DESAL RESEARCH GROUP

Sustainable technologies for a water-secure future

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KEY VALUES

Committed to excellence

We aim to be at the forefront of global efforts to contribute to a water-secure future. We envision a world where sustainable desalination technologies and water treatment solutions are pivotal in providing clean and safe water to communities and fostering economic growth. Through continuous innovation and collaboration, we aspire to set new standards for excellence in the field, leaving a long-lasting effect on the well-being of societies and the health of our planet.

About

RESEARCH & TECHNOLOGY

Driven by innovation, recognized by impact

The DESAL Research Group pioneers advancements in desalination and wastewater treatment, prioritizing excellence, innovation, and sustainability. Our focus on cutting-edge research and efficiency aims to address global water challenges and support sustainable development goals.

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NEWS & UPDATES

Discover the latest breakthroughs from our team

15 February, 2026

DESAL summer intern Imran Alturkistani wins national awards at Ibdaa Science and Engineering Fair

02 February, 2026

New DESAL research published in Nature Communications advances energy-efficient desalination

28 January, 2026

DESAL and ACWA Power advance AI-based research for early membrane fouling detection

Scientific Contributions

Through research papers, patents, and PhD dissertations, we push the boundaries of knowledge, driving innovation in desalination and water treatment.

Overview of the cost of desalinated water and costing methodologies

by Noreddine Ghaffour

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2006.03.558

Abstract

In the last decade desalination has been considered as a solution for potable water needs only for specific

water scarcity countries having cheap fuel. Now, desalination is extensively used, even where it was unthinkable

twenty years back, due to reduction in desalination cost. The cost reduction is due to new developments and

improvements in desalination technologies, particularly in RO technology. The RO is a well accepted technol-

ogy due to recent increase in energy prices and takes up a major share in worldwide market. But, it is not able to

achieve its proper share in the Arabian Gulf market due to difficult seawater composition and extensive

historical use of thermal desalination. But RO still has potential in hybrid systems in the Arabian Gulf to

account for seasonal and night to day fluctuations in the demand for power and water. There is a need for an

accurate methodology for evaluation of desalination costs to help in selection of appropriate technology suitable

for a specific location, for process design and other requirements. However, existing methodologies and soft-

ware packages do not account for all the parameters that contribute for desalting cost and their accuracy is

limited to specific conditions. This paper presents an overview of the trends in desalination costs for major

desalination technologies like Multi Stage Flash, Multi Effect Distillation and Reverse Osmosis and review of

costing methodologies.

Keywords

Desalination costing Costing softwares Technologies developments