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Membrane and Desalination Technologies pp 391–431Cite as

Adsorption Desalination: A Novel Method

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Part of the book series: Handbook of Environmental Engineering ((HEE,volume 13))

Abstract

The search for potable water for quenching global thirst remains a pressing concern throughout many regions of the world. The demand for new and sustainable sources and the associated technologies for producing fresh water are intrinsically linked to the solving of potable water availability and hitherto, innovative and energy efficient desalination methods seems to be the practical solutions. Quenching global thirst by adsorption desalination is a practical and inexpensive method of desalinating the saline and brackish water to produce fresh water for agriculture irrigation, industrial, and building applications. This chapter provides a general overview of the adsorption fundamentals in terms of adsorption isotherms, kinetics, and heat of adsorption. It is then being more focused on the principles of thermally driven adsorption desalination methods. The recent developments of adsorption desalination plants and the effect of operating conditions on the system performance in terms of specific daily water production and performance ratio are presented. Design of a large commercial adsorption desalination plant is also discussed herein.

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Acknowledgments

The authors express sincere thanks to King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) for the financial support through the project (WBS R265-000-286-597). The authors would also like to thank Mr. Kyaw Thu, a NUS Ph.D. student in the ME Department, for his help in experimental investigations of the AD plant (46–47).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

    Kim Choon Ng

  2. Mechanical Power Engineering Department, Mansoura University, El-Mansoura, Egypt

    Ibrahim I. El-Sharkawy

  3. Mechanical Engineering Department, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan

    Bidyut Baran Saha

  4. School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore

    Anutosh Chakraborty

Authors
  1. Kim Choon Ng
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  2. Ibrahim I. El-Sharkawy
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  3. Bidyut Baran Saha
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  4. Anutosh Chakraborty
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Zorex Corporation, Newtonville, New York, NY, USA

    Lawrence K. Wang PhD, PE, DEE

  2. Lenox Institute of Water Technology, Lenox, MA, USA

    Lawrence K. Wang PhD, PE, DEE  & Nazih K. Shammas PhD  & 

  3. Krofta Engineering Corporation, Lenox, MA, USA

    Lawrence K. Wang PhD, PE, DEE  & Nazih K. Shammas PhD  & 

  4. Division of Environmental Science and Engineering, National University of Singapore, Kent Ridge, Singapore

    Jiaping Paul Chen PhD

  5. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Yung-Tse Hung PhD, PE, DEE

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Ng, K.C., El-Sharkawy, I.I., Saha, B.B., Chakraborty, A. (2011). Adsorption Desalination: A Novel Method. In: Wang, L.K., Chen, J.P., Hung, YT., Shammas, N.K. (eds) Membrane and Desalination Technologies. Handbook of Environmental Engineering, vol 13. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-59745-278-6_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-59745-278-6_9

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  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, Totowa, NJ

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-58829-940-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-59745-278-6

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