Wind and Geothermal Energy in Desalination: A Short Review on Progress and Sustainable Commercial Processes

Abstract

Fossil fuels have been used as the main energy source for the desalination technologies. The continued increase in the demand for desalinated water has resulted in rising greenhouse gas emissions and threat to available fuel reserves. Consequently, most commercial desalination processes powered by fossil fuels have significantly contributed to environmental pollution. Renewable energy comes into the picture as an environmental friendly option as well as a means of fossil energy minimization. In this paper, a review on the use of renewable energy in recent desalination processes has been carried, with a focus on wind and geothermal energy.