Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 15 (2011) 4187–4199

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Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/rser

A comprehensive techno-economical review of indirect solar desalination

Muhammad Tauha Ali ∗ , Hassan E.S. Fath, Peter R. Armstrong
Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, Abu Dhabi 54224, United Arab Emirates

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Solar powered desalination has been the focus of great interest recently worldwide. In the past, majority
Received 3 February 2011 of the experimental investigations focused on solar coupled thermally driven conventional desalination
Accepted 30 May 2011 technologies such as Multi-Stage Flash (MSF) and Multi-Effect Distillation (MED). With the advancement
in membrane technology and its advantages such as high Recovery Ratios (RR) and low specific energy
Keywords: requirements Reverse Osmosis (RO) desalination has gained popularity. Currently, 52% of the indirect
Solar desalination
solar desalination plants are RO based with MED and MSF having a 13% and 9% share respectively. Mem-
Solar energy
brane Distillation (MD) based plants represent 16% of the total and have been a focus of recent research
Desalination economics
Solar desalination plants
efforts. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive review of all the indirect solar desalination tech-
Desalination technologies nologies along with plant specific technical details. Efforts assessing the economic feasibility and cost
affecting parameters for each desalination technology are also reviewed.
© 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Contents

1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4187
2. Literature review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4188
2.1. Solar Stills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4188
2.2. Humidification–Dehumidification desalination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4188
2.3. Indirect solar desalination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4189
3. Solar driven desalination technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4189
3.1. Multi-Stage Flash (MSF) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4189
3.2. Multi-Effect Distillation (MED) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4190
3.3. Reverse Osmosis (RO) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4191
3.4. Membrane Distillation (MD) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4194
3.5. Electrodialysis (ED) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4196
3.6. Freezing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4197
4. Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4197
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4197

1. Introduction membrane desalination methods such as Reverse Osmosis (RO) and

Membrane Distillation (MD), RO is the proven membrane desalina-
Water is essential for life. Around 97.5% of earth’s water is salt tion method. Multi-Stage Flash (MSF) and Multi-Effect Distillation
water while only 2.5% is fresh water that can be used by humans. It (MED) are the two conventional distillation methods being used in
is the basis for social well-being of people. As populations continue solar driven desalination technologies. In the recent years, through
to grow, scarcity of fresh water sources has driven technological several breakthroughs in membrane research, membrane methods
advances in desalination of brackish water and sea water for meet- are gaining popularity over other distillation methods. After 2000, a
ing social and economic needs for potable water. 9% annual growth is observed in RO based membrane-based desali-
There are many methods of desalination which can be clas- nation plants while only 5% annual growth is observed for MSF
sified into membrane methods and distillation methods. Among based distillation plants [1].
These methods require thermal and/or electrical energy. In the
recent years, much attention has been paid to renewable energy for
∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +971 2 810 9151; fax: +971 2 810 9221. their environmentally friendly nature over fossil fuels. The abun-
E-mail address: [email protected] (M.T. Ali). dance of solar resource in water-starved countries coupled with

1364-0321/$ – see front matter © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.rser.2011.05.012
4188 M.T. Ali et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 15 (2011) 4187–4199

Fig. 1. Pilot tested solar desalination technologies.

a seasonal match in water demand and solar resource appears to then collected at the lower end of the cover. Solar stills are classified
be a good source of environmentally-friendly energy for desalina- into passive and active stills based on their heating principle [4]:
tion. Solar energy can be harvested directly in the form of electrical Single-slope Solar Still with Passive Condenser, Double Condensing
energy through photo-voltaic (PV) modules or through solar ther- Chamber Solar Still, Vertical Solar Still, Conical Solar Still, Inverted
mal collectors. Desalination using solar energy through PV modules Absorber Solar Still, Multi-Wick Solar Still and Multiple Effect Solar
or solar collectors is referred to as indirect solar desalination. Fig. 1 Still are some of types of passive solar stills. In active solar stills,
presents different methods of solar desalination that have been solar energy is fed indirectly by means of non-concentrating or
investigated on a lab or commercial scale. concentrating solar collectors for heating the water. A detailed
This paper presents a comprehensive survey and review of the review on active solar distillation is provided in [5]. A comprehen-
efforts made in solar desalination with focus on indirect solar sive review of types of solar stills and efforts made is presented in
desalination. [3,4,6–8]. The effects of different parameters such as water-glass
temperature difference, glass angle, depth of water etc. on solar
2. Literature review still performance are provided in [9]. In [10] estimates of water
costs from these solar stills are provided.
Application of solar energy for desalination dates back to fourth
century B.C. However, the first documented work is attributed 2.2. Humidification–Dehumidification desalination
to Arab chemists using solar distillation for making perfume in
the 16th century [2]. This section presents a brief review of lit- In Humidification–Dehumidification (HD) desalination concept,
erature present for solar desalination technologies such as solar dry hot air is passed over salty water for humidification. This humid
stills, humidification-dehumidification desalination and indirect air is then condensed over a cool surface to obtain water. Appli-
solar desalination. cations of this concept are collection of morning dew by people
of Sahara desert [11] and collection of condensed water from the
2.1. Solar Stills cooling coils of air conditioning units [12]. Adsorption–desorption
and Absorption–desorption methods use the principle of HD in
Solar energy can be directly used in solar stills and humidifi- which moisture in the humid air is adsorbed/absorbed by an
cation and dehumidification desalination to obtain distilled water. adsorbing/absorbing material such as silica gel/LiBr which is then
Solar stills mimic the natural hydrological cycle. Salty water is col- regenerated by heating [13–15]. A review of different HD meth-
lected in an air-tight basin made of concrete, galvanized iron sheet ods is presented in [16,17]. Details on the demonstration of a solar
or fiber reinforced plastic [3]. The basin is blackened to increase driven HD plant in 2005 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia is provided in
absorption of solar energy. Water evaporates due to heating and [18] along with economic comparison of the solar HD technique
gets condensed on the glass or plastic cover. The condensed water is with a PV powered RO plant. It is suggested that for small scale
 M.T. Ali et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 15 (2011) 4187–4199 4189

applications HD desalination should be considered due to its oper-

ational simplicity as compared to PV-RO plants with similar energy
cost. A comprehensive review on water cost and economics of HD
based desalination is provided in [19].

