Desalination: Status and Federal Issues
Nicole T. Carter
Specialist in Natural Resources Policy
December 30, 2009
Congressional Research Service
7-5700
www.crs.gov
R40477
CRS Report for Congress
P
repared for Members and Committees of Congress
Desalination: Status and Federal Issues
Summary
In the United States, desalination is increasingly investigated as an option for meeting municipal
water demands, particularly for coastal communities that can desalinate seawater or estuarine
water, interior communities above brackish groundwater aquifers, and communities with
contaminated water supplies. Adoption of desalination, however, remains constrained by
financial, environmental, regulatory, and other factors. At issue is what role Congress establishes
for the federal government in desalination research and development, and in construction and
operational costs of desalination demonstration projects and full-scale facilities.
Desalination processes generally treat seawater or brackish water to produce a stream of
freshwater, and a separate, saltier stream of water that has to be disposed (often called waste
concentrate). Desalination’s attractions are that it can create a new source of freshwater from
otherwise unusable waters, and that this source may be more dependable than freshwater sources
that rely on annual or multi-year precipitation, runoff, and recharge rates. Many states (most
notably Florida, California, and Texas) and cities are actively researching and investigating the
feasibility of large-scale desalination plants for municipal water supplies.
Desalination and its different applications, however, come with their own sets of risks and
concerns. Although the costs of desalination dropped steadily in recent decades, making it more
competitive with other water supply augmentation options, the declining trend may not continue
if energy costs rise. Electricity expenses vary from one-third to one-half of the operating cost of
desalination facilities. Reducing the energy requirements of desalination would decrease its cost
uncertainties. Substantial uncertainty also remains about the technology’s environmental impacts,
in particular management of the saline waste concentrate and the effect of intake facilities on
aquatic organisms. Moreover, there are few federal health and environmental guidelines,
regulations, and policies specific to desalination as a municipal water supply source. Social
acceptance and regulatory processes also affect desalination’s adoption and perceived risks.
Research and public education may help to resolve some uncertainties, develop methods to
mitigate impacts, reduce the costs of desalination, and improve public understanding of the risks.
To date, the federal government has been involved primarily in desalination research and
development (including military applications), some demonstration projects, and select full-scale
facilities. For the most part, local governments, sometimes with state-level involvement, have
been responsible for planning, testing, building, and operating desalination facilities, similar to
their responsibility for freshwater treatment for municipal drinking water supply. Bills in the 111th
Congress (e.g., H.R. 88, H.R. 469, S. 1462, S. 1731, S. 1733, and P.L. 111-11) represent a range
of federal authorizations for desalination research, demonstration and full-scale facilities, and
planning and financing. H.R. 1145 would formally establish a federal interagency committee to
coordinate federal water research, including desalination research.
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Desalination: Status and Federal Issues
Contents
Desalination: The Federal Policy Context.................................................................................... 1
Legislation in the 111th Congress ........................................................................................... 2
Examples of Research Legislation................................................................................... 2
Examples of Planning, Construction, and Financing Legislation ...................................... 3
Desalination Adoption in the United States.................................................................................. 3
Adoption Growing in States Searching for Municipal Water Supplies .................................... 4
Energy Intensity Creates Cost Uncertainties .......................................................................... 4
Health and Environmental Concerns ..................................................................................... 5
Evolving Drinking Water Guidelines ............................................................................... 5
Environmental Effects of Intake Structures and Concentrate Disposal.............................. 6
Federal Desalination Research .................................................................................................... 7
Appendixes
Appendix. Desalination Technologies.......................................................................................... 9
Contacts
Author Contact Information ...................................................................................................... 10
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Desalination: Status and Federal Issues
Desalination: The Federal Policy Context
Interest in desalination of seawater, brackish water, and contaminated freshwater has increased in
the United States as the technology’s costs have fallen and pressure to develop new water
supplies has grown. Adoption of desalination, however, remains constrained by financial,
environmental, and regulatory and social factors. At issue is what role Congress establishes for
the federal government in desalination research and development, and in construction and
operational costs of desalination demonstration projects and full-scale plants.
Desalination processes generally treat seawater or brackish water to produce a stream of
freshwater, and a separate, saltier stream of wastewater, often called waste concentrate or brine.
There are a number of desalination methods. Two processes, thermal (e.g., distillation) and
membrane processes (e.g., reverse osmosis), are the most commonly used, with reverse osmosis
dominating in the United States. For more information on desalination technologies, see the
Appendix.
