world water usage

INTRODUCTION domestic industrial agriculture

8%

22%

70%
The Composition of the Planet’s Water
Clean water
available Total water available to us 2.5 percent fresh water
Naturally

2.5; 3%
2%

30%

68%
97.5; 98%
glaciers

ground water
ocean
fresh water lakesand
fresh water rivers
 • Potential of desalinated water
Desalination is the answer to global water scarcity with the help of emerging
technology
As earth has enough water in the form of sea which can be made potable using
desalination
NEED FOR
DESALINATION
Technology used for global water desalination
(pie chart )

ED Hybrid
MED 2%
3%
8%
Desalinated water production
world wide MSF
60000000 26%
50000000
40000000
30000000
20000000
RO
10000000 61%
0
Category 1

RO MSF
MED Hybrid and others
 •World desalination capacity
Middle East Asia Europe Africa North & South America

WORLD
DESALINATION
7%
INDEX
8%

12%

8%
65%
 Gulf Thermal
& RO
Desalination
Capacity
Chart Title
10000000 9855977
9000000
8000000
7000000
6000000
5000000
4000000 1529429
3000000
759785
2000000
1000000
0
Category 1

msf med ro
 Thermal desalination uses
Pump is the only component
75kw/h where as the RO
to consume major portion of
uses only 5 kw/h for
electricity.
100m3/h

RECENT
TREND AND Membranes are made up of
RO has a modular plant
BENEFIT OF structure.
polymer/callous material
which are non corrosive
RO OVER
THERMAL

The footprint of RO plant is

Timely servicing is easy to
considerably smaller than
handle
other MSF plants
 Global Freshwater Availability

Cubic meters per person per year

Water scarce Water stressed

Data not available

0 1000 1700 2500 6000 15000 70000
Water Availability per region (2012 find updated values of this )

Region Average water availability

(cubic meters/person)

Middle East and North Africa 500

Sub-Saharan Africa 1,000

Caribbean 2,466

Asia/Pacific 2,970

Europe 4,741

Latin America 7,200

North America (including Mexico) 13,401

•Green, Blue, and Gray Water
•Green water: water that exists in flux in
natural ecosystems, as clouds, mist, rain,
soils and plants. Blue water: water
withdrawn from water stocks including
lakes, reservoirs, and groundwater
aquifers for human activities (irrigated
agriculture, industry, domestic use). Gray
water: freshwater needed to dilute and
flush away the pollutants that result from
l human activities.
 19
•Global Water Use % Agricultural
•Of all water that is withdrawn for human
11
activities, 70% is used for agriculture, %
Municipal

primarily to irrigate crops; 19% is used for 70 Industrial

industry; and 11% for municipal and %
domestic uses. The share of water for
agricultural uses can be as high as 95%
(Vietnam), and as low as 0.3% (Germany).
 Number of Desalina- Desalinati on capacity
ti on Plants in the Gulf of existi ng plant
20 1200

18
1000
16
Desalination 14
plants and their 12
800

capacities of the
10 600
Arabian gulf
(1970-2012) 8
400
6

4
200
2

0 0
KSA Qatar Bahrain Kuwait UAE Oman KSA Qatar Bahrain Kuwait UAE oman

RO MSF MED RO MSF MED

 excpeted gulf desalint-
desalinti on stati on ion capcity of plant
under constructi on under constructi on
18
400
16
Proposed 16 369

350
future 14

desalination 12
300

plants and 250

249
10
their capacities 9
201
200
8 172
7
157
150
132.244
6 127

4 4 100
4 100
3 3
63
2 2
50 45 48.952
2
1 1 1 1 1 19.8
0 0 0 0 0 5 0 0 0
0 0
KSA Qatar Bahrain Kuwait UAE Oman KSA Qatar Bahrain Kuwait UAE Oman

RO MSF MED RO MSF MED

 3373
3500

3000 2658

2500

Overall increase in 2000

desalination capacity
technologies 1500
1251

1000
558
413
376.5

500

0
Existing plant capacity Future plant capacity

RO MSF MED
 First plant was established
using submerged tube Two plants were built in
process having an out put Ras Laffan and one at Ras
of 150040 gallons /day Abu Fantaas

HISTORY OF SEA
WATER
1953 1962 1977 1982
DESALINATION IN
QATAR
First Multi Stage Flash First RO plant at Abu
evaporation process was Samra with a capacity of
installed at Rass Abu 149600
Abood with a capacity of gallons/day(680m3/day)
1.5 MIGD
 AVAILABILITY OF WATER

ABSENCE OF NATURAL FRESH WATER

WATER DOMESTIC USAGE AND GROWTH

CHALLENGES
FOR QATAR THE POPULATION OF QATAR IS INCREASING FROM 1995 EXPONENTIALLY

HENCE INCREASING THE DAILY REQUIREMENT OF WATER FOR DOMESTIC USE

INDUSTRIAL USAGE AND GROWTH

AS THE PRODUCTION OF PETROLEUM ,GAS ,PETRO CHEMICAL ETC ARE

INCREASING ,THE REQUIREMENT OF FRESH WATER IS ALSO INCREASING
EXPONENTIALLY
 Chart Title

3.5

Population 3

and 2.5

Desalinate 2

d Water 1.5

Production 1

2000-2018 0.5

0
2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018
Qatar Population Growth(in millions) Total Production of Desalintion Plants (million cubic meter/day)
 Overall capacity of Qatar sea water desalination up to 2010

DESALINATION
CAPACITY OF
QATAR
• Overall capacity MSF MED RO

• Thermal capacity
Expected Qatar sweater desalinati on 2018-2022
MSF
MED
• RO capacity RO
39%
MSF
46%

MED
15%

MSF MED RO
DESALINTI
ON
PLANTS IN
QATAR

Locations of the
4 major Plants
1. Rass Abu Fantas
2. Umm-Halul
3. Rass Laffan
4. Rass Abu Abood
R&D IN THE FIELD OF WATER
DESALINATION AND NEW
POSSIBILITIES

• Hybrid
• Membrane based(nf/uf)
• Solar integration
• Forward osmosis
• Solar powered desalition
OVERVIEW
• Introduction
• Need for desalination
• World Desalination Index
• Gulf thermal and RO desalination capacity and
recent trends
• water challenges for Qatar
• History of seawater desalination in Qatar
• desalination capacity of Qatar ( RO and
Thermal )
• Conclusions
State Of Qatar
Attractive Destinations

The Attractive Destinations, on the other

hand, have a characteristically high inflow
of researchers and a highly mobile research
population – an average of 81 percent
publish research abroad, the highest of all
the groups. The researchers who stay in
these countries, which include Qatar and
Singapore, have the highest FWCI of all the
groups.

Did you know that Qatar is one of the

world’s most attractive destinations
for researchers?

[Link]
 Global Water Crisis: H2O QUICK FACTS

• Water scarcity will be one of the defining features of the 21st century.
• The U.N. predicts that by 2025 two thirds of the world's population
will suffer water shortages.
• Compared to today, five times as much land is likely to be under
“extreme drought” by 2050.
• By 2050, 1 in 5 developing countries will face water shortages.