2.3. Indirect solar desalination

The majority of large scale applications of solar desalination

use solar energy indirectly. In these systems, solar energy is har-
vested by using non-concentrating or concentrating solar thermal
collectors or photo-voltaic panels. A comprehensive review of these
collectors is provided in [20]. The collected energy is used to drive
thermal desalination processes such as MSF, MED, Thermal Vapor
Compression (TVC) or MD or in membrane desalination methods
such as RO and Electrodialysis (ED). In [21], a review of efforts made
for linking renewable energies with desalination technologies up
till 1981 is given. A review of efforts focused to solar desalination is
given in [22] and cover developments up to 1987. In [23–30], a gen-
eral discussion of efforts made for using renewable energy sources
such as solar, wind, geothermal and wave for desalination is pre-
sented. In [31–33] focus has been given to solar powered rankine
cycle for RO. Experimental investigations and proposals assessing
different scenarios for powering RO desalination by rankine cycle
are presented. A review of efforts focused towards renewable pow-
ered membrane desalination is presented in [34–37]. Membrane
distillation driven by renewable energy is the focus in [38–40].
Finally a comparison between membrane and thermal desalina-
tion driven by solar technologies is presented in [41]. The aim of
this paper is to update and present efforts in indirect solar powered
desalination and recommend feasible solar powered desalination
technologies based on these efforts. Fig. 2. Indirect solar desalination technologies with possible solar energy conver-
sion device.
3. Solar driven desalination technologies

Indirect solar powered desalination systems can be classified use low grade heat and use jet pumps (eductors) to produce vac-
into thermal, mechanical or electric driven technologies. MSF, MED, uum. Jet pumps convert pressure head of the stream into velocity
TVC and MD are thermal desalination technologies that require head in the suction chamber and have no moving parts.
solar thermal collectors as their energy source while RO and Atlantis “Autoflash” is another type of MSF system designed
Freezing are mechanical driven technologies. ED is the only solar to be coupled with a heat source of varying temperature [44]. In
desalination technology that requires electricity although RO and the “Autoflash” process water is sucked through a de-aerator, pre-
Freezing may also be electrically powered. Fig. 2 presents possible heated in condenser tubes by vapor releasing heat of condensation
solar energy conversion devices that can be linked with indirect at sub-atmospheric pressures. As, the system is designed to operate
solar desalination technologies. with a heat source with varying temperatures, it employs a pro-
prietary passive inter-stage pressure regulation system so that it
3.1. Multi-Stage Flash (MSF) can operate from a heat source with varying temperature without
using any mechanical or electronic control devices. The system can
MSF is the most commonly used thermal technology used in operate at TBT range of 30–95 ◦ C.
gulf using fossil fuels. The world’s largest desalination plants are A recent low-TBT MSF system was tested in Egypt [45]. The sys-
based on this technology. In MSF, water is heated by the waste heat tem successfully operated with TBT range of 40–60 ◦ C producing
in brine heater and then flashed in different chambers by varying 4.2–7 kg/d/m2 of collector area in summer 2005. This single stage
saturation pressure. For coupling with solar energy, a way of reg- system is powered by flat plate collectors and can be used to supply
ulating top brine temperature (TBT) is necessary to avoid unstable water in rural areas without technical expertise.
operation of the plant. In Safat, Kuwait a self regulating solar MSF The capital cost components for a standalone solar powered
system was installed in 1983. The system consisted of a hot water MSF plant are mainly the capital cost of solar collectors, PV arrays,
thermal storage with a three-way valve for maintaining a constant battery storage, thermal storage or fossil fuel powered genera-
collector field output temperature [42]. The specific energy con- tor, desalination unit and steam generator. Operating costs include
sumption (SEC) of the plant was reported to be in the range of chemical cost, maintenance cost and personnel cost which are less
81–106 kWh/m3 for a water temperature difference between hot than 20% of total cost [46]. Cost of water obtained from solar-MSF
brine and inlet sea water of 10–45 ◦ C. The Gain Output Ratio (GOR) plants are in the range of 1–5$/m3 [46,47]. In [48], an economic
was in the range of 6.5–8 which is typical of a MSF plant with comparison between solar-MSF with fossil fuel backup and a fossil
Recovery Ratio (RR) of 6%. fuel driven MSF plant is given. The main parameters affecting water
Another MSF system was installed at El Paso, USA for inves- cost are suggested to be the Performance Ratio (PR) and solar frac-
tigation of feasibility of using solar ponds for desalination [43]. tion of the plant similar to the situation in solar cooling as noted by
A multi-effect multi-stage (MEMS) system was installed in 1987 [49]. Solar fraction represents the energy needs of the plant sup-
along with a falling film MED unit. The MEMS unit is a three effect, plied by the collector field while PR is the amount of water produced
four stage MSF unit. The advantages of this system are that it can in pounds to 1000Btu of thermal energy input [43]. It is estimated
4190 M.T. Ali et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 15 (2011) 4187–4199

Table 1
Solar-MSF desalination plants.

