Experimental and Numerical Analysis of a PCM-Supported ...
Experimental and Numerical Analysis of a PCM-Supported ...
Experimental and Numerical Analysis of a PCM-Supported ...
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1.3.2 Selection criteria <strong>of</strong> desalination technology<br />
The right selection <strong>of</strong> desalination technology depends on several factors <strong>and</strong>, to a<br />
great extent, can be considered as case specific. The most influential aspects are<br />
the type <strong>of</strong> feed water, the required quality <strong>of</strong> produced water, the plant capacity, the<br />
local available energy source <strong>and</strong> its cost, <strong>and</strong> the availability <strong>of</strong> skilled human<br />
resources. Table (1.1) compares between the main streams <strong>of</strong> commercial<br />
desalination technologies in common use worldwide.<br />
Membrane processes, mainly reverse osmosis (RO), is currently the predominant<br />
technology due to its low specific energy consumption compared to thermal<br />
processes. However, membrane technologies are less tolerant to source water<br />
turbidity, require highly skilled personnel for operation <strong>and</strong> maintenance, <strong>and</strong> have<br />
comparatively high operation <strong>and</strong> maintenance costs. Moreover, membrane<br />
technologies are very sensitive to feed water quality <strong>and</strong> therefore require intensive<br />
feed water pretreatment. Thermal desalination technologies are, by default, more<br />
technically adopted to be integrated with thermal power plants for cogeneration <strong>of</strong><br />
electricity <strong>and</strong> water.<br />
Table 1.1: Characteristics for various desalination Technologies [72]<br />
Even though currently practiced desalination <strong>of</strong> brackish or seawater may be<br />
economically efficient in large scale facilities, it is less suitable for the decentralised<br />
water supply, as it is needed for small communities in remote developing regions.<br />
Thus, desalting processes, which are appropriate for decentralised use, should be<br />
technically simple in order to reduce capital <strong>and</strong> maintenance costs <strong>and</strong> to provide<br />
an application which can be operated without specialised knowledge. It is also highly<br />
desired to operate these units by renewable energies, especially solar systems since<br />
solar energy is <strong>of</strong>ten abundantly available in water-scarce regions.<br />
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