Although desalination costs dropped steadily in recent decades, making it more competitive with
other water supply augmentation options, a rise in energy costs could reverse the trend. Electricity
expenses vary from one-third to one-half of the cost of operating desalination facilities.1
Substantial uncertainty also remains about the technology’s environmental impacts. Social
acceptance and regulatory processes also affect its adoption and perceived risks. Research may
help to resolve uncertainties and develop methods to mitigate impacts as well as reduce the costs
of desalination.
Questions that may confront the 111th Congress in its consideration of the federal role in
desalination include:
• What is the appropriate level and nature of federal investment in desalination
research and development? For example, will Congress fund research aimed at
reducing the environmental impacts of desalination, or reducing the energy
requirements for desalination, or both?
• Should the federal government participate in and provide incentives for the
construction and/or operation of desalination facilities to address local water
supply needs? If so, should federal involvement be decided on a case-by-case
basis, or should Congress authorize a program to define the level and type of
federal involvement?
To date, the federal government has been involved primarily in research and development, some
demonstration projects, and select full-scale facilities. For the most part, local governments,
sometimes with state-level involvement, have been responsible for planning, testing, building,
and operating desalination facilities, similar to their responsibility for freshwater treatment for
municipal drinking water supply.
1 S. Chaudry, “Unit cost of desalination,” California Desalination Task Force, California Energy Commission, 2003.
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Legislation in the 111th Congress
During recent Congresses, legislative proposals have identified a range of different potential
federal roles in desalination, including creation of a water research program within the national
laboratories of the Department of Energy (to include numerous desalination-related research
areas); authorization of desalination demonstration, research, and full-scale facilities; and
authorization of payments to offset the energy costs of desalination operations. Bills introduced in
the 111th Congress also represent a range of federal authorizations for desalination research,
facilities, and planning; below are some examples of desalination-related legislation in the 111th
Congress.
Examples of Research Legislation
H.R. 469, the Produced Water Utilization Act of 2009, would authorize a Department of Energy
program for research, development, and demonstration of technologies (including desalination)
for environmentally sustainable utilization of groundwater produced during energy development
(i.e., groundwater brought to the surface as part of exploration or development of coalbed
methane, oil, natural gas, or any other substance to be used as an energy source) for agricultural,
irrigational, municipal, and industrial uses, or other environmentally sustainable purposes.
H.R. 1145, the National Water Research and Development Initiative Act of 2009, would formally
establish a federal interagency committee to coordinate federal water research, including
desalination research. The committee, with input from an advisory committee, would develop a
four-year plan for priority federal research topics and annually report on progress on the plan.
Among the outcomes the plan is to promote is development of technologies for enhancing reliable
water supply (e.g., desalination). The bill also would establish a National Water Initiative
Coordination Office that would function as a clearinghouse for technical and programmatic
information, support the interagency committee, and disseminate the findings and
recommendations of the interagency committee. A version of the committee, the Subcommittee
on Water Availability and Quality (SWAQ), which was not created by statute, has been operating
since 2003 within the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) as part of the National
Science and Technology Council (NSTC).
S. 1462, the American Clean Energy Leadership Act of 2009, includes a provision directing the
Secretary of the Interior to operate, maintain, and manage the Brackish Groundwater National
Desalination Research Facility.2 The facility is directed to conduct research, development, and
demonstration activities to promote brackish groundwater desalination, including the integration
of desalination and renewable energy technologies, and outreach programs with public and
private entities and for public education. The facility’s mission also includes managing the waste
concentrated from desalination, desalinating waters produced during oil and gas production, and
small-scale desalination systems.
2 The Brackish Groundwater National Desalination Research Facility is a federally constructed research facility focused
on developing desalination technologies for brackish and impaired groundwater found in the inland states. It is located
in Alamogordo, Otero County, NM. The facility opened in August 2007 and is integrated into Department of the
Interior’s existing desalination research and development program at the Bureau of Reclamation. It brings together
researchers from other federal agencies, universities, the private sector, research organizations, and state and local
agencies.
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S. 1733, Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act, includes a provision requiring the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish a research program on the effects of climate
change on drinking water utilities, and authorizing $25 million annually for program funding for
FY2010 through FY2020. The research program is required to address alternative water supply
technology issues, including desalination, brine management, and environmental impacts of
intakes for seawater desalination.