Location Year Energy source Feed water Energy source Capacity SEC (kWh/m3 ) Specific plant
type details (m3 /d) details

La Paz, Mexico [50] 1980 PTC-FPC Seawater 194 m2 FPC, 160 m2 10 <144 10 stage
PTC with two-axis
tracking
Las Barranas, 1980 PTC-HPC Seawater 550.8 m2 PTC, 20
Mexico [51] 1540 m2 HPC,
16 m3 hot oil
storage, 114 m3 hot
water storage
Gran Canary, Spain 1981 Low Concentration Seawater 10
[52] Solar Collectors
Safat, Kuwait [42] 1983 PTC Seawater 220 m2 PTC, 7 m3 10 81–106 12 stages, GOR
hot water storage 6.5–8, RR 6%, 10
times output of
solar still of same
collection area
El Paso, USA [43] 1987 Solar Pond Seawater 3000 m2 with 2.35–7.2 Multi-effect
3.75 m depth Multi-Stage Spin
Flash (MEMS),
Brine Concentrate
Recovery System
(BCRS) for testing
Zero Discharge
Concept, PR 1.7–3.3
Gaza, Palestine [53] 1999 FPC-PV Brackish 5.1 m2 FPC, PV with 0.2 4 stage MSF,
Water battery storage thermo-siphoning
from FPC,
experimental,
batch process, PV
for vacuum pump
and controls
Berken, Germany Solar Collectors Seawater 10
[54]
Lempedusa Island, Solar collectors 0.3
Italy [23]
Bari, Italy [54] Solar Collectors Seawater 5
Island Of Cape 1999 Solar Pond 5 Atlantis (Auto
Verde [44] flash), 30–95 ◦ C TBT
Suez, Egypt [45] 2005 FPC 2.39 m2 FPC 0.009 PR 0.7–0.9,
40–60 ◦ C TBT, RR
0.6%

that for a solar fraction of 50%, the water cost were in the range of range of 9.3–14 depending on the steam pressure. It also had a
3–4.5$/m3 for fuel cost of 3–10$/GJ. high recovery rate of around 37% comparable to RO process. In
Table 1 presents the list of solar MSF desalination plants along 1991, a double-effect heat absorption pump was added to utilize
with a summary of their performance parameters. the low-grade waste heat from the plant. This resulted in reduction
of electric and thermal energy consumption by 44% and 12% respec-
3.2. Multi-Effect Distillation (MED) tively. In 2004, a dedicated 500 m2 PTC field with gas-boiler backup
was attached to the MED plant to demonstrate the economic via-
Most of large scale solar thermal plants are based on MED bility of the plant [57].
because of its low TBT requirements along with low specific energy Another hybrid MED-TVC plant was installed at University of
consumption requirements as compared to MSF. In MED, water Ancona, Italy in 1997 [58]. The plant was capable of operating in
evaporates on the outside of heated tubes based on its saturation the MED-TVC mode or in the TVC only mode. The main features
pressure. It then passes to the next effects for additional vapor of the plant were suction of non-condensable gas from the last
production. stage, low fluid and vapor velocities allowed use of simple filters
In 1984, MED plant powered by flat plate collectors was installed and less damage to tubes and low running temperatures reduced
in Abu Dhabi [55]. The plant consisted of a vertical multiple-effect scale formation. A full titanium desalination unit was designed to
evaporator with 18 effects. Pre-heating was employed in each effect assess the benefits of high heat transfer, reduced chemical require-
to increase the efficiency of the process. The plant achieved spe- ments, improved plant life and minimal environmental impact
cific energy consumption of 50 kWh/m3 which is comparable to versus higher cost.
conventional MED plants with minimal maintenance problems. A The main parameter affecting water cost obtained from desali-
water cost of around 7–10$/m3 was estimated mostly due to solar nation plants depends strongly on the energy cost. A detailed
collector cost. economical analysis of a small scale solar-MED plant is presented in
The MED plant of Plataforma Solar de Almeria is another major [59]. A water cost of 8.3–9.3$/m3 for a 100 m3 solar-MED with fossil
effort in indirect solar desalination. The plant was installed in 1988 fuel backup is suggested. According to the analysis small scale solar-
[56]. It was a MED-TVC plant powered by a PTC field designed for MED plant are economically viable for a 10$/GJ fossil fuel energy
power generation. The plant proved the high reliability of MED price and a collector cost of 200$/m3 . An economic comparison
process with small startup time. The GOR of the plant was in the between solar collector powered MED and PV powered seawater
 M.T. Ali et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 15 (2011) 4187–4199 4191

Table 2
Solar-MED desalination plants.

Location Year Energy source Feed water Energy source Capacity (m3 /d) SEC (kWh/m3 ) Specific plant details
type details

