Between 2016-2017, this market alone grew by 21 per cent, according to the IDA. The industrial desalination market is also important to reference. The IWA said expected “hot spots” for accelerated desalination activity include in Asia, the US and Latin America. Meanwhile, seawater has a higher salinity content, in the range of 30,000 to 44,000 mg/L.Īs well as brackish and seawater, other sources may include wells, surface (rivers and streams), wastewater and industrial feed and process waters, according to the American Membrane Technology Association (AMTA).Īround 44 per cent of total global desalination capacity is located in the Middle East and North America, with growth expected in the rate of seven to nine per cent per year. For brackish water, the water has a salt content less than 10,000 mg/L. The desalination process can focus on either brackish water or seawater.
According to the International Water Association (IWA), desalination still only provides one per cent of the world’s drinking water, but this is growing “year-on-year”.The news in favour of desalination is that the world’s oceans contain over 97.2 per cent of the planet’s water resources, is “drought-proof and is practically limitless”. In order to do this, desalination plants involve multiple technologies, from pre-treatment to pumps and membranes.Īccording to the new International Desalination Association (IDA) Water Security Handbook, the total global installed desalination capacity stands at 97.4 million cubic meters per day (m3/day) while the total global cumulative contracted capacity is 104.7 million m3/d.Īs of June 30, 2018, more than 20,000 desalination plants had been contracted around the world. Desalination involves either treating sea or brackish water with the objective to create freshwater. What are the processes and technologies involved in desalination? What’s the difference between MED and MSF thermal treatment? What are the pros and cons of desalination? Our essential guide dives deeper into desalination and the processes it includes.ĭesalination refers to a process that involves taking the salt out of water to make it drinkable. The rapidly growing advance in water reuse, particularly direct and indirect potable reuse of municipal wastewater, uses desalination membrane technology. Together with water reuse, desalination can offer solutions to water scarcity and in some countries, provides over 90 per cent of total water supply. By converting saline water, the process can offer freshwater in areas lacking natural groundwater, or surface water supplies. With more than 20,000 plants now contracted around the world, desalination is enabling countries to provide water security for future generations amid growing climate concerns. What are the world’s largest desalination plants?ĭesalination: Quenching growing thirst around the world.Desalination: Quenching growing thirst around the world.