On 13/02/2021 10:43, newshound wrote:
Sorry, just can't see it. Not sure I can even see a large scale solar
still with photovoltaic pumps working for coastal deserts. Otherwise
someone would be doing it.

Israelis and IIRC Kuwait are. Doing fresh water desalination

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desalination

Osmosis seems to be the most energy efficient of the driven sort, but in
factt you can do it with no energy at all



Your low grade heat from a power station operated in the usual way isn't
going to evaporate water quickly. Then you need massive condensers to
collect it, pumping seawater through them to keep them cool with the
associated pumping and pipe friction losses.

In the desert you dont even need the heat to do the evaporation.


In a combined electricity/desalination plant it *might* make sense to
take bled steam from the HP turbine outlet to do the evaporating, this
still has a decent energy density so your plant volume (and hence
capital cost) is lower for a given throughput.

*shrug* one can use off peak heat. Its an economic decision not a
technical one



--
€œThe fundamental cause of the trouble in the modern world today is that
the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt."

- Bertrand Russell