Sources: United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization; World Health Organization; UNICEF, 2015
 Qatar Scenario…

• Seawater Desalination is strategically important to the State of Qatar

• Water stress is rising due to rapidly growing demands from population growth,
industrialization, urbanization and agriculture

• Qatar Nation Vision 2030:The scarcity of renewable water resources and the
escalating competition for water is a major challenge in the sustainable development
agenda for Qatar

• Innovative desalination technologies that minimize both cost of water production and
the environmental impact should be further investigated

• QNRS: Energy and Environment Pillar-Water Desalination

• Grand Challenges: Water

Sources: Qatar Nation Vision 2030
Four Pillars of QNV 2030
WATER A GRAND CHALLENGE FOR QNV2030

Qatar Seawater Challenges

Absence of natural
fresh water
Less annual rainfall High
desalination
plant
 High evaporation rates concentratio
Salinity

n in the
 Domestic usage and Arabian
gulf region

growth High wind

Feed water
quality

 Industrial usage and

growth Temperature
of feed water
& difference
Algae boom
of temperature
FRAMEWORK OF WATER IN QATAR
 WORLD DESALINATION INDEX

2.5 percent fresh world water

Total water available to water usage
us

2.5; 3%
glaciers
domestic
ground water
2% 8% industrial
fresh water
30% lakesand rivers agriculture
22%
97.5; 98% 68% 70%
ocean

fresh
water
 Desalination is the answer to global water scarcity with the help
of emerging technology As earth has enough water in the form
of sea which can be made potable using desalination

Desalinated water production •World desalination

world wide capacity
14000 11888.69
12000 Middle
10000 East
MIGD

8000
6000 5067.31 7%
4000
1559.18 8% Asia
2000 974.5
0
Europe
RO MSF MED Hybrid & other 12%

Technology used Africa

8% North &
MED ED Hybrid 65%
South
8% 3% 2% America
MSF
26%

RO
61%
GULF THERMAL & RO DESALINATION
CAPACITY
2500

2168

2000

1500
MIGD

1000

336.43

500
167.14

0 MSF MED RO
82 % 12%
6%
 Desalination Capacities of the Arabian Gulf
(1970-2012)
Number of Desalina- Desalination capacity
tion Plants in the Gulf of existing plant
19 1110

16
NUMBER OF PLANTS

12 12

MIGD
647

473
7 7 7
6
5 263
245
3 3 183
2 2 2
1 77
1 65 74.5 52 54 95
70
KSA Qatar Bahrain Kuwait0 UAE Oman 14.5
KSA 0.2
Qatar Bahrain 25
Kuwait0 UAE Oman0

RO MSF MED RO MSF MED

 Proposed future desalination plants
and their capacities beyond 2012

New and under con- desalination plant

struction desalination capacity of new &
stations plants under con-
struction
NUMBER OF PLANTS

16
369

MIGD
249
9
7 201
157
132.244
4 4 96 100
3 3 70 80
2 1 2 1 63 48.9
1 1 1 19.8 52
KSA Qatar Bahrain
0 Kuwait0 UAE 0 Oman0 KSA Qatar Bahrain
0 Kuwait5 UAE
0 Oman
0 0

RO MSF MED RO MSF MED

 Overall increase in
Recent trend and benefit of Desalination capacity
RO over thermal Technologies
4000

3373
3500
• Less power consumption 26 %
3000
2658

2500
• Modular Nature of RO
2000

MIGD
1500
• Membranes 1128
%
1000 175
558
413 376.5
48.2%
• Small footprint 500
77%
12% 11 24% 65% 10.7%
0 %
Existing plant capacity Future plant capacity 2012-
UPTO-2012 2018& BEYOND

• Environment friendly RO MSF MED

Population and Desalinated Water
Production
2000-2018

3.5

2.64
2.5
& Million

2.3 2.3
2.15
2
1.75
1.65 1.651.7
1.5
M3/day

1.23
1 1
0.9
0.8 0.75
0.7
0.6

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018
Qatar Population Growth(in millions)
Moving average (Qatar Population Growth(in millions))
Total Production of Desalintion Plants (million cubic meter/day)
Exponential (Total Production of Desalintion Plants (million cubic meter/day))
 HISTORY OF SEA WATER
DESALINATION IN QATAR
First plant was Two plants
established were built in
using submerged Ras Laffan RAS ABU
tube process and one at FAONTAS
having an out Ras Abu SWROMPLANT
put of 150040 Faontas 1& with a capacity
gallons /day 2 of 36 MIGD

2016-
1953 1962 1977 1982 2017-2018
2017

Umm Al Houl
First Multi First RO power and
Stage Flash plant at
water project is
evaporation Abu Samra
process was with a 136.5 MIGD
installed at capacity of (621,000 m3/d)
Rass Abu 149600 Using SWRO
Aboud with a gallons/day(
capacity of 1.5 680m3/day)
MIGD
 DESALINATION CAPACITY OF QATAR

Overall capacity of Qatar Expected Qatar

sea water desalination up seawater desalina-
to 2010 tion 2018-2022
1%
24%
MSF
MED
RO RO
39% MSF
46%
MSF 75%
MED MED
RO 15%
 SHIFT OF TREND FROM
THERMAL
REVRESE OSMOSIS TO
AND THERMAL CAPCITY RO
CHANGE IN QATAR OVER THE
YEARS

RO Thermal 333
96
26.6%
263
Million gallons / day

100250 % 128

97%
65

upto 2012 2012-2018

0.364
Upt2012 2012-2018 beyond MSF

RO Power (RO)
Conclusion

• Apprehend the water problem across GCC

• Ensuring desalination to be a primary objective of
QNV 2030
• Proposing a sustainable and cost effective
desalination technology
• The shift from thermal to RO technology beyond
2012 has quadrupled
• Researches are being conducted to attain
optimum utilization of resources
Center for Advanced Materials (CAM) Summer
Research Internship-2021

Topic: WATER TREATMENT TECHNOLOGY

Presented by : Mr. Hammad Siddiqui

Date: 16th June 2021

Global Water Crisis: H2O QUICK FACTS

• Water scarcity will be one of the defining features of the 21st century.
• The U.N. predicts that by 2025 two thirds of the world's population
will suffer water shortages.
• Compared to today, five times as much land is likely to be under
“extreme drought” by 2050.
• By 2050, 1 in 5 developing countries will face water shortages.