Takami Island, 1977 ETC-FPC Seawater 336 m2 ETC, 20 16 effect horizontal tube,
Japan [63] 185 m2 FPC, 38 m3 air-bubbling type ED, ETC
stratified hot water used for MED and FPC for
storage and 25 m3 ED, RR 24.5%
mixing type water
storage
Abu Dhabi, UAE 1984 ETC Seawater 1862 m2 , 300 m3 of 80 50 18 effect with preheating
[55] stratified hot water in each stage, GOR 12.4, RR
storage 12%, water cost 7–10$/m3
El Paso, USA [64] 1987 Solar Pond Seawater 3000 m2 with 24 stages falling film MED
3.75 m depth
Plataforma Solar 1988 PTC Seawater 2672 m2 , 115 m3 72 3.3–5 (electric) 14 effect vertical stack,
De Almeria, Spain thermocline hot 57.5–70.4 hydro-ejectors vacuum
[56] water storage (thermal) system, GOR 9.3 to 10.7 at
low pressure steam
0.28 bar and increases to
12–14 if use high pressure
steam 16–26 bar, RR37.5%,
Absorption pump addition
resulted in 44% and 12%
reduction in thermal and
electric consumption
respectively
Le Desired Island, ETC 40 14 effect
France [65]
University Of 1997 Solar Pond Seawater 625 m2 with 3.5 m 30 8 (electric) 194 GOR 5.73 for TVC, RR 5.7%
Ancona, Italy [58] depth (thermal) for MED, for MED and 11.4 for TVC
2.5 (electric) 111
(thermal) for TVC
Near Dead Sea, Solar Pond 3000
Israel [66]
Plataforma Solar 2004 CPC Seawater 500 m2 , gas boiler 72 3.3–5 (electric) 14 stages, double-effect
De Almeria, Spain back up with 30% 57.5–70.4 absorption heat pump to
[57] continuous (thermal) enhance system efficiency,
operation hydro-ejectors vacuum
system, PR 11, water cost
2.86$/m3

RO (PV-SWRO) plant with both plants backed by a diesel gener- susceptible to fouling and scaling necessitating pre-treatment
ator is presented in [60]. It is suggested that PV-SWRO plant is which results in higher maintenance cost and environmental
always cheaper and more environmentally friendly than a solar- impact.
MED plant. Also, PV-SWRO plants become economically feasible PV powered RO plant was first investigated on a commercial
for a fuel energy cost of 26$/GJ and PV array cost of 3$/Wp. In [61], scale in Saudi Arabia in 1981 [67]. The system successfully desali-
an economic comparison between large-scale solar-MED and PV- nated seawater of 42,800 ppm at a production rate of 3.2 m3 /d.
SWRO plant is presented. It is suggested that for capacities higher Due to unavailability of energy recovery devices the specific energy
than 1000 m3 /d thermally driven MED is cheaper than PV pow- consumption was in the range of 16.1–19.7 kWh/m3 .
ered RO plant. Based on the assumptions, the estimated specific In Greece [68,69], coupling of PV and wind with an RO process
plant cost for a solar-MED plant varies between 5000–8600$/m3 /d. for seawater desalination was investigated in 2003. The system
It is suggested that for large-scale plants, water cost from a solar consisted of 3.96 kWp PV panels separated in three sub-arrays of
MED plant can be reduced to 2$/m3 . An economic analysis of a 12 modules with manually adjustable tilt. A 900 Wp wind tur-
conventional solar-MED plant and a solar-MED plant coupled with bine was also installed. The PV and wind turbine systems were
an absorption heat pump is presented in [62] and a similar cost is linked to a battery bank of 44.4 kWh electrical storage. The sys-
suggested for solar-MED plants. tem produced 3.12 m3 /d with energy consumption of 16.5 kWh/m3 .
Table 2 presents the list of solar MED desalination plants along No energy recovery device was installed to cut down costs.
with a summary of features of these plants. Water costs from the unit were estimated to be in the range of
23–27$/m3 .
3.3. Reverse Osmosis (RO) Investigation on the benefit of using batteries for PV powered
RO system coupled with an energy recovery device was done in
RO is the second most dominant desalination technology. In Greece [33,70]. The system was used to desalinate feed water of
RO, saline water is fed to the porous membranes at high pres- 35,000 ppm with an average production rate of .8 m3 /d without
sure. Due to hydrophilic nature of membranes, only water is using batteries. The specific energy consumption of the system was
allowed to pass through. RO processes have a high recovery ratio 4.3–4.6 kWh/m3 which suggested using energy recovery devices in
(RR) > 50% and high salt rejection (SR) > 90% with low specific remote desalination systems. However, the increase in production
energy consumption. As compared to thermally driven technolo- due to batteries was not significant. The water cost from the sys-
gies, the energy requirement for conventional RO plants is around tem was 7.8$/m3 without using batteries and 8.3$/m3 for a battery
5 kWh/m3 for large scale plants. However, RO membranes are based system.
 4192
Table 3
Solar-RO desalination plants.

Location Year Energy source Feed water type Energy source Capacity (m3 /d) SEC (kWh/m3 ) Specific plant details
details

Cadarache, France 1978 FPC-heat engine Brackish Water 223 m2 FPC, 3 kW 15 Feed water salinity 2000 ppm
[21] heat engine
Concepcion Del 1980 PV Brackish Water 2.5 kWp PV 1.5 6.9 Feed water salinity 3000 ppm, RR 37%
Oro, Mexico [74]
Las Barranas, 1980 PV Seawater 250 kWp PV 20
Mexico [51]
Jeddah, Saudi 1981 PV Seawater 8 kWp PV, 3.2 16.1–19.7 Feed water salinity 42,800 ppm, RR 22%
Arabia [67,75] 46.56 kWh battery
El Hamarawein, 1981 FPC-heat engine Brackish Water 10 kW heat engine 54 Feed water salinity 3500 ppm
Egypt [21]

