American University of Beirut

Beirut, Lebanon
mfh24@mail.aub.edu
msa102@mail.aub.edu
0096171537397
0096171350756
December 2, 2014
American University of Beirut
Beirut, Lebanon
Fisk Room 232
zs00@aub.edu.lb
Dear Dr. Sinno:
Lebanon has always been known for its abundance in water resources. However, most
Lebanese citizens now suffer from a drastic shortage in supply. Many reasons lie behind the
problem, and this has caused the citizens of Beirut to use seawater as an alternative to scarce
municipal water supply.
Attached is a project report aiming at finding new ways to help reduce the water shortage
issue facing Lebanon. It compares modern desalination technologies based on their
specifications and choose the best technology suitable for the citizens demands and budgets.
We hope you recognize our suggestions so we can further push ahead with our project.
Sincerely,
Malik Aboul Naja and Mohammed Hamdan

Executive Summary
Water shortage strikes as one of the headlining issues facing Lebanon today, and the problem
has increased severely lately. Government inaction and the high price of clean water provided
by private companies has left the Lebanese public in a difficult position of using salt water.
This research explores the processes involved in implementing available water desalination
techniques, specifically Reverse Osmosis and its different types with a brief touch on
Vaporization Desalination, in Lebanese households with emphasis on several technical and
economical factors including energy consumption, ease and feasibility of implementation,
level of purity, cost, etc. We go further to recommend the best desalination technique
between Single Outlet RO and Single Building RO, and recommend a better solution for each
case.

Implementation of Desalination Techniques In Lebanese Households

Malik Aboul Naja & Mohammed Hamdan

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1.

Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1
1.2. Purpose of the Topic and Significance of the Research ....................................................... 1
1.3.

Methodology ................................................................................................................ 2

1.4.

Scope and Limitations .................................................................................................... 2

1.5. Review of Literature ......................................................................................................... 2

2.

Water Purification Technology .............................................................................................. 2

2.1.

Reverse Osmosis (RO) .................................................................................................... 3

2.1.1.

Single-Outlet RO .................................................................................................... 4

2.1.2.

Single-Building RO .................................................................................................. 4

2.1.3.

Large scale RO ........................................................................................................ 5

2.2.

Vaporization Desalination .............................................................................................. 5

2.3.

Feasibility ..................................................................................................................... 6

2.4. Benefits......................................................................................................................... 6
2.5.

Disadvantages ............................................................................................................... 7

3.1. Energy Consumption ....................................................................................................... 8

3.2.

Purification Level: .......................................................................................................... 8

3.4. Recovery and Waste ...................................................................................................... 9

3.5.

Price and Maintenance ............................................................................................ 10

4. Conclusion, Review and Recommendations ......................................................................... 11

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Implementation of Desalination Techniques In Lebanese Households

1.

Introduction
Lebanon is known for its abundant water supply. According to the Ministry of
Environment (2010) Lebanon provides an average annual stream of 8.6 billion cubic
meters that feeds into groundwater reserves and several major and minor bodies of
water throughout the region, of which 2.7 billion are available (State of The
Environment Report, 2010). However, due to flawed policies and infrastructure, along
with the rapidly growing population, Lebanon i.e. now experiencing a countrywide
water deficit and are officially in a state of water emergency.

As the Ministry of Environment (2010) implies, Lebanon currently implements

antiquated infrastructure and system of networks adopted in the 1970s for a less
populated and urbanized landscape in quantifying, storing, maintaining and
accounting for water supply. Experts warn that Lebanon will be susceptible to a severe
water shortage in the next 10-15 years if decisive policies and upgrades are not made.

Rapid urbanization and population growth are the chief causes of the shortage.
Lebanons water resources have been strained, and experts project a spike (to 1.8
billion cubic meters) in water demand owing to population growth and the further
exploitation of water resources by 2035 (Ministry of Environment, 2010).

1.2. Purpose of the Topic and Significance of the Research

Given the aforementioned water shortage affecting Lebanon as well as the

high cost of clean water from private water providers, our research
investigates and answers the question of: what modern technology can we
implement to help resolve the water shortage, and how can it be implemented

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Implementation of Desalination Techniques In Lebanese Households

in Lebanon at minor cost? Also taking into account the demand for energy
efficient processes in recent years, weve researched the most suitable
purification methods to meet the needs of the Lebanese public.

1.3. Methodology

We gathered information from various reputable sources in the water

treatment industry. Over the course of our research, we sought the expertise
of M. Maarouf, PhD an engineer at National Water Technology in Kuwait.

1.4. Scope and Limitations

The trifling amount of available technology greatly limits the research. The
feasibility of the available technologies in Lebanon is greatly limited by the out-
dated infrastructural system implemented in the energy and water sectors as
well as various political and economic factors that hinders infrastructural
development.