Sources: United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization; World Health Organization; UNICEF, 2015
 WATER A GRAND CHALLENGE FOR QNV2030
Qatar Seawater Challenges

Absence of fresh water

Less annual rainfall High
desalination
 High evaporation rates plant Salinity
concentration
 Domestic usage and growth in the Arabian
gulf region

 Industrial usage and growth Feed water

High wind quality

Temperature
of feed water
Algae boom
& difference
of temperature
GULF DESALINATION CAPACITY
 Desalination is the answer to global water scarcity
As earth has enough water in the form of sea which can be made potable using
emerging desalination Technology

Major Desalination Technology

MEMBRANE

DISTILLATION
Natural
Desalination:
Water Cycle!
• Major Stages
• 1. Evaporation
• 2. Condensation
• 3. Precipitation
• 4. Collection
 Membrane Desalination

• Remove salt ions from water by using membranes that selectively permit or prevent the passage of
certain ions.
• Seawater Reverse Osmosis (SWRO) desalination
• Increasingly popular
• Advances in Technology

Major Advantages of Membrane Processes

• Relatively Simple
• Cost effective
• Due to advances in energy recovery devices and membranes
• Modular – Expandable
• Relatively small footprint
• Relatively easy maintenance
47
 Current Desalination
Technologies
1. Thermal Desalination Processes
Similar to the Earth’s natural
water cycle
Water is heated, evaporated and
collected
Produces clean water and brine
Example: Multi-Stage Flash Desalination
 Process uses multiple boiling chambers kept at
different atmospheric pressures
 Saltwater enters the system and is boiled and
evaporated in each chamber
 Process produces clean water and brine
 Current Technologies

2. Membrane Desalination Processes

Saltwater is forced through membrane sheets at high
pressures
Membrane sheets are designed to catch salt ions
Process produces clean water and brine

Example: Reverse Osmosis

 Saltwater is forced through a membrane at
600 to 1000 psi
 Multiple layers of membranes remove as
many of the salt ions as possible
 Membrane Processes
•A membrane is a selective barrier that permits the separation of
certain species in a fluid by combination of sieving and diffusion
mechanisms

•Membranes can separate particles and molecules and over a

wide particle size range and molecular weights
 Membrane Processes

Four common types of membrane Processes:

Reverse Osmosis
Forward Osmosis
Nanofiltration
Ultrafiltration
What is ?
Osmosis and Osmotic pressure
Osmosis is a process of flow of solvent from region of low
concentration to region of high concentration that is separated by a
semi permeable membrane
Reverse Osmosis
a process by which a solvent passes through a porous membrane in
the direction opposite to that for natural osmosis when subjected to a
hydrostatic pressure greater than the osmotic pressure.
 Reverse Osmosis Concept

Natural Osmosis Reverse Osmosis

Equilibrium
Apply pressure to reveres the osmosis

Semi permeable
membrane

osmotic pressure
Pure salty
Water salty
Water Pure Water
Water
Water molecules Water molecules
Membrane Types

 Based on Materials
 Cellulose Acetate
 One polymer
 Tolerate oxidizing agents
 Lower salt rejection

 Polyamide
 Two or three polymers
 Less net driving pressure

 Based on Configuration
 Hollow fine fiber
 Spiral wound
 Tubular
 Plate & Frame
Fabrication methods currently used
in FO membrane

Polymer Casting Electro spinning Advanced Electro

Spinning
Thin Film Composite (TFC) RO Membrane

Polyamide 200 nm

Polysulfone support 60 mm
Polyester Reinforcing web 300 mm

Drawbacks:
• Hydrophobic
• Rough
• Not chlorine resistant
• organic solvent
• Thickness
• composition
58
 Selection criteria of Membrane

• Sustainable Performance
• Product flow
• Salt rejection

• Performance depends on
• Feed water quality
• Inherent membrane properties
• Chemistry, spacer, membrane area etc.
• Operation conditions
• Flux, recovery etc.

59 59
 Spiral Wound Membrane

Product Reject
water Reject
water
water
Reject
water

Product water

Feed
water Feed
water
Feed
Product water
water

Spiral Wound Membrane - Toray Reject

Product

Feed
 Schematic Diagram of SWRO Desalination Process

Seawater Feed Pretreated Feed Product

SWRO membrane
Pretreatment

High-pressure pump
Intake Reject

61
 Major Research Challenges for membrane based desilnation

Major Issues with SWRO Processes Major Issues with Membrane Processes
• Solutions to the Problems • Membrane Fouling
• Undesirable deposition or accumulation of
• Improvement of the Process
solids on the membrane surface
• Preservation of the Environment • Happens when rejected particles are not
transported from the surface of the membrane
back to the bulk stream

Types of Fouling
Reversible
The membrane performance can be restored
by chemical cleaning

Irreversible
The performance cannot be restored at all even by
applying rigorous chemical cleaning

62
Different Types of Foulants

Colloidal Precipitate Fouling

Organic Fouling (Scaling)
Fouling

Biofouling
 Outcome of Fouling

• Production loss
• Low permeate quality
• Higher pressure demand – Higher energy
• Additional labor
• Chemicals for cleaning
• Lowering of membrane life
Desalination is the answer to global water scarcity with the
help of emerging technology As earth has enough water in
the form of sea which can be made potable using
desalination
 Overall increase in
Recent trend and benefit of Desalination capacity
RO over thermal Technologies

• Thermal desalination uses

75kw/h where as the RO 26 %
uses only 5 kw/h for
100m3/h
• Pump is the only
component to consume
major portion of electricity.
• RO has a modular plant
%
structure. 202
• Membranes are made up of
polymer/callous material
which are non corrosive 12%
77%
24% 65% 10.7%

• The footprint of RO plant

is considerably smaller
than other MSF plants
Water Consumption Per Capita
 Virtual Water:
All the water (green, blue, grey) used throughout the
process of production of each good

Product Virtual-water
content (liters)
1 sheet of paper (80 g/m2) 10
1 tomato (70 g) 13
1 slice of bread (30 g) 40
1 orange (100 g) 50
1 apple (100 g) 70
1 glass of beer (250 ml) 75
1 glass of wine (125 ml) 120
1 egg (40 g) 135
1 glass of orange juice (200 ml) 170
1 bag of potato crisps (200 g) 185
1 glass of milk (200 ml) 200
1 hamburger (150 g) 2,400
1 cotton T-shirt 2,700
1 pair of shoes (bovine leather) 8,000
Virtual water used in six types of fuels, for a
round trip New York City- Washington D.C.
Amount of water needed in the
Type of fuel extraction/production of 2 Million
BTUs of energy

Natural Gas (conventional) 5 gallons

Unconventional natural gas (shale) 33 gallons
Oil (conventional) 32 gallons
Oil tar sands (mining) 616 gallons
Biofuel type 1 (irrigated corn) 35,616 gallons
Biofuel type 2 (irrigated soy) 100,591 gallons
 Calculate your own water footprint
= direct water use + virtual water of all goods and services
[Link]

The average person living in the US consumes about 2220 gallons of water a day: That’s 44
bathtubs each day. Diet makes a big difference: a vegetarian’ water footprint can be less than
50% of a meat eater’s footprint.
 Two people, one land, one aquifer:
Water and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
 Addressing Water Shortages
Increasing water supply?
•Dams (dramatic ecological and social consequences).
•Pumping aquifers (20% aquifers are already being mined beyond their rate of
recharge, including the Upper Ganges Valley in India and Pakistan, the Nile Delta
Region in Egypt, and the Central Valley in California).
•Desalination: energy-intensive and costly.
Dealination in California: $1800-$2800 per AF
Groundwater: $375-$1100 per AF
Surface water: $400-$800 per AF

•Water Conservation
Micro-irrigation – reuse and recycle wastewater
Cost of conservation (San Diego county): $150-$1000 per AF

•How to promote water efficiency?