M.T. Ali et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 15 (2011) 4187–4199
Perth, Australia 1982 PV Brackish Water 1.2 kWp PV, 0.4–0.7 4–5.8
[76,77] 4.3 kWh battery
storage
Citius, Indonesia 1983 PV Brackish Water 24.5 kWp (pump) 12 8 Feed water salinity 3500 ppm, RR 35%, SR 98.5%,
[78] 1.22 kWp (control) water cost 3.68$/m3
PV, 132 kWh
(pump) and
4.8 kWh (control)
battery
Vancouver, Canada 1984 PV Seawater 4.8 kWp PV 4 <4 Price estimate for variable speed pump w/o battery
[75,79] and with energy recovery, feed water salinity
3300 ppm, water cost 9$/m3
El Hamarawein, 1986 PV Brackish Water 19.84 kWp (pump) 53 0.89 Feed water salinity 3500 ppm, RR 51%
Egypt [36] 0.64 kWp (control
equipment) PV,
208 kWh battery
Hassi Khebi, 1988 PV Brackish Water 2.59 kWp PV, 24 1.38–2.77 Feed water salinity 3000 ppm, RR 24–40.7%
Algeria [75,80,81] 60 kWh battery
Doha, Qatar [82] 1988 PV Seawater 11.2 kWp PV 5.7 10.6 Feed water salinity 3500 ppm
Wanoo Roadhouse, PV Brackish Water 6 kWp PV
Australia [22]
University Of 1988 PV Brackish Water 23.5 kWp PV, 2.48 Feed water salinity 2690–4030 ppm
Almeria, Spain [23] 2240 Ah 190–254 V
battery
Gillen Bore, 1993 PV Brackish Water 0.52 kWp PV 1.2 Feed water salinity 1600 ppm
Australia [76]
Lempedusa Island, PV Seawater 100 kWp PV 3 + 2 m3 /h Water cost 9.75$/m3
Italy [22]
St. Lucie Inlet State 1995 PV Seawater 2.7 kWp PV, diesel 0.64 13 Feed water salinity 3200 ppm, RR 10%
Park Florida, USA generator
[29]
Lipari Island, Italy PV Seawater 63 kWp PV 2 m3 /h
[22]
Sadous Riyadh, 1995 PV Brackish Water 10.1 kWp PV, 10 + 5 (with still) <18 Feed water salinity 5800 ppm, attachment of solar
Saudi Arabia 264.24 kWh still to plant was proposed with RO blow down as
[83,84] battery feed to still, 1449 m2 still area, water at 3$/m3
from still at 35–45% still efficiency
Heelat Ar Rakah, 1995 PV Brackish Water 3.25 kWp PV, 5–7.5 2.45 Feed water salinity 1000 ppm, water cost 6.25$/m3
Oman [85] 9.6 kWh battery
Mudroch 1997 PV Brackish Water 0.12 kWp PV 0.4 Venco manufacturer, commercial unit, feed water
University, salinity 5000 ppm, RR 16–25%
Australia [37]
Table 3 (Continued)

Location Year Energy source Energy source details Feed water type Capacity (m3 /d) Specific energy Specific plant details
consumption
(kWh/m3 )

Canary Island, 1998 PV Seawater 4.8 kWp PV, 0.8–4.2 18–19 Feed water salinity 35,000 ppm, RR 14%, water cost
Spain [86] 59.52 kWh battery 16–17$/m3
storage
Lisbon, Portugal 2000 PV Brackish Water 0.15 kWp PV 0.08 25.6–32.4 Feed water salinity 2000–5000 ppm, RR 1.8–2.4%,
[75,87] SR 90–94%
Haifa, Israel [88] 2000 PV, wind Brackish Water 3.5 kWp PV, 3 Feed water salinity 4000 ppm, RR 50%, SR 98%
0.6 kWp wind,
36 kWh battery
Ceara, Brazil [75] 2000 PV Brackish Water 1.1 kWp PV, 6 3 Feed water salinity 1200 ppm, RR 27%, water cost
9.6 kWh battery 12.76$/m3
White Cliffs, 2002 PV Brackish Water 0.34 kWp PV 0.5 8 Feed water salinity 3500 ppm, RR 10–25%, SR

M.T. Ali et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 15 (2011) 4187–4199
Australia [89] 93–95%,
Keratea, Greece 2003 PV-wind Seawater 3.96 kWp PV, 3.12 16.5 Feed water salinity 37,700 ppm, RR 13%, water cost
[68,69] 0.9 kWp wind, 23–27$/m3
44.4 kWh battery
Massawa, Eritrea 2003 PV Seawater 2.4 kWp PV with 3 Spectra Clark pump energy recovery, lab test data
[90] single-axis tracking used, feed water salinity 40,000 ppm, water cost
3$/m3
Baja California Sur, 2003 PV Seawater 19 2.6 Tested Spectra Clark pump, pressure exchanger
Mexico [51] and Danfoss axial piston motors, as low as
2.6 kWh/m3 achieved
Canary Island, 2004 PV Seawater 5.6 kWp PV with 10 2.54 Pressure Exchanger, feed water salinity
Spain [91] tracking, 41 kWh 35,000 ppm, RR 36%
battery
Agricultural 2004 PV-wind Seawater 0.846 kWp PV, 2.2 3.3–5.2 Spectra Clark pump, feed water salinity
University Of 1 kWp wind, 35,000 ppm, RR 10%, SR 99.2%, water cost
Athens, Greece 7.56 kWh battery 8–11$/m3
[57,69]
Canary Island, 2005 PV-wind Seawater 0.6 kWp PV, 1 3.74 Energy recovery device, RR 18%,
Spain [91] 0.89 kWp wind,
21 kWh battery
North West Of 2005 PV Seawater 125 kWp PV, 36 4.86 Pelton turbine recovery
Sicily, Italy [92] 160 kVA diesel
generator,
1236 kWh battery
Agricultural 2005 ETC-heat engine Seawater 162 m2 ETC, 1.8 2–3 Energy recovery by turbine, feed water salinity
University Of 100 kW heat 35,000 ppm, RR 15%, water cost 15$/m3
Athens, Greece engine, R-134a as
[33,93] working fluid
Cooper Pedy, 2005 PV Brackish Water 3.2 kWp PV 0.764 3.2 Feed water salinity 7400 ppm, RR 17.5%, SR 96%
Australia [94]
Rajasthan, India 2006 PV Brackish Water 2.5 kWp PV 3.6 Feed water salinity 6000 ppm, SR > 95%
[95]
Solarflow, Australia PV Brackish Water 0.12 kWp PV 0.4 Feed water salinity 5000 ppm
[96]
Agricultural 2006 PV Seawater 0.846 kWp PV, 0.8 (w/o battery), 4.3–4.6 Energy recovery by Clark type pump, feed water
University Of 7.56 kWh battery 0.9 (with battery) salinity 35,000 ppm, RR 8%, SR 99.2%, water cost
Athens, Greece 7.8$/m3 (w/o battery) 8.3$/m3 (with battery)
[33,70]
Marett Island, Italy PV Seawater 5
[54]
San Nicola, Italy PV Seawater 12
[54]

