Thermal desalination near Chennai
Posted on: 21/Oct/2013 12:11:03 PM
Tamilnadu Government along with the Ministry of Earth Sciences will set up a 10 MLD low temperature thermal desalination plant about 40 km from Chennai. A detailed project report is being prepared by Larsen and Toubro and the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) to set up this barge mounted desalination plant. This is a joint initiative by the Ministry of Earth Science and the Tamil Nadu government, he said.
The main purpose of the plant is to meet the drinking water requirements of the city. He said the operating cost of producing per litre of water is 19 paise. It would take nearly 18 months to get the DPR ready. The move comes in the wake of four low temperature thermal desalination plants being commissioned in the country. Usually, in this technology, warm water is flashed inside a vacuum flash chamber and the vapour produced is condensed using cold water.
The temperature difference that exists between the warm surface sea water (28 to 30 degrees Celsius) and deep sea cold water (7 to 15 degrees Celsius) would be effectively utilized to produce potable water. the thermal desalination plant does not affect the marine eco-system unlike the regular desalination plants, which let out brine.