 Regulation by the market?
The market price of water and
the problem of subsidies for large irrigators

Price

Marginal Social Cost (MSC)

A
Supply (MC)
P*
B C
PE

PS

Demand

Q* QE QS Quantity of Water

Subsidies to irrigation lead to a consumption of Quantity Qs of water

Qe would be the market equilibrium without subsidies
Q* would be the ecologically optimal quantity withdrawn
• Water scarcity is defined as a water deficiency or a lack of safe water supplies. As the
population of the world grows and the environment becomes further affected by climate
change, access to fresh drinking water dwindles.
• Globally, 785 million people lack access to clean drinking water. Every day, over 800 children
die from dirty water, due to diarrhoea caused by poor water, sanitation and hygiene and
scarce or unreliable water and sanitation facilities in many communities around the world.
• The impacts of water scarcity affect families and their communities. Without clean, easily
accessible water, they can become locked in poverty for generations. Children drop out of
school and parents struggle to make a living.
• Women and children are worst affected - children because they are more vulnerable to
diseases of dirty water and women and girls because they often bear the burden of carrying
water for their families for an estimated 200 million hours each day.
• Access to clean water changes everything; it’s a stepping stone to development. When people
gain access to clean water, they are better able to practise good hygiene and sanitation.
• Children enjoy good health and are more likely to attend school. Parents put aside their
worries about water-related diseases and lack of access to clean water. Instead, they can focus
on watering their crops and livestock and diversifying their incomes.
• Facts of the Global water crisis
• 1700s to 1800s: Industrialisation leads to increased urbanisation in England, highlighting the need for clean water supplies and sanitation.
• 1800s: Water shortages first appear in historical records.
• 1854: Dr John Snow discovers the link between water and the spread of cholera during an outbreak in London.
• 1900s: Since 1900, more than 11 billion people have died from drought, and drought has affected more than one billion people.
• 1993: The U.N. General Assembly designates March 22 as World Water Day.
• 2000: The U.N. member states set Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) for development progress, including a 2015 target to halve the
number of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water.
• 2003: UN-Water was founded as coordinating platform for issues of sanitation and fresh water access.
• 2005: Thirty-five percent of the global population experiences chronic water shortages, up from nine percent in 1960.
• 2005 to 2015: UN member states prioritise water and sanitation development in an International Decade for Action called “Water for Life”.
• 2008: The UN-recognised International Year of Sanitation prioritises health and dignity.
• 2010: The MDG’s clean water access target is achieved five years ahead of schedule. More than two billion people have gained access to
safe drinking water since 1990. The UN General Assembly recognises the right of each person to have adequate supplies of water for
personal and domestic use that are physically accessible, equitably distributed, safe and affordable.
• 2013: The UN designates 19 November as World Toilet Day to highlight the global issue of billions of people left without access to proper
sanitation.
• 2015: About 2.6 billion people have gained access to clean water in the last 25 years, and about 1.4 billion gained basic access to sanitation
since 2000. The UN member states sign on to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – successors to the MDGs that promise clean water
and sanitation for all by 2030.
• 2018: Worldwide, 2.1 billion people still live without safe drinking water in their homes and more than one billion people still have no choice
but to defecate outside.
• 780 million people lack basic drinking water access, more than
one of every 10 people on the planet.
• Women and girls spend an estimated 200 million hours hauling
water every day.
• The average woman in rural Africa walks six kilometres every
day to haul 18kgs of water.
• Every day, more than 800 children under the age of five die
from diarrhoea attributed to poor water and sanitation.
• 2.3 billion people live without access to basic sanitation.
• 1 billion people practice open defecation.
• 90 percent of all natural disasters are water-related.
Natural Desalination: Water Cycle!

Major Stages
1. Evaporation
2. Condensation
3. Precipitation
4. Collection
© Brain Wrinkles
 Introduction
 Human Drinking water requirement: It has a pH close to 7. This differs from the pH levels of fresh water
which depends on the geology of the topographical surface containing it "ground/surface" and the intake
feed (rain, stream discharge, agricultural / industrial drainage, etc) which end up affecting the suspended
dissolved particles within the water that may affect the pH of it and could lead to increasing its hardness if
Calcium ion concentrations increased. This pH could fluctuates within permissible limits (the Egyptian Code
allows it to reach a range of 6.5 to 8.5.
 It needs to be safe for consumption from toxicity / hazard (an excerpt from the Egyptian Code, the list is
much more extensive though):
Mineral / Maximum Mineral / Contaminant Maximum Concentration /
Contaminant Concentration / Exposure
Exposure
Lead 1 mg/L SO4 250 mg/L
Selenium 0.05 mg/L CL (all CL compounds) 250 mg/L
Arsenic 0.2 mg/L Fe 00.3 mg/L
Hexavalent 0.01-0.05 mg/L Mn 0.4 mg/L
Chromium

Fluoride 5 mg/L Copper 2.0 mg/L

Nitrates 40 mg/L Na 200 mg/L
Alpha 10(-9) Micro Curie per Milliliter Al 0.2 mg/L
Radiation
Beta 10(-8) Micro Curie per Milliliter Mercury (Hg) 0.001 mg/L
Radiation
CaCo3 350 mg/L Cyanide 0.05 mg/L
Mg 150 mg/L Cadmium 0.003
Ammonia 0.5 mg/L Nickel (NI) 0.02 mg/L
(NH3)
Boron 0.5 mg/L Barium 0.7 mg/L
Molybdenum 0.07 mg/L Benzene 0.01 mg/L
(Mo)
Introduction (cont’d)
• Brackish water has Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) around from 500 ++ to
30,000 mg/L
• Saline water has TDS from 30,000 to 40,000 mg/L
• Hypersaline water has TDS greater than 40,000 mg/L
• The Turbidity of human drinking water as per the Egyptian Code is allowed
with a maximum of 1 NTU.
• TDS affect both the safety of the water to consume and the taste:
Seawater typical salt content
 GCC COUNTRIES WASTEWATER PRODUCTION

Water consumption by sector

in the GCC countries
Total production
of wastewater in
GCC countries is
2.853 Bm3/year
in 2017

Wastewater production in
the GCC countries in billion
cubic meters per year
Source: [Link]
GCC COUNTRIES WASTEWATER PRODUCTION

Volume of available water to use

in the Gulf Cooperation Council
region from 2012 to 2020 (in
billion cubic meters per year)*

• In the year of 2020, the amount

of water available for use in the
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)
region was about 26.4 billion
cubic meters

• Saudi Arabia had the highest

amount of water available for
use in the region of about 16
billion cubic meters in that year.
Per capita wastewater generation in the GCC countries
 GCC COUNTRIES WASTEWATER PRODUCTION

• The annual volume of

wastewater collected in the GCC
countries is 4000 hm3 , out of
which 2924 hm3 (73%) is
treated.

• Oman, Qatar, and the UAE are

processing almost all collected
wastewater, whereas Bahrain
managed the lowest (only 44%
of the collected).

Wastewater collection, treatment,

and reuse capacity in the GCC
countries (2020 data).