4193
4194 M.T. Ali et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 15 (2011) 4187–4199

Use of solar thermal collectors to power RO processes has been

Feed water salinity 720 ppm, RR 37%, SR 98%, water

tried as early as 1978. Heat collected from the solar collectors is

Building containing desalination unit and control

equipment half-buried and use solar panel shade

cost 10$/m3 (w/o battery) 13$/m3 (with battery)

used for running a heat engine based on the Rankine cycle. The

to provide passive cooling, feed water salinity

4 systems were installed, feed water salinity

hot fluid is heated up in the collector which is then expanded in a
Energy recovery by PX, feed water salinity turbine providing shaft power. A techno-economic comparison of
42,000 ppm, RR 35%, water cost 3$/m3 a RO system powered by PV panels and a RO system powered by
solar-rankine cycle is presented in [33]. The solar-Rankine system

Feed water salinity 10,000 ppm

consisted of 162 m2 of ETC with a 100 kW heat engine. The energy

RR 15%, water cost 25$/m3

consumption of the solar-Rankine system was 2–3 kWh/m3 as com-
pared to 4.3–4.6 kWh/m3 of PV based system. However, the water
Specific plant details

cost of solar-Rankine system was around 15$/m3 as compared to

3500 ppm, RR 70%

2500–8700 ppm
8.3$/m3 for PV based system. The higher cost of water produced by
a solar-Rankine system is due to higher energy system cost which
is 66% of the total system cost as compared to 31% for PV powered
system.
The factors affecting PV-RO water cost are capital cost of PV array
and battery, inclusion of energy recovery device, type of feed water,
and type of RO unit. Also as RO unit is sensitive to pre-treatment, in
battery- battery)

addition to normal operating costs such as maintenance, personnel

Specific energy
consumption

1.3–2.7 (w/o

and chemical cost; cost of membrane replacement and membrane

(kWh/m3 )

performance degradation over time are also added. In [71], eco-

nomic comparison between a PV-RO plant, PV-RO plant with diesel
4.3

15

generator backup and a diesel generator powered RO unit is pre-

8

sented. A water cost of around 7$/m3 for a 44 m3 /d is estimated.

It is suggested that a PV RO plant is economically competitive for
fossil energy price of 14$/GJ and PV panel cost of 8$/Wp. A method-
Capacity (m3 /d)

ology for designing of standalone PV-RO plant is presented in [72].

The study was done in 1998 and high water cost of around 30$/m3
is given due to high cost of PV panels. A recent detailed economic
0.192
300

analysis and comparison between PV powered and diesel generator

50

30
2

powered RO desalination is presented in [35]. It is estimated that

the cost of PV-SWRO is system is 36% higher than diesel-RO system.
275 kWp wind, grid

6 kWp PV, 4.8 kWh

0.744 kWh battery

wind, 5 kVA diesel

7.6 kWp PV, 5 kW

For large-scale plants having capacity of greater than 1000 m3 /d,

Feed water type

72 kWh battery

0.136 kWp PV,

the specific plant cost is in the range of 4500–6200$/m3 /d with

10.5 kWp PV,
50 kWp PV,

estimated water cost of <2$/m3 owing to the reduction of high effi-

generator
4 kWp PV
back up

battery

ciency PV module cost [61]. For solar-rankine RO systems, a detailed

economic analysis of a two stage rankine cycle and comparison with
PV RO system either directly powered or coupled with battery and
single stage rankine cycle is presented in [73]. For a rankine system,
around 66% of cost is associated with energy system with rankine
system taking 25% of this cost share. Water cost of 9$/m3 is esti-
mated for a two stage solar-rankine RO cycle which is comparable
Energy source details

to PV-SWRO systems.
Table 3 presents the list of solar RO desalination plants along
Brackish Water

Brackish Water

Brackish Water

Brackish Water

Brackish Water

with a summary of features of these plants.

