A Review of Desalination Technologies for Low-Resource Settings

Desalination has long been thought to be a solution to water scarcity issues in low- and middle-income countries around the world. Desalination plants have been built on many different scales, most commonly using a type of filtration or distillation in order to obtain potable water. Too often, though, large-scale desalination plants are economically and environmentally unfeasible for developing communities. Small-scale desalination plants, therefore, are a more viable solution for communities where resources are scarce and flexibility is key. This paper analyzes several parameters of constructing and maintaining desalination plants, including capital costs, energy costs, pre-treatment, post-treatment, and waste disposal, and compares the relative cost of each method of filtration or distillation. Case studies of small-scale desalination plants in indigenous, urban, and rural communities are examined to draw conclusions about the most effective and achievable types of plants that serve the needs of each type of community most effectively.