WWT facilities in the GCC

Source: [Link]
 WASTEWATER TREATMENT

Wastewater treatment is the process of converting wastewater into

water that can be discharged back into the environment

Purpose of wastewater treatment:

If wastewater is not properly treated, then the environment and
human health can be negatively impacted

Maximum suspended solids are removed before the effluent is

discharged back to the environment
 WASTEWATER TREATMENT IN QATAR
The public works authority
Following the law, wastewater in
Wastewater plants Capacity in Qatar-based plants: (Ashghal) is in charge of treating
Qatar has to be treated properly
Doha North (439,000 m 3/day) total capacity. the wastewater in the country
before being reused or thrown
Saililyah (280,000 m 3/day) overall capacity. by constructing and coordinating
out to nearby areas.
Naijah (180,000 m 3 /day) capacity.
wastewater treatment plants
Lusail (60,000 m3/day) capacity.
Doha industrial area (90,000 m 3day-1) current capacity.
Al Thakhira (56,000 m 3/day) capacity.
The overall capacity is 1,105,000
m3 /day, aside from the small
startup projects in Al Shamal,
Shahaniyah, AumSallah, North
Camp and Al Khareeb

Total flow analysis of the overall

solid particles from Qatar’s
wastewater in metric tons/year.
 WASTEWATER TREATMENT STAGES IN A
QATAR-BASED PLANT

Preliminary Secondary Tertiary Sludge Odor Control

Treatment Treatment Treatment Treatment
• Removes coarse • Removes solid • Chlorination, • Wet chemical
materials or sediments, granular medium • Volume scrubbers and
other huge soluble biological filtration (GMF), reduction and granular
debris form oxygen demand ultrafiltration solids reduction activated
(BOD) and (UF), ultraviolet carbons (GAC)
nutrients in disinfection,
wastewater
 WASTEWATER TREATMENT IN SAUDI ARABIA
In Saudi Arabia, there are some
In the city of Riyadh there are
decentralized wastewater
Below are some of the main wastewater more than 77 decentralized
treatment plants, with a portion
treatment plants in Saudia Arabia : wastewater treatment plants
of the plants being private and
The Northern Plant of Riyadh Wastewater (with an absolute limit of
Treatment Plant (NP-RSTP) (Capacity- others claimed by the Saudi
178,000 m3/d) currently.
200,000m3day-1 and commenced in 1994). government
The Southern Plant of Riyadh Wastewater
Treatment Plant (SP-RSTP). (Designed capacity-
200,000 m3day-1 and was first commissioned in
1983)
King Saud’s University Wastewater Treatment
Plant (KSUSTP). (Capacity- 9100 m 3day-1) There are two concentrated
Al-Imam University’s Wastewater Treatment sewage treatment plants that
Plant (AIUSTP). With a capacity of 4800/11,520 are at present under
m3day-1. development, with limits
Diplomatic Quarter Wastewater Treatment intended to reach 200,000 m3/d.
Plant (DQSTP). It was designed with a capacity
of 10,000 m3day-1.
National Guards’ Housing Compound’s
Wastewater Treatment Plant (NGSTP). Total
capacity of 11,000 m3day-1.

General wastewater processing flow

diagram in Saudi Arabia
 WASTEWATER TREATMENT IN UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
The UAE has one of the highest Despite this, only 5% of water
levels of water consumption used in the country is treated
per capita in the world (360- wastewater, with the primary
Wastewater plants in UAE 400 litres per day), whilst also sources instead being
having a dearth of readily groundwater and desalinated
Mafraq Wastewater Treatment Plant
available freshwater. seawater.
Saadiyat Sewage water treatment
plant
Jebel Ali Sewage Treatment Plant
In Abu Dhabi,
Al Ain Zakher Wastewater Treatment Abu Dhabi Sewerage Services Co Currently, Abu Dhabi reuses only
Plant) mpany (ADSSC) 5% of the 460,000 cubic meters
Umm Al Quwain Sewage Treatment is in charge of collecting and of wastewater that they annually
Plant (5,800 cubic meter per day) treating waste-water discharged generate.
from all residential and
Wathba 2 Plant and Allahamah Plant commercial customers.
Wathba 1 Plant and Al Saad Plant.

In 2020, the United Arab

Dubai is planning to get a Emirates (UAE) had more than
new deep tunnel sewerage syst 75 municipal wastewater
em costing AED 12.5 billion in t treatment plants with the
he next five years collective capacity to treat
Currently, in the UAE, treated
water is primarily produced for , to replace more than 121 over two billion liters a day.
irrigation purposes. sewerage pumping stations

Source: WasteWater Treatment in the UAE ([Link])

SAADIYAT SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT, UAE
SAADIYAT
• Membrane Bioreactor Technology (MBR) was
used for this project.
 WASTEWATER TREATMENT IN KUWAIT
The country of Kuwait
stands out in the collection
Below are some of the main of wastewater across many
wastewater treatment plants in regions
Kuwait :
Alriqqa,
Kuwait’s wastewater plants
Um Alhayman,
operate by the
Sulaibiya, governmental sector except
Kabd for Sulaibiya
Alkhiran
The wastewater plants in
Kuwait have treatment
quality from secondary to
tertiary since 1984
Some of the plant's membrane elements in
situ; Sulaibiya is the largest facility in the world
to use reverse osmosis / ultrafiltration
membrane-based water purification.
 WASTEWATER TREATMENT IN BAHRAIN

Below are some of the main

wastewater treatment plants in
Bahrain :
Muharraq,
Madinat Salman,
Madinat Khalifa
Tubli

There are 13 sewage treatment plants in

Bahrain, two of which are the main
plants and the remainder are minor
plants
 WASTEWATER TREATMENT IN OMAN

Below are some of the main

wastewater treatment plants in
Oman :
Muscat Wastewater Project,
A'Seeb Wastewater Project
Al Ansab Sewage Treatment Plant
Darseit wastewater treatment
plant

Designed capacity of wastewater

There are more than 350 wastewater
treatment plants in Oman from 2016 to
treatment plants distributed across
2020 (in 1,000 cubic meters)
different parts of Oman.
WASTEWATER REUSE IN GCC COUNTRIES
Treated wastewater is a viable water resource and a necessity for
arid countries

Reuse of treated wastewater is not only environmentally and financially sound,

but also becoming indispensable for meeting the staggering water demand in
certain regions

Reuse of wastewater in general and in the countries of the Gulf Cooperation

Council (GCC) in particular has been a priority research area and has been in
the media spotlight for some time

Reuse of treated wastewater is still in its primitive stage in terms of

implementation in GCC.
WASTEWATER REUSE REGULATIONS IN GCC
QATAR
• The primary objective of the wastewater reuse regulations in Qatar is to
promote the safe storage and reuse of domestic and industrial wastewater
• Wastewater is often pumped to power plants where it is used for domestic
purposes

BAHRAIN
• Authorized a lot of legislation to control water use and regulate groundwater
but is yet to consolidate it into comprehensive law
• with their management as a common good. By that rationale, groundwater is
public/state property. Bahrain has 11 wastewater treatment plants, most of
which use aeration technology with 150 Mm 3/year capacity

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

• The Ministry of Environment and Climate Change in UAE has issued decrees to
protect the country's water and other resources
• UAE treats 58% of 284 Mm3 generated sewage water, and Abu Dhabi urban
area alone produces 550K m3
WASTEWATER REUSE REGULATIONS IN GCC
OMAN
• The use of wastewater and sewage effluent must always be done in
accordance with the legislation on wastewater quality and quantity, with
the purpose of protecting the environment
• The reuse of wastewater shall not be permitted when its quality is
deteriorating

KUWAIT
• The Kuwaiti Government has a commitment to protect the public by
enacting new measures and laws to help safeguard water usage
• Kuwait has put in place wastewater quality control regulations in order
to protect public health and supply clean water for drinking and other
purposes
 WASTEWATER REUSE IN QATAR
Water requirements in Doha are continuously growing and the
capital has very low rainfall levels.
By using additionally treated wastewater,
which is of very high quality and contains
Through advanced technologies, such as ultrafiltration membranes, nutrients, crop growers have produced
the Doha West plant can reuse 100% of treated wastewater. better yields and reduced their use of
artificial fertilizers.

