P.J. de Moel

Optimizing design and cost of seawater reverse osmosis systems

Abstract The influence of design parameters, such as raw water temperature and total dissolved solids content (TDS), design pressure, and recovery, on total unit cost for the production of desalinated water from the Arabian Gulf in Saudi Arabia by means of reverse osmosis is presented for plant capacities ranging from 75,000 m 3 /d to 700,000 m 3 /d. It is concluded that total unit water cost is significantly influenced by raw water TDS, design pressure and design recovery. It is recommended to investigate the feasibility of operation at increased pressure. Finally, total water costs for reverse osmosis desalination are presented also as a function of salinity, with TDS levels ranging from 3000 mg/l to 55,000 mg/l.

Design of the 50,000 M3/D treatment plants for qasim S.A. desalination of brackish water at 99% recovery

Abstract The design of three 50,000 m3/d treatment plants for the water supply of the Qasim Region, Saudi Arabia, is discussed. Constraints on brine discharge in this inland agricultural development region have resulted in the design of desalination plants operating at 99% overall recovery. The plants include pellet softening, rapid sand filtration, reverse osmosis desalination and brine recovery. The pellet softening enables the operation of the RO section at 90% recovery. The brine of the RO is distillated by vapor compression, recovering 90% of the brine flow while the concentrated brine is evaporated in lined ponds.