Optimizing design and cost of seawater reverse osmosis systems

Abstract The influence of design parameters, such as raw water temperature and total dissolved solids content (TDS), design pressure, and recovery, on total unit cost for the production of desalinated water from the Arabian Gulf in Saudi Arabia by means of reverse osmosis is presented for plant capacities ranging from 75,000 m 3 /d to 700,000 m 3 /d. It is concluded that total unit water cost is significantly influenced by raw water TDS, design pressure and design recovery. It is recommended to investigate the feasibility of operation at increased pressure. Finally, total water costs for reverse osmosis desalination are presented also as a function of salinity, with TDS levels ranging from 3000 mg/l to 55,000 mg/l.