The wastewater is reused for agriculture in the desert (55%), gardens

(42%), and recharging aquifers (3%).

The Doha North Sewage Treatment Works

(DNSTW) the first in Qatar to use ultraviolet
(UV) and ultrafiltration (UF) technology to help
clean up the wastewater to be reused for
irrigation purposes.
 WASTEWATER REUSE IN UAE
In 2020, the
treated
wastewater The Abu Dhabi policy aims to ensure
production was Five major water optimal use of recycled water in the
711 million cubic By 2030, the
projected volume of
recycling treatment Emirate by supporting efforts to
meters (mm3) per plants now process preserve Abu Dhabi’s water
produced
year, in which more than 93 per
wastewater is about resources, including drinking and
511 mm3 was used, 1400 mm3, each
cent of the
while the wastewater groundwater for meeting the future
drop of which has to
remaining be utilized.
produced in Abu needs of all sectors.
200 mm3 was Dhabi.
disposed in the sea
or wasted in desert
areas.

As part of its 2021-2025 strategic plan,

Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD)
provides 250,000 cubic meters of treated
wastewater per day.
 WASTEWATER REUSE IN SAUDI ARABIA
The energy-intensive desalination and wastewater treatment processes are
Saudi Arabia produces the highest (22%) significantly contributing to carbon emissions, thereby undermining the
country's environmental sustainability
desalinated water in the world, equivalent to
about half of that of Gulf Cooperating Council It has been projected that the country must double its water supply in the
(GCC) countries that consume about 60% of coming two decades to meet its rising water demand.
the world's total desalinated products
It is expected that TSE reuse will meet part of the country's water demands and
lower the expenditure and energy used in desalination process

In the year 2000 the first royal decree which focused

on reusing TSE was promulgated

Vision 2030 identified TSE reuse as an alternative, self-sustainable

component of national integrated water management
 WASTEWATER REUSE IN BAHRAIN

Despite the progress on various fronts in the water sector, Bahrain’s

current water management system is facing major challenges.
The wastewater sector operates three
main systems in the Kingdom of Bahrain,
Although wastewater has not yet been fully utilized, there are plans namely sewage treatment, transportation
to expand its reuse to cover the majority of agricultural areas.
of treated water, and the rainwater
system.
Proper planning for the reuse of future surplus volumes is important
to enhance the efficiency of the reuse process.

The Tubli WWTP is the largest in Bahrain

with the widest coverage and a design
capacity of 200Km3 /day
 WASTEWATER REUSE IN OMAN

Wastewater treatment and reuse are part of a raft of water-related

strategies rolled out by the Omani government in recent years in
support of its commitment to achieving the Sustainable
Development Goal 6 (SDG6)

Proper wastewater treatment and reuse can reduce groundwater

pollution while also boosting the level of recycling and reusing as a
growing source of non-traditional water.

About 70,000 m3/d of Treated wastewater is currently produced in

Muscat, Oman, by a governmental company (Haya Water).
The Sultanate has pledged investments to the
The municipality is partially utilizing the treated effluents in tune of around $7 billion in the further
landscape irrigation while the excess treated effluents are development of a countrywide wastewater
discharged to evaporating ponds nearby the major treatment
plants in Muscat. treatment, recycling and reuse infrastructure
system over the next two decades as part of
Oman’s commitment to ensuring sustainable
freshwater availability and supply over the
long term.
 WASTEWATER REUSE IN KUWAIT
Kuwait is situated in a harsh environment characterized by little rainfall (130
mm/yr) and high evaporation rates (400 mm/yr).
Kuwait has implemented a vigorous
campaign that aims to reclaim and reuse all To maintain its sustainable development, Kuwait has recently adopted a
treated wastewater in an at-tempt to vigorous campaign to reuse treated municipal wastewater mainly as a source
alleviate water scarcity problem and to of irrigation water
preserve seawater quality.
Nineteen percent of all water consumed in the agricultural sector is recycled
water

270 K m3 of TTE is used daily for landscape irrigation and to produce fodder
but not edible production

TTE is pumped onto golf courses, community gardens, airports, governmental

headquarters, and landscapes on major highways, the landscape of the new
campus of Kuwait University in Shedadiya area, the natural reserves, and
landscapes and fountains of major malls in Kuwait .
Research shows that TTE is a better option than RO for crop irrigation,
including vegetables and fruits consumed raw
CHALLENGES OF WASTEWATER TREATMENT
Energy Usage

Sludge disposal challenges

Lack of public awareness

Inappropriate infrastructure

Environmental Footprint
Water production and re-use
Considering that Qatar depends entirely on water desalination processes supporting a capacity of 1.2 Mm3/d,
at the expense of 101.52 GW h/d [68], solar thermal collectors could beneficially operate in favour of water
21
desalting [68]. Taking advantage from the regional high temperature, their operation could enable the direct
power supply of both heat and electricity-driven desalination units. Furthermore, the incorporation of solar
energy on water recovery processes, through desalination, is in line with the nation’s intention of
decarbonising this energy expensive sector, moving towards a more sustainable and renewable-based system
and economy
Increasing water demand

• Accelerated industrial development coupled with

population growth has put pressure on Qatar’s water
resources. Over the years, water demand has grown
considerably, reaching 1.9 MCM/d in 2019. This number
is expected to rise to 2.2 MCM/d in 2022.[1] Qatar also
has one of the highest domestic water consumption
rates in the world, at approximately 500 L/cap./d.[2]
High household water consumption remains a
significant problem, and incentives, such as, practical
incentives (i.e., rebate or replacement of high efficiency
type appliances) are needed to reduce domestic water
usage.[3]
Inefficient water use and
network loss
• The agricultural sector is the main user of groundwater. Agricultural
water consumption accounts for 37% to 40% of total water resources
from all sources and is used for the production of local crops, which meet
only 8% of the national demand for food and fodder.[4] Another
challenge is low irrigation efficiency due to traditional irrigation methods.
• The current capacity of Qatar’s desalination plants is around 540 MCM/yr.
In 2011, around 30% of this volume was lost due to leakage in the water
network.[5] [6] To achieve the objective of enhancing water
management laid out in the first National Development Strategy (NDS-
1), which covered the period 2011-2016, Kahramaa invested in
decreasing the rate of water leakage and loss in desalinated water
networks. The loss rate dropped to 10% (around 55 MCM) in 2015, of
which 4.7% was real losses from leaking and less than 6% was
administrative losses.[7] Water loss declined further to 5% in 2017.
Exploitation of groundwater resources

