

given additional treatment to produce a mildly alkaline water before being pumped to supply.

Desalinated water which is supplied as drinking water should conform to guidelines for drinking

water quality (World Health Organization, 2004) and the relevant national regulations.

How is the salt content of sea water reduced?

All desalination processes use chemical engineering technology in which a stream of

saline water is fed to the process equipment and energy in the form of heat, water pressure or

electricity is applied. Two outlet streams are produced; a stream of desalinated (fresh) water and

a stream of concentrated brine which must be disposed of. The two main groups of processes

used for desalination are Thermal Processes and Membrane Processes.

Thermal Processes

The simplest example of a thermal process is distillation. Saline water is heated to

generate steam, which is then condensed to produce non-saline water. Several forms of

distillation are used for desalination:

• Multi-stage flash evaporation distillation (MSF)

• Multiple-effect evaporation/distillation (MED) also known as long-tube vertical

distillation (LTV)

• Vapour compression distillation (VCD)

• Solar distillation
 When sea water freezes, the ice which forms on the surface is essentially fresh water. The

freezing process expels the salts into the sea water. Melting this ice will produce fresh water and

is one way in which fresh water can be produced from sea-water; this particular technique is

known as "Freeze Desalination". This process requires the use of heat-energy (which is first

removed to form ice and then added to melt the ice).There are three thermal processes which use

thermal energy to freeze and then melt the ice formed in the freezing stage.

• Vacuum freezing

• Secondary refrigerant freezing

• Clathrate or hydrate formation process

Membrane Processes

These processes employ synthetic polymeric membranes, which have the ability to

“filter” dissolved salts when subjected to a pressure gradient or difference in electrical potential

across the membrane surfaces. There are two membrane processes in current use.

• Reverse Osmosis (RO)

• Electrodialysis (ED or EDR)

Many different desalination technologies are technically feasible, the principal ones being

variants of thermal distillation and membrane reverse osmosis, and both of these will continue to

be used. However, reverse osmosis is becoming the preferred technology. Rising energy costs

have encouraged the development of schemes that involve the conjunctive use of power

generation, especially alternative sources such as wind-power, to drive the desalination process.

General comparisons indicate that the cost of producing potable water by desalination is

roughly twice the cost of producing potable water from conventional resources where they exist.

However, accurate comparisons can only be made for a specified location and environment. The
techniques described in this review are often the solution where conventional resources are either

non-existent or fully utilized, and brackish or seawater is abundant.

CONCLUSION

Fresh non-saline water is scarce in many areas of the world, and it is increasingly

becoming a major problem in Jamaica. Existing water resources are already under stress, and the

situation is getting worse. As a solution to this problem, the desalination of seawater provides an

alternative source of water supply that will make our overall supply more diverse and less

vulnerable to interruption.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

El-Dessouky, H.T. and Ettouney.Elsevier, H.M. (2002). Fundamentals of Salt Water

Desalination. Hardbound: ISBN: 0-444-50810-4.

United States Army (2005). Water Desalination.University Press of the Pacific.Paperback.

ISBN 1-4102-2163-6,

The U.S, Bureau of Reclamation and Sandia National Laboratories (2003). Desalination and

Water Purification Technology' Roadmap - A Report of the Executive Committee

(Roadmap). Available:

<http://www.usbr.gov/pmts/water/media/pdfs/roadmapreport.pdf>

Introduction to Desalination Technologies in Australia. Available:

<http://www.affa.gov.au/content/publications.cfm>

The European Desalination Society.<http://www.edsoc.com>

The Desalination Directory.<http://www.desline.com>

International Desalination Association (IDA).<http://www.idadesal.org>

 REFERENCES

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Alniulla. A., Hamad, A. & Gadalla, M. (2005), Integrating hybrid systems with existing thermal
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Carvalho, P. C. M. & Riffel, D. B. (2003).Analysis of the Use of Wind Powered Reverse

Osmosis Sea Water Desalination Plants in the Northeast Region, Brazil.RIO 3 - World Climate
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Elirenman.G. (2004), From sea to sink: with supplies of water under stress, the prospect of
rendering saltwater drinkable is growing more appealing and more affordable. Mechanical
Engineering Magazine On-Line. Oct. 2004 issue.
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European Environment Agency, (1996).Water resources problems in Southern Europe.Topic

report No 15/1996. See http://reports.eea,eu.int/92-9167-056-l/enftabj:ontent_RLR

FWR, 2003.Water and the Water Environment: a summary of UK legislation and agreements.
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Garcia-Rodriguez.L. (2004).Desalination by Wind Power.Wind Engineering, 28(4), 453-463.