Seawater

3.4. Membrane Distillation (MD)

Membrane Distillation is a thermally driven technique that com-

bines the concept of distillation and membrane desalination. It
has recently started attracting interest due to its benefits of low
PV-Wind-diesel
PV-wind-diesel
Energy source

temperature requirement, resistance against fouling and scaling,

elimination of chemical pre-treatment and possibility of inter-
mittent operation without storage [40]. MD is reported to have
distillate output 4.5 times that of solar still for the same thermal
PV

PV

PV

PV

energy input [39]. In MD processes, heated feed water flows on

one side of the hydrophobic membrane. Due to vapor pressure
2006

2006

2007

2007

2008

2009
Year

difference across the membrane, water vapor permeates and is con-

densed on the other side of the membrane. There are currently four
methods of collection of this water vapor permeate; Direct Con-
tact (DCMD), Air Gap (AGMD), Sweeping Gas (SGMD) and Vacuum
Table 3 (Continued)

University, Egypt
Irbid, Jordan [98]

Tangarfa, Agadir,
Ras Ejder, Libya

(VMD). In DCMD, cold water (distilled water) flows on the side of

Morocco [91]
Ksar Ghilene,

Fethiye Area,
Tunisia [57]

Turkey [57]

Marrakech,

Alexandria

the membrane opposite to saline water side resulting in conden-

Azla and
Location

sation of water vapor while in AGMD water vapor condenses on a

[97]

[99]

cold plate cooled by water of any salinity. Advantage of DCMD is

that gas gap between membrane interface and condensate stream
Table 4
Solar-MD desalination plants.

Location Year Energy source Feed water type Energy source Capacity (m3 /d) SEC (kWh/m3 ) Specific plant details
details

Hzag, Tunisia [66] Solar Collectors 0.1–0.35

M.T. Ali et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 15 (2011) 4187–4199
University of New 1991 FPC Seawater 3 m2 FPC 0.05 55.6 (thermal and Process efficiency 17 l/d/m2 of collector
South Wales, electric combined) area
Australia [29,102]
Island of Ibzia, 1993 ETC Seawater 51 m2 ETC, 10 m3 2 150–200 RR 5%
Spain [103] hot water storage
California, Usa Solar Pond
[54,104]
Tokyo, Japan 1994 Solar Collectors Seawater 0.96 PV for pumps
[29,105] and PV
2
El Paso, USA [106] 1999 Solar Pond Seawater 3000 m Solar Pond 0.4 Feed water salinity 35,000 ppm
with 3.75 m depth
Canary Island, 2003 FPC and PV Seawater 6 m2 FPC, 0.08 144 1 membrane module with high
Spain [91] 0.08–0.096 kWp PV internal heat recovery, feed water
salinity 35,000 ppm,
Alexandria, Egypt 2005 FPC Brackish Water 5.73 m2 FPC 0.064 647 Single-loop system, feed water salinity
[104] 670 ppm, SR 99.5%, process efficiency
90%
Kelaa De Sraghna, 2005 FPC 5.73 m2 FPC Single-loop system
Morocco [38,40]
Porto Santo Island, Direct Heating 300
Portugal [54]
Gran Canary, Spain 2005 FPC-PV Seawater 90 m2 FPC, 4 m3 0.15 100–200 5 membrane module, PV for pumps,
[38,40] hot water tank, two loop system, double glass collector
1.92 kWp PV, no with anti-reflective coating, feed water
battery salinity 35,000 ppm, RR 3.6%
Irbid, Jordan [107] 2005 FPC-PV Brackish Water 5.73 m2 FPC, 0.1 200–300 1 membrane module with high internal
0.106 kWp PV, heat recovery, RR 1–4%, GOR 0.3–0.9
Aqaba, Jordan [100] 2006 FPC-PV Seawater 72 m2 FPC, 0.44 200–300 4 membrane modules, PV for pumps,
1.44 kWp PV, 3 m3 GOR 0.4–0.7, two loop system, feed
water storage, water salinity 55,000 ppm, RR 3–4.5%
battery storage
Tenerife, Spain [38] 2007 FPC-PV 0.12 Feed water salinity 35,000 ppm

4195
4196 M.T. Ali et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 15 (2011) 4187–4199

Table 5
Solar-ED desalination plants.

Location Year Energy Feed water Energy source Capacity (m3 /d) SEC (kWh/m3 ) Specific plant details
source type details

Takami Island, 1977 ETC-FPC Seawater 336 m2 ETC, 10 (MED) 16 effect horizontal tube,
Japan [63] 185 m2 FPC, 38 m3 10 (ED) air-bubbling type ED, ETC used for
stratified hot water MED and FPC for ED, RR 24.5%
storage and 25 m3
mixing type water
storage
Spencer Valley, 1986 PV Brackish 1 kWp PV with 2.8 0.82 Tracking PV’s for controls and
Mexico [36,111] Water tracking, 2.3 kWp stationary PV for ED, feed water
PV stationary salinity 1000 ppm, water cost
16$/m3
Thar Desert, India 1986 PV Brackish 0.45 kWp PV 1 1 kWh/kg of salt 42 cell pairs, feed water salinity
[36,112] Water removed 5000 ppm
Ohsima Island, 1986 PV Seawater 25 kWp PV 10 250 cell pairs, partial desalinated
Japan [36,111] water storage and perform full
desalination when small solar
power available, water cost
5.8$/m3
Fukue City, Japan 1990 PV Brackish 65 kWp PV, 1.2 Ah 200 0.6–1 Feed water salinity 700 ppm
[29,113] Water battery storage
New Mexico, 1996 PV Brackish 2.3 kWp PV, 600 Ah 18 0.8 Feed water salinity 900 ppm
Mexico [114] Water battery
Isa Town, Bahrain 2002 PV Brackish 0.132 kWp PV 1.14 24 cell pairs, feed water salinity
[108] Water 3300 ppm, SR 30–50%
University of 2006 PV Brackish 0.272 kWp PV 1.32 80 cells, 550 cm2 unit cell area,
Alicante, Spain Water feed water salinity 2000 ppm
[110,115]