• Qatar currently depends on seawater desalination to

supply 99% of the municipal water demand, while the
industrial and agricultural sectors are dependent on
limited groundwater resources, the country’s only
freshwater resource. Annual groundwater withdrawal
rates are several times the natural recharge rate. The
overexploitation of groundwater aquifers is causing a
decline in aquifer levels, leading to seawater intrusion
and creating the conditions for high vulnerability to
groundwater salinization.
Dependence on desalination and lack of water
storage

• With a lack of sufficient freshwater resources and heavy

reliance on desalination, water storage is a major
concern. Qatar only has around a 48-hour storage
supply of water in case of emergencies.[8] As such,
Qatar is investing in potable water storage capacity
through the Mega Reservoirs Project. The first phase of
the project, which started in 2015, consists of
constructing 24 large concrete reservoirs by 2026,
providing 8.7 MCM of water storage capacity and seven
days of potable water within its network system.[9]
Production of brine

• A major challenge associated with desalination technologies is

the production of brine, a highly concentrated saline solution.
Brine disposal is both costly and associated with negative
environmental impacts, such as the detrimental effect on
marine flora and fauna.[10] It also causes osmotic pressure
changes in marine organism cells, eventually affecting the
production and growth of marine organisms.[11] Qatar has a
5.8% share in global brine production. Improved brine
management strategies are required to reduce the negative
environmental impacts and economic cost of disposal, thereby
stimulating further developments in desalination facilities to
protect water supplies for current and future generations.[12]
* 5o % extrta water neded \**77 %
extrea water needed
This is also the case for Qatar, whose largest desalination plants are coupled with power generation.
In terms of fuel consumption, combined power and desalination water plants used the equivalent of
349 billion cubic feet of natural gas in 2010 around 11% of the Qatari natural gas national production
is therefore consumed for water and electricity generation.19
• However, a GCC wide pipeline raises some issues. Water infrastructure is difficult to build and is
very expensive. National systems already have leakages of 30%, and need remote monitoring.
Though Saudi Arabia has constructed very long-range water pipelines to connect Jeddah
desalination plants to Riyadh, a trans-GCC pipeline seems a hasty move
2. Water Consumption by Sectors but this is increased signisfgicalty after the political rift and corno virus
ourt breaklk and setting up various industries in dnoha
2.1. Water Production by Sources
• Conservation Law No. 20/2015 modifying few items on Conservation Law no. 26/2008.
• The law reads: “As per the Conservation Law, using potable water for washing cars or cleaning building yards by a hose or any other
flushing tools, leaving the damaged or broken parts of the water internal inlets (taps, pipes etc) causing water leak, and leaving the
outdoor lights, switched on between 7 am and 4.30 pm constitute apparent violation of the law of the land with various fines that could
reach QR20,000 for the first violation.”

• National Development Strategy 2011 – 2016:

• Water use is a key component of Qatar's National Development Strategy (NDS) 2011-2016. The NDS has promised that the National
Water Act will grow out of the strategy to replace the existing fragmented rules and laws, bringing together a comprehensive water
policy. However, the National Water Act is still undergoing initial approval from the Cabinet and Shura Council

• National Development Strategy 2018 – 2022:

• Targets set in NDS as follows:
• Target 1: Conserve and develop water resources by 2022 by reducing the total (actual + administrative) losses drinking water and
reducing per capita water consumption by 15%. through the national program “Tarsheed”
• Target 2: Minimize groundwater depletion and develop the groundwater aquifer by 2020
• - Tarsheed campaign:
• The aim of awareness campaign is to provide the technical necessary advice to its customers on water and
energy conservation and efficiency. The campaign’s support comes along with spreading awareness in the
society about the newly amended provisions and penal actions in Law number 26 of 2008 promulgated
through the Law number 20 of 2015. National Campaign for the Conservation and Efficient Use of Water and
Electricity in Qatar. Tarsheed campaign has currently implemented various projects which were targeted
nationals and non-nationals and were publicized in 7 languages across different media means. Among 845
schools in Qatar, the campaign mainly targets children and currently implemented in 75 schools. Additionally,
an awareness park was built to preview different technologies for conserving water and electricity. In
addition, Tarsheed campaign provides a competition that promote sustainability practices: Tarsheed
competitions fall into 7 categories and only one of them is dedicated to water conversation.
• Water Subsidy - Behavioral Change Theory
• Theories of behavior change can play important roles in conserving water. Such frameworks can reveal how
well the community can respond to the awareness campaigns (Nimar et al., 2018) Such an advancement can
be achieved through controlling factors including: Knowledge, awareness, motivation, and social learning.
The Qatari nationals get water without any payment, while the expatriates (about 80% of population) pay a
highly subsidized price of about $1.2/m3, about 35% of the real cost (Darwish et al., 2013). Only one study
reveals, because of energy subsidies in Qatar, citizens are not intending to modify their energy consumption
behavior through economic means (Al-Marri et al., 2018). The study also added the absence between the
environmental education could hinder the outcome of self-determination theory, whereupon an individual is
more likely to form energy conservation norms.
• In terms of Data Availability: Data needs also to be developed. It is suggested a more precise plotted maps are required to estimate the water consumption per municipality and unit.

• ➢ It is strongly suggested that Kahrama costumer’s database linked with the National Address initiative which controlled by the Minister of Interior, to limit the water overconsumption and strictly
implement the conversation law. Additionally, this can lead to further collaborations from the side of central municipal council to control the consumptions by their area.

• ➢ An automated report should be issued along with bill that guide the consumers on how they be can reduce their water consumption. Such reports can explain where most of the water overconsume,
dates and times.

• ➢ Improving Public Engagement: After examining the current responding to Tarsheed campaign it is suggested to set a partnership with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education for social inclusion
goals as well as demonstration the importance of water conversation for household. Policy makers and media can have significant impact to promote such partnership.

• ➢ Accessibility: Initiatives and awareness campaigns website should be more accessible and publicized among additional age categories.

• ➢ It is proposed to create a Demand-side management plan to highlight current and post FIFA World Cup needs.

• ➢ Improving Legal Frameworks: Detailed laws on water conversation should be adopted and adequately enforced. Increasing number of capacity building particularly in a technical way specialised in green
growth and sustainability along-side with Shura Council, Central Municipal Council. Water overconsumption prevention polices should be disseminated more widely at all levels.

• ➢ Improving Technology Transfer: Water infrastructure, including efficient irrigation systems and a wide distribution of recycled treaded water for agricultural purposes bring undoubted benefits. These
technologies include nature-based as well as engineering based. Global partnerships is a good platform to exchange scientific information (Table 1), this can be done with the foreign ministers.