Examples of Planning, Construction, and Financing Legislation
P.L. 111-11, the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009, includes provisions authorizing
federal funding to be used for design, planning, and construction costs for facilities with
desalination and brine disposal components—$20 million for the Rancho California Water
District (CA)3 and $46 million in the Santa Ana watershed (CA)4—as part of the Bureau of
Reclamation’s Title XVI water reuse program. The bill also authorizes the Secretary of the
Interior to financially assist the California Water Institute to conduct a study coordinating and
integrating subregional water management plans, including desalinated water supplies, for the
San Joaquin and Tulare Lake regions.
H.R. 88, the City of Oxnard Water Recycling and Desalination Act of 2009, would authorize
federal funding to be used for up to 25% of the design, planning, and construction costs ($15
million of a total $60 million) of the Groundwater Recovery Enhancement and Treatment
(GREAT) project in Ventura County (CA). The bill would authorize the project as part of the
Bureau of Reclamation’s Title XVI water reuse program. The project combines wastewater
recycling and reuse and groundwater management and desalination to provide regional water
supply solutions to the Oxnard Plain.
S. 1731, Clean Renewable Water Supply Bond Act of 2009, would have facilities desalinating
seawater, groundwater, or surface water among the types of projects eligible for accessing the
federal bonds mechanism created by the bill.
In addition to the research provision previously described, S. 1733, Clean Energy Jobs and
American Power Act, includes investigating, designing, or constructing desalination facilities
among the eligible uses of grants provided to states as part of the bill’s climate change adaptation
provisions.
Desalination Adoption in the United States
Desalination is increasingly investigated as an option for meeting water demands, particularly for
coastal communities that can desalinate seawater or estuarine water, interior communities above
brackish aquifers, and communities with contaminated water supplies. Globally, seawater
desalination represents 60% of the installed desalination capacity.5 In the United States, however,
3 The project is also the subject of H.R. 371, Rancho California Water District Recycled Water Reclamation Facility
Act of 2009.
4 These activities and additional regional conveyance infrastructure for the waste brine are also the subject of H.R. 530,
Santa Ana River Water Supply Enhancement Act of 2009.
5 Data in this paragraph is from H. Cooley et al., Desalination, With a Grain of Salt: A California Perspective, Pacific
Institute (June 2006).
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only 7% of the existing capacity uses seawater as its source. More than half of the water
desalinated in the United States is brackish water. Another 25% is river water desalinated for use
in industrial facilities, power plants, and some commercial uses.
Desalination’s attractions are that it can create a new source of freshwater from otherwise
unusable waters, and that this source may be more dependable than freshwater sources that rely
on annual or multi-year precipitation, runoff, and recharge rates. Many states—most notably
Florida, California, and Texas—and cities are actively researching and investigating the
feasibility of large-scale desalination plants for municipal water supplies. Desalination and its
different applications, however, come with their own sets of risks and concerns. The growing use
of desalination in the United States and related concerns are discussed below.
Tampa’s Desalination Experience and
Adoption Growing in States
Lessons
Searching for Municipal Water
Tampa’s planning of the first large-scale (25 MGD)
desalination plant in the late 1990s ignited interest in
Supplies
large-scale desalination as a municipal water supply
source elsewhere in the United States. The facility was
The nation’s installed desalination capacity
thought of as a signal of desalination becoming a cost-
effective supply option, However, the Tampa plant, a
has increased in recent years. As of 2005,
facility to desalinate heavily brackish estuarine water,
approximately 2,000 desalination plants larger
encountered technical and economic problems (e.g., less
than 0.3 million gallons per day (MGD) were
freshwater produced than anticipated, fouling of reverse
operating in the United States, with a total
osmosis membranes, financing issues) during
capacity of 1,600 MGD (less than 0.4% of
construction and start-up, driving up the cost of the
freshwater produced. For some observers, a lesson from
total U.S. water use).6 Florida, California,
the Tampa plant experience is one of caution; before
Texas, and Arizona have the greatest installed
proceeding to full-scale implementation, large-scale
desalination capacity. Florida dominates the
desalination requires careful investigation. In the view of
U.S. capacity, with the facility in Tampa being
industry observers, the lessons to be learned from
a prime example (see box); however, Texas
Tampa are that (1) good design suited to the local
conditions and (2) a thorough pilot-study are critical for
and California are bringing plants online or
a desalination facility to function properly. For other
are in advanced planning stages. Several other
observers, the Tampa project illustrates some of the
efforts also are preliminarily investigating
risks of working with private water developers and
desalination for particular communities, such
lowest-bid contracts without sufficient external review
and accountability mechanisms. Private developers,
as Albuquerque. Two-thirds of the U.S.