is narrow resulting in high temperature drop across membrane and Table 4 presents the list of solar MD desalination plants along
consequentially higher mass transfer but also higher energy con- with a summary of features of these plants.
sumption due to higher water flow rate as compared to AGMD.
In SGMD, gas such as dry air flows on the other side of the mem-
brane sweeping vapor from the membrane. This is then condensed 3.5. Electrodialysis (ED)
in a condenser located outside of the membrane module. The vapor
flow through the membrane is higher as compared to AGMD due to ED based desalination is usually used for treatment of brackish
turbulence achieved by the circulating gas. In VMD, a vacuum cre- or waste-water. In ED, a DC current is supplied to the Electrodialysis
ates the necessary driving force for the vapor. The vapor flux can be cell. Positive ions present in the water move towards the cathode
increased by applying vacuum even at low temperature difference. while the negative ions move towards the anode. In an ED stack,
Similar to SGMD, VMD also needs a condenser for condensing this several of such cells are placed in parallel to the flow separated
vapor along with high electricity consumption [38]. Only DCMD by flow spacers [108]. The streams in alternating spacers contain
and AGMD were found to be used for solar desalination according diluted and concentrated water. ED was first commercially used
to published literature. in 1953 at an oilfield campsite in Saudi Arabia [109]. ED became
In 2003, a project with the name of SMADES funded by the Euro- Electrodialysis Reversal (EDR) in 1974 when the effect of reversing
pean Commission was carried out to assess desalination systems DC electric field to membrane stack was investigated. Field revers-
with low maintenance needs and experimentally investigate the ing resulted in driving salt scale off the membranes. The frequency
performance of such systems. MD plants were installed in Spain, and duration of field reversing depends on the turbidity and salt
Morocco, Egypt and Jordan using AGMD membranes developed concentration of feed water. EDR eliminates the need to feed either
by Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy, Germany [100]. The sys- acid or anti-scalant chemicals into the desalination process which
tem installed in Jordan was the largest having an actual average is a major advantage of EDR over RO.
daily productivity of 0.44 m3 /d. It consisted of a two-loop sys- The plant installed in Fukue City, Japan in 1990 is the largest
tem for supplying heat. The advantage of the system was that solar powered ED plant with average distillate production of
seawater was heated through a heat exchanger and normal solar 200 m3 /d. The plant consisted of a 65 kWp PV array with 1.2 Ah of
collectors were used. The effects of solar radiation and feed flow storage. The distillate production ranged from 130–370 m3 /d with
rate were examined. The system successfully desalinated seawater energy consumption of 0.6–1 kWh/m3 .
of 55,000 ppm with specific energy consumption in the range of Recent experiments with ED consist of an EDR system in Bahrain
200–300 kWh/m3 . and at the University of Alicante, Spain. In Bahrain, various solu-
In [101], economic analyses of small and medium scale solar- tions of concentrations ranging from 1000–5000 ppm were tested.
MD plants are provided. The economic analysis is based on the A production rate of 1.14 m3 /d was achieved with a SR of >95%. It
0.1 m3 /d and 0.5 m3 /d plants installed in Jordan. Detailed actual was concluded that increasing the feed water temperature results
capital costs are provided for each of the plant’s components. Mem- in higher SR [108]. In Spain [110], effect of variation in PV power
brane cost and their replacement costs are suggested to be the main on ED process was investigated.
cost controlling parameters. A water cost of 15$/m3 and 18$/m3 A recent detailed economic analysis and comparison between
for compact and medium-scale solar-MD plants is estimated. It PV powered and diesel generator powered ED desalination is pre-
is anticipated that due to use of corrosion resistant materials and sented in [35]. It is estimated that the capital cost of PV-ED system is
resistance against fouling, longer plant lives can reduce these costs 30% higher than diesel-ED system. The water cost of PV-ED system
by 3$/m3 for each system. is estimated to be 3$/m3 for a 50 m3 /d capacity plant. It is suggested
 M.T. Ali et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 15 (2011) 4187–4199 4197

Table 6
Reported performance ranges of indirect solar desalination plants.

Technology Feed water type Specific energy consumption (kWh/m3 ) Recovery ratio (%) Water cost ($/m3 )

MSF Seawater, brackish water 81–144 (thermal) 0.6–6 1–5

MED Seawater, brackish water 50–194 (thermal) 6–38 2–9
MD Seawater, brackish water 100–600 (thermal) 3–5 13–18
RO Seawater, brackish water 1.2–19 (electric) 10–51 3–27
ED Brackish water 0.6–1 (electric) 25–50 3–16

Fig. 3 presents the share of each desalination technology along-

with its energy source. It can be observed that out of 87 indirect
solar desalination plants installed worldwide, 52% are RO based
while 13% and 9% of these plants are based on conventional ther-
mal desalination technologies i.e. MSF and MED. ED shares 9% of
the total and is recommended for desalination of brackish water
because of its minimal energy requirements.
Table 6 presents the energy requirements, RR and water cost of
indirect solar desalination plants. It can be observed that RR of PV
powered technologies i.e. RO and ED is higher as compared to ther-
mally driven desalination technologies. Low energy requirements
and high RR are the reasons of high proliferation of RO among other
Fig. 3. Share of desalination technologies in indirect solar desalination plants desalination technologies despite their lower water cost.
installed worldwide. Recent developments in indirect solar desalination have focused
on MD as it combines the advantages of both membrane and ther-
mal desalination technologies such as operation on thermal energy,
that feed water concentration and PV cost are the main parameters
ability to desalinate high salinity water, minimal pre-treatment and
affecting water cost.
fouling resistant. Although currently its energy requirements are
Table 5 presents the list of solar ED desalination plants along
still high with low RR, the distillate output from MD is estimated
with a summary of features of these plants.
to be 4.5 times the output from a solar still.

3.6. Freezing
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