Future sustainable water desalination technologies for the Saudi Arabia: A review

• Published in: Renewable & sustainable energy reviews 2012-12, Vol.16 (9), p.6566-6597
• Main Author: El-Ghonemy, A.M.K.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Applied sciences; Concentrated solar power technologies; Economics; Energy; Exact sciences and technology; Outlook; Sustainable water desalination technologies
• ISSN: 1364-0321; 1879-0690
• DOI: 10.1016/j.rser.2012.07.026

Water and energy are two of the most important topics on the international environment and development agenda. The social and economic health of the modern world depends on sustainable supply of both energy and water. Many areas worldwide that suffer from fresh water shortage are increasingly dependent on desalination as a highly reliable and non-conventional source of fresh water. So, sea water desalination market has greatly expanded in recent decades and expected to continue in the coming years. Water supply in Saudi Arabia relies heavily on desalination. Saudi Arabia has the largest desalination market in the world. In KSA the average annual direct normal irradiance (DNI) is more than 6kWh/m2/day, which are preferred for concentrated solar power (CSP) operation. This paper provides a comprehensive review of desalination technologies that are sustainable for future applications in Saudi Arabia (KSA). More focus was directed to the poly-generation of energy and water by means of solar energy, with emphasis on technologies economics and environmental impacts. The study also includes existing and outlook desalination projects that have been applied in KSA. A comparative study between different renewable energy technologies powered desalination systems as well as performance and economics have been done. Finally, some general guidelines are given for the selection of desalination and renewable energy systems and the parameters that are need to be considered.