• ➢ Improving Economic and Fiscal Tools: Improved tools for understanding the true costs of water production and the burden that the country holds and provide a simulated scenario for alternative options
when everyone shows responsibilities.
• future technology
• TSE has been used in landscaping and irrigation applications for
• many years. This effluent is now considered for use in Qatar’s district cooling systems

• Total water production in Qatar from desalination, fresh

groundwater abstraction
• and the re-use of treated sewage effluent (TSE) rose from 220 Mm 3

in 1990 to 841 Mm in 201473 Mm3 of TSE which represents 17 % of total TSE demand
3

by 2020
• (Jasim et al., 2016). Using TSE as an alternative to potable water in district cooling plants (DCP) will
serve
• nearly 39 Mm3/y of potable water by 2023 (Jasim et al., 2016).
• DCPs in Lusail city have been designed to use TSE water and potable water. Lusail is a city of 38 km2,
and is
• able to accommodate 200,000 residents, 170,000 employees and 80,000 visitors
Qatar is ther most water stressed country In the world as per research sdtuides
full railing on the desalinated top closed to 80 % water needs leads toi very high carbon foot rpitn
generating approx. 4,66 million ton of co2 each year
the bosst on self relince has increased the agricultuiral consumption to 41 % of Qatar total water
ocncsumptioni and duree to covid lock down housr hold uses also saw an increase and rose to 35 %
The high energy consumption has led to the
net increase in Qatar’s energy intensity between 2009 and 2015. Ideally, energy intensity
should be decreasing year on year when a country is becoming energy efficient. Decreasing
energy intensity means that more economic output is generated with less energy, as seen in the
USA, UK, Turkey, China, and the world average,
The tarsheed invitiate
• In 2012 Kahramaa
• launched a 5-year National Conservation Campaign (Tarsheed) under the banner “Keep
Qatar
• Pulsing, Consume Wisely”. The campaign hinges on the drive to preserving the
environment
• and natural resources through three main objectives; (1) increasing the efficiency in the
• electricity and water sectors, (2) stopping waste and mindless consumption, and (3)
reducing
• the consumption of electricity by 20% and water by 35% over the 5-year period
Toliet flus use should be piped
separately with treated water
 Production capacity of potable desalinated water in Qatar until the end of 2019 was 476
Million Imperial Gallons per Day (MIGD) and is expected to reach 536 MIGD by April 2021
with the commissioning of additional production capacity in Umm Al Houl and 636 MIGD by
April 2023 with the commissioning of a new desalination plant (Facility E).
• Development of Water Network​
• The transmission water network at KAHRAMAA is now reaching a total length of 1,440
Kilometers with the beginning of the functionality of Mega Reservoirs. The distribution
networks are reaching 8,380 kilometers and it is planned to be increased to reach 10,000
kilometers by the end of 2022.
•
Water Reservoirs and Pumping Stations
At the same time, other water projects are being planned to include the
construction of reservoirs in many existing stations, in addition to current
plans for the construction of more reservoir and pumping stations to meet
the growing demand. In addition to it, in the last 10 years, the number of
reservoir and pumping stations had increased from 22 to 37 and water
storage capacity increased almost 6 times from 290 MIG to 1648 MIGD.
Mega Reservoirs commissioned in 2019 and total storage capacity will
increase further to 2392 MIGD.
• National Water Control Center (NWCC)
The National Water Control Center is operated as a centralized water control and monitoring center with a state-of-the-art Water SCADA
system to efficiently and effectively control and monitor the water system and guarantee a high performance of KAHRAMAA water
pumping, storage, transmission and distribution with addition to other vital activities within water strategic management.
• It also has a system that detects and warns of radioactive contaminants in water. An online Seawater Radiation monitoring system was
commissioned in April 2015. Buoys has been installed in the sea and sampler in the onshore to monitor radioactive material presence in
the seawater. The radiation level (Beta, Alpha, Gamma) is monitored at all entrances of desalination plants. In addition to it, KAHRAMAA
had recently commissioned a Real Time System, Acute Toxicity Monitoring of Drinking Water for Chemical, Biological and Radiation
Monitoring at some pumping stations. This system will be implemented at all pumping stations and expected to be fully accomplished
by 2022. KAHRAMAA coordinates to deal with emergencies cases concerning increased radiation and toxic level in water facilities.
•
Water Quality (WLab)
Water quality laboratory monitors quality of drinking water supplied through KAHRAMAA distribution network and ensures that safe
drinking water is being served to the whole nation of Qatar. Water quality laboratory is well equipped with state-of-the-art analytical
equipment in the field of Physical, Chemical and Microbiological analysis. Being accredited to the most prestigious international
standard “ISO - 17025", water quality laboratory ensures the quality of drinking water through accurate, reliable and systemic water
testing services under the umbrella of “WHO guidelines for drinking water quality" and “KAHRAMAA drinking water quality requirement".
•
Water Demand
Statistical data in the water sector shows a remarkable growth in the water demand. To give a comparative trend, the increase has
amounted to 197 MIGD in September 2008, from 138 MIGD in 2007, and less than 61 MIGD in 1997. Water demand is continuously
rising and reached to 420 MIGD in 2019. This number is expected to go up to 487 MIGD in 2022.
• pollution caused by oil spills, red tides, or other factors;
nuclear contamination; power outages or hackers
disabling desalination plants; natural disasters such as
hurricanes or earthquakes; and acts of war.
Solar Energy Distillation
• This distillation system uniqueness is in the utilization of concentrated solar energy which is a
clean source to heat seawater. The design challenge is in the wasted heat that get reflected off
the large scale solar collectors / concentrators dishes / systems. Accordingly, the thermal
solution is to use heat recovery systems in addition to pairing the system with lower pressure
vacuum pumps of the seawater tanks as this would lead to lower boiling / evaporation point
( at 0.1 atmospheric pressure, water would boil at 50 °C).
• Another challenge is the large land area needed to collect enough energy for commercially
viable desalination; due to this, such projects could pair up with other energy sources like wind
power. However, both are dependent on natural local weather patterns and hence require
careful planning for the site based on wind speed/direction and volume and solar illumination.
An MSF solar Distillation plant could generate up to 60 liters of fresh water per utilized m2 per
day.

While there are standalone

systems, some solar systems
pair up with RO to increase
commercial viability
Solar Seawater Greenhouse
• While this method is not meant to generate drinking water; it is a futuristic design to help with irrigation and farming in
arid areas near the coast line or in places with highly saline groundwater. Such project mimics the natural water cycle and
has been tried in Australia at “Sundrop Farms” over more than 20 acres of successful experimental expansion>
Ion Exchange and
Electrodiyalisis
• This process allows for desalination via attracting the ions of soluble salts and minerals as per their electric charge onto
Anion Exchange Membrane (AEM) and Cation Exchange Membrane (CEM). While the process is not adopted for drinking
water desalination, it is adopted in some industrial processes and to remove water hardness by exchanging the ions of
Calcium and Magnesium for Sodium ions.
Some environmental issues of
desalination projects
• Intake Designs and effect on marine life
• Brine Discharge
Image Thermal desalination process animation:
sources [Link]

Desalination plant photo:

[Link]

Water cycle diagram:

[Link]

Membrane diagram created by Juan Ramirez Jr., ITL

Program, College of Engineering, University of
Colorado at Boulder, 2009

Flow chart created by Juan Ramirez Jr., ITL

Program, College of Engineering, University of
Colorado at Boulder, 2009