however, remain attractive for some communities
desalination capacity is used for municipal
because of their role in financing the capital cost of
water supply; industry uses about 18% of the
constructing a large-scale desalination facility.
total capacity.7
Energy Intensity Creates Cost Uncertainties
The cost of desalination remains a barrier to adoption of the technology. Like nearly all new
freshwater sources, desalinated water comes at substantially higher costs than today’s existing
sources. Much of the cost for seawater desalination is for the energy required to operate the plant;
in particular, the competitiveness of reverse osmosis seawater desalination is highly dependent on
the price of electricity, which has driven many of the facilities currently being planned to
6 Ibid.
7 Ibid.
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investigate renewable energy supplies and co-location with power plants.8 As energy becomes
more expensive, less energy-intensive options (such as conservation, water purchases, and
changes in water pricing) increase in competitiveness relative to desalination.
Reverse osmosis pushes water through a membrane to separate the freshwater from the salts; this
requires a considerable energy input. Currently the typical energy intensity for seawater
desalination with energy recovery devices is 3-7 kilowatt-hours of electricity per cubic meter of
water (kWh/m3).9 The typical energy intensity of brackish desalination is less than seawater
desalination, at 0.5-3 kWh/m3. This range exists and is lower than seawater requirements because
the energy required for desalination is proportional to the salinity of the source water.10
Uncertainty in energy prices, therefore, creates significant uncertainty in the operating costs of
desalination facilities, which decreases the technology’s attractiveness as a water supply.
Reducing the technology’s energy requirements would decrease its cost uncertainties.
Substantial further cost savings are unlikely to be achieved through incremental advances in the
commonly used technologies, like reverse osmosis. The National Research Council (NRC) in a
2008 report, Desalination: A National Perspective, recommended that federal desalination
research funding be targeted at long-term, high-risk research not likely to be attempted by the
private sector that could significantly reduce desalination costs.
Health and Environmental Concerns
From a regulatory, oversight, and monitoring standpoint, desalination as a significant source of
water supply is new in the United States, which means the health and environmental regulations,
guidelines, and policies regarding its use are still being developed. Existing laws and policies
often do not address the unique issues raised by desalinated water as a drinking water supply.
Similarly, the implications of integrating desalination into existing water distribution
infrastructure have not been tested in a wide range of applications (e.g., corrosion of distribution
facilities by desalinated water). This creates uncertainty for those considering investing millions
in constructing a full-scale facility. Addressing these concerns will reduce potential risks and
improve the information available for decision-making.
Evolving Drinking Water Guidelines
While the quality of desalinated water is typically very high, some health concerns remain
regarding its use as a drinking water supply. For example, the source water used in desalination
may introduce biological and chemical contaminants to drinking water supplies that are
hazardous to human health, or desalination may remove minerals essential for human health. For
example, a health concern about boron has been raised in relation to seawater desalination; this is
an uncommon concern for traditional water sources. Boron is know to cause reproductive and
developmental toxicity in animals and irritation of the digestive tract, and it accumulates in
8 A major benefit of co-location is using the cooling water from the power plant for desalination; this water has been
warmed up by the power plant which reduces the energy requirements for desalinating it. Also, the desalination facility
may avoid construction costs for some intake and discharge facilities.
9 National Research Council, Desalination: A National Perspective, 2008, pp. 74-75, and 77. Hereafter referred to as
NRC Desalination: A National Perspective.
10 NRC Desalination: A National Perspective, p. 77.
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plants, which may be a concern for agricultural applications. There are concerns about boron in
the freshwater produced from seawater desalination because the boron levels after basic reverse
osmosis commonly exceed current World Health Organization health guidelines and the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) health reference level. Boron can be removed through
treatment optimization, but that treatment could increase the cost of desalted seawater. Boron is
one of a number of potential health concerns requiring further attention and investigation as
seawater desalination is used in large-scale application for water supply; for example,
microorganisms unique to seawater and algal toxins may also pass through reverse osmosis
membranes and enter the water supply.
