article · Sustainability
Egypt faces severe water shortages driven by rapid population growth, prompting an expansion of non-conventional water sources such as desalination. High energy consumption and environmental concerns remain barriers, especially in remote areas lacking grid access. Geographic Information Systems were used to select optimal sites for solar-powered brackish groundwater desalination in the Western North Nile Delta, evaluating solar radiation, groundwater quality, aquifer potential, geology, and seawater intrusion. An assessment of a 1,000 cubic metre per day solar-powered reverse osmosis pilot facility indicates the process is technically mature for brackish groundwater below 23,000 parts per million salinity. The evaluation shows capital costs between 760 and 850 US dollars per cubic metre and operating costs between 0.55 and 0.63 US dollars per cubic metre, with energy consumption reduced to 3.6 to 4.2 kilowatt-hours per cubic metre.
Rapid population growth and water deficits make clean water provision an urgent priority in arid countries. Demonstrating that solar-powered desalination of brackish groundwater is cost-effective and energy-efficient offers remote, off-grid communities a dependable method to obtain drinking and irrigation water without placing extra strain on central electrical grids or relying entirely on fossil fuels.
The technology is applied and tested at pilot scale, showing technical maturity for small- to medium-scale reverse osmosis facilities. The primary users are regional water authorities, utilities, and agricultural projects operating in off-grid or remote areas. Near-term commercial adoption is supported by competitive capital and operating costs, particularly if plants incorporate water storage or hybrid energy configurations to maintain steady output.
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With a deficit of about 20 BCM in 2022, Egypt faces a severe water shortage due to rapid population growth (109.3 million in 2022). Egypt launched a program to utilize non-conventional water sources, like treated wastewater, agriculture drainage water, and desalination. Egypt is expanding its non-conventional water resources, boosting desalination capacity from 86,000 m3/day in 2015 to 680,000 m3/day in 2022, with plans to reach 1,250,000 m3/day by 2025. Despite the improvements in desalination technologies and cost, its high energy use and environmental impacts are still limiting its use. Egypt’s desalination relies on grid electricity, but renewable energy is crucial for remote areas where no electricity grid exists. Scaling up renewable energy in desalination faces challenges like land availability and high costs. GIS was used for optimal site selection for a brackish groundwater solar desalination plant in the Western North Nile Delta. Factors like solar radiation, groundwater quality, aquifer potentiality, geology, and seawater intrusion were carefully assessed. An evaluation of a sustainable 1000 m3/day solar-powered RO desalination pilot plant’s economic and technical viability is provided, along with its performance assessment. Limitations, challenges, and potential improvements are discussed. The study finds that RO–PV desalination for brackish groundwater is technically mature, with competitive Capex costs (USD 760-USD 850/m3) and low Opex (USD 0.55–USD 0.63/m3). Solar desalination for brackish groundwater with salinity less than 23,000 ppm can reduce energy consumption to 3.6–4.2 kWhr/m3. Water storage and hybrid systems with solar and conventional energy are suggested to enhance efficiency. This implies a growing market for small- to medium-scale RO solar-powered desalination in remote areas in the near future.
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DOI: 10.3390/su16041630
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