Water desalination experience European Commission activities

摘要

An overview is given of the experience accumulated on the different desalination plants installed in Europe over the past 30 years. Quantification of the energy consumption, implementation of technology, as well as the lessons learned from several plant performances and costs, are discussed. Various energy sources of desalination are examined. These are largely influenced by regional factors such as whether the projected site is in a remote or densely populated area,a nd whether an appropriate electric grid is available or not. For communities without electric power and fresh water sources but with salt water resources, a dual purpose plant may be an appropriate solution, as is the case in the Persian-Arabian Gulf. In an area where adequate electric power interconnections are already available, such as the Mediterranean Basin, a single purpose plant may be preferable. In isolated areas with appropriate renewable energy resources (e.g. wind, solar and geothermal) and low energy and water requirements, a combination of renewable energy and desalination may be appropriate. Use of small nuclear reactors for water or electricity production is feasible, but possible economic problems may have to be examined for a specific site. Large reactors will necessarily imply a dual purpose plant, therefore it will have to be connected to electric grids of a suitable size. Without a grid connection, small plants constitute the only option for the reverse osmosis process, while dual purpose plants with electricity as the main product are not feasible.