EPA sets federal standards and treatment requirements for public water supplies, and controls
disposal of wastes, including concentrate disposal which is discussed later.11 In 2008, EPA
determined that it would not develop a maximum contaminant level for boron because of its rare
occurrence in most groundwater and surface water drinking water sources; EPA has encouraged
affected states to issue guidance or regulations as appropriate.12 Most states have not issued such
guidance. Therefore, most U.S. utilities lack clear guidance on boron levels in drinking water
suitable for protecting public health. The National Research Council recommended development
of boron drinking water guidance to support desalination regulatory and operating decisions; it
recommended that the guidance be based on an analysis of the human health effects of boron in
drinking water and other sources of exposure.
Environmental Effects of Intake Structures and Concentrate Disposal
The environmental concerns that arise in relation to desalination facilities include the effect of
intake structures and the disposal of waste concentrate, as well as the potential to open up new
coastal areas to development. These concerns are often raised in the context of obtaining the
permits required to site, construct, and operate the facility and dispose of the waste concentrate.
According to the Pacific Institute’s report Desalination, With a Grain of Salt, as many as 26
federal, state, and local agencies may be involved in the review or approval of a desalination plant
in California. Some stakeholders view these permit requirements as a barrier to adoption of
desalination.
The application of desalination in the United States is also challenged by the use of estuarine
water in many of the facilities being contemplated. Estuarine water, which is a brackish mixture
of seawater and surface water, has the advantage of lower salinity than seawater. Application of
desalination to estuarine water is uncommon, with the facility in Tampa being the largest of its
kind in the United States. The presence of surface water (which tends to be more contaminated
than seawater) in estuarine water may complicate compliance of desalinated estuarine water with
federal drinking water standards. For inland brackish desalination, significant constraints on
adoption are the uncertainties and the cost of the waste concentrate disposal.
The National Research Council called for further research and development on mitigating
environmental impacts of desalination and reducing potential risks relative to other water supply
11 For more information on EPA’s role in protecting drinking water, see CRS Report RL31243, Safe Drinking Water
Act (SDWA): A Summary of the Act and Its Major Requirements, by Mary Tiemann.
12 EPA, Regulatory Determinations for Priority Contaminant s on the Second Drinking Water Contaminant Candidate
List, available at http://www.epa.gov/OGWDW/ccl/reg_determine2.html.
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alternatives.13 It identified the following priority research areas to address environmental
concerns:
• assess environmental impacts of desalination intake and concentrate management
approaches, and synthesize results in a national assessment;
• improve intake methods at coastal facilities to minimize harm to organisms;
• develop cost-effective approaches for concentrate management that minimizes
environmental impacts; and
• develop monitoring and assessment protocols for evaluating the potential
ecological impacts of surface water concentrate discharge.
Federal Desalination Research
Desalination research represents less than 0.1% of the approximately $130 billion annual federal
research and development investment. The optimal level of federal investment in desalination
research is inherently a public policy question. Increasing federal funding for desalination
research raises questions, such as what should be the respective roles of federal agencies,
academic institutions, and the private sector in conducting research and commercializing the
results, and should federal research be focused on basic research or promoting the use of
technologies?
Most federally supported desalination spending is on research to improve existing technologies,
fostering innovations in alternative technologies, and applications in the military. Much of the
federal desalination research is managed by the Bureau of Reclamation through its Desalination
and Water Purification Research & Development Program. Congress authorized the program in
the Water Desalination Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-298) beginning in FY1997 for a six-year period;
funding has been extended through FY2011.
The National Research Council recommended a level of funding consistent with the levels in
FY2005 and FY2006, roughly $25 million, but recommended that the research be targeted
strategically, including being directed at the research activities described above.14 The level of
funding fell after FY2006, when the appropriations process has included less congressionally
directed spending. The NRC drew the following conclusion:
There is no integrated and strategic direction to the federal desalination research and development
efforts. Continuation of a federal program of research dominated by congressional earmarks and
beset by competition between funding for research and funding for construction will not serve the
13 NRC Desalination: A National Perspective.
14 According to the 2004 NRC report, Confronting the Nation’s Water Problems: The Role of Research, “water supply
augmentation and conservation” including desalination research by federal agencies totaled $14.5 million in FY2000.
In the past the federal government invested more in this area; in the late 1960s, federal research in desalination and
other saline water conversion activities exceeded $100 million (in 2000 dollars) annually. Research alone does not
represent all federal spending on and support of desalination. The EPA also may support construction of municipal
desalination facilities through loans provided to these facilities through the EPA’s Drinking Water State Revolving
Loan Funds.
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nation well and will require the expenditure of more funds than necessary to achieve specified
goals.15
Although not directly addressing desalination research, H.R. 1145, the National Water Research
and Development Initiative Act of 2009, would require greater coordination of federal water
research and funding, which would include technologies such as desalination. Research cannot
address all barriers to adoption of desalination. Efforts to overcome other constraints (e.g., public
education and regulatory processes) also are often recommended as part of an overall strategy for
reducing adoption barriers.
15 NRC Desalination: A National Perspective, p. 228.
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Appendix. Desalination Technologies
There are a number of methods for removing salts from seawater or brackish groundwater to
provide water for municipal and agricultural purposes. The two most common processes, thermal
(e.g., distillation) and membrane processes (e.g., reverse osmosis), are described below; their
descriptions are followed by descriptions of some of the more innovative and alternative
desalination technologies. The earliest commercial plants used thermal techniques. Improvements
in membrane technology have reduced costs, and membrane technology is less energy-intense
than thermal desalination (although it is more energy-intense than most other water supply
options). Reverse osmosis and other membrane systems account for nearly 96% of the total U.S.
desalination capacity and 100% of the municipal desalination capacity.
Distillation and Reverse Osmosis
In distillation, saline water is heated, separating out dissolved minerals, and the purified vapor is
condensed. Reverse osmosis forces salty water through a semipermeable membrane that traps salt
on one side and lets purified water through. Reverse osmosis plants have fewer problems with
corrosion and usually have lower energy requirements than thermal processes. Distillation plants,
however, require less maintenance and pretreatment before the desalination process.
Innovative and Alternative Desalination Processes
Forward Osmosis
Forward osmosis is a relatively new membrane-based separation process that uses an osmotic
pressure difference between a concentrated “draw” solution and the saline source water; the
osmotic pressure drives the water to be treated across a semipermeable membrane into the draw
solution. The level of salt removal can be competitive with reverse osmosis. A main challenge is
in the selection of a draw solute; the solute needs to either be desirable in the water supply, or be
easily and economically removed. Research is being conducted on whether a combination of
ammonia and carbon dioxide gases can be used as the draw solution. The attractiveness of
forward osmosis is that its energy costs can be significantly less than for reverse osmosis when
combined with industrial or power production processes.16
Electrodialysis17
Electrodialysis depends on the ability of electrically charged ions in saline water to migrate to
positive or negative poles in an electrolytic cell. Two different types of ion-selective membranes
are used—one that allows passage of positive ions and one that allows negative ions to pass
between the electrodes of the cell. When an electric current is applied to drive the ions, fresh
water is left between the membranes. The amount of electricity required for electrodialysis, and
16 R. L. McGinnis, and M. Elimelech. “Energy requirements of ammonia carbon dioxide forward osmosis
desalination,” Desalination (2007) 207, pp. 370-382.
17 The description of the remaining technologies was written by Peter Folger, Specialist in Energy and Natural
Resources Policy.
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therefore its cost, increase with increasing salinity of feed water. Thus, electrodialysis is less
economically competitive for desalting seawater compared to less saline, brackish water.
Ion Exchange
In ion exchange, resins substitute hydrogen and hydroxide ions for salt ions. For example, cation
exchange resins are commonly used in home water softeners to remove calcium and magnesium
from “hard” water. A number of municipalities use ion exchange for water softening, and
industries requiring extremely pure water commonly use ion exchange resins as a final treatment
following reverse osmosis or electrodialysis. The primary cost associated with ion exchange is in
regenerating or replacing the resins. The higher the concentration of dissolved salts in the water,
the more often the resins need to be renewed. In general, ion exchange is rarely used for salt
removal on a large scale.
Freezing Processes
Freezing processes involve three basic steps: (1) partial freezing of the feed water in which ice
crystals of fresh water form an ice-brine slurry; (2) separating the ice crystals from the brine; and
(3) melting the ice. Freezing has some inherent advantages over distillation in that less energy is
required and there is a minimum of corrosion and scale formation problems because of the low
temperatures involved. Freezing processes have the potential to concentrate waste streams to
higher concentration than other processes, and the energy requirements are comparable to reverse
osmosis. While the feasibility of freeze desalination has been demonstrated, further research and
development remains before the technology will be widely available.
Author Contact Information
Nicole T. Carter
Specialist in Natural Resources Policy
ncarter@crs.loc.gov, 7-0854
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