1.5. Review of Literature

There are numerous research papers relating to the relating topic, however,
not many are recent. Many of the research are heavily emphasised on the
more technical aspect of the topic but were, nevertheless, rich in information
that ranged from the implementation, feasibility, data specification, etc. but
lacked details about the economic factors to be considered in the
implementation in a project of this measure.

2.

Water Purification Technology

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Implementation of Desalination Techniques In Lebanese Households

There are few water purification techniques that are available. The following are the
methods that can be implemented in Lebanon.

2.1. Reverse Osmosis (RO)

Figure 1: Reverse Osmosis Process.

Gude V.(2010). Energy consumption and recovery in reverse osmosis (p. 242)

A desalination technique based on passing pressurized salt water through

semipermeable membranes that isolates pure water from salts and harmful
microscopic material. The pure water is further chemically treated. The steps
involved in the RO process (which are shown in Figure 1) are essential to
determining several technical specifications. This technique can be further be
implemented as the following:

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Implementation of Desalination Techniques In Lebanese Households

2.1.1. Single-Outlet RO

Placed under the kitchen sink or at the desired water outlet. These are

small RO devices and are accompanied by a 12-14L tank, which is

constantly being refilled. This RO system is especially useful because

fresh water is allocated exclusively to where it is needed while salt

water is allocated to unimportant outlets like toilets.

Figure 2: Single-Outlet Reverse Osmosis System.

Retrieved from:http://www.lowes.com/pd_136858-86921-KR10_0__?productId=3548972

2.1.2. Single-Building RO

A device placed at the main water supply of a building. These ROs will

be provided with a small generator for energy supply and will be placed

in a small room or storage area. They provide steady flow product

water for the building.

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Implementation of Desalination Techniques In Lebanese Households

Figure 3: Single-Building Reverse Osmosis System. Retrieved from:

http://www.northman.in/our_products.html

2.1.3. Large scale RO

Advanced large scale RO implemented in plants, and located at the

main supply of water to a large region. Such projects require a

governmental budget for energy supply, labor and infrastructure.

2.2. Vaporization Desalination

Figure 4: Vaporization Desalination Process. Retrieved from:

http://www.waterworld.com/articles/wwi/print/volume-26/issue-5/editorial-focus/power-water-treatment-
needs/winds-of-change-for-reverse-osmosis-seawater-desalination.html

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Implementation of Desalination Techniques In Lebanese Households

A desalination technique based on vaporization (boiling) water, and

condensing the pure water vapour ridding it from salts and other wastes.

Unlike RO, this process solely based on constant heating and produces produce

solid waste due to complete vaporization of salt water.

2.3. Feasibility

The feasibility of the available technologies in Lebanon is greatly limited by

various technical and economic factors most important of which include

Infrastructure, energy and funding. Because heating is the heart of

vaporization desalination, a high amount of energy is required, and for this

reason along with the fact that Lebanon currently lacks the infrastructure

required to implement this technique, vaporization desalination would not be

affordable. Therefore, the main focus of this research will be on RO. Also,

because building a water plant exceeds Lebanon's water sector budget, We

have further narrowed our focus to single apartment and single building RO

devices.

2.4. Benefits
Aside from the obvious benefits like having a clean water supply, we have
researched some of the major advantages of implementing RO devices in
Lebanese household. The importance of water purification methods can branch
out to numerous sectors of the Lebanese community. The chief consumers of
Lebanons water resources include (Lebanon geography, climate and
population, 2008):
a. The Agricultural Sector 60%

b. Municipalities

29%

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Implementation of Desalination Techniques In Lebanese Households

c. The Industrial Sector

11%

Although Lebanon lacks the budget required to build water plants to supply

the agricultural and industrial sectors, the implementation of RO devices in

residential buildings would drastically reduce the need for municipal water

supply, hence, allowing water resources to be allocated to more profitable

sectors like the Agricultural and Industrial sectors. This would lead to a boost in

Lebanons economy. A possible outcome of a boost in the Lebanese economy

would include governmental subsidies on RO devices, funding for large scale

water treatment facilities, as well as the enactment of policies that would

require newly erected residential building to be equipped with RO devices.

2.5. Disadvantages

Some disadvantages of implementing water purification techniques might

include the following:
a. The need for fuel to power some devices.
b. The needs for technical know-how to operate devices.
c. Possibility of damaged parts if devices are not handled for properly.
d. Regular maintenance if devices are not handled properly.
e. Might not be possible to implement in poor areas without government aid.

3. Data/Device Specifications

With the shortage of fresh water supply, Beirut is mainly supplied with seawater with

minimal pre-treatment. Beiruts residents are mainly housed in apartment buildings.

For the purpose of our research we will assume an average building housing 25

apartments. The average daily consumption of every individual is estimated to 200 L.

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Implementation of Desalination Techniques In Lebanese Households

With an average of 5 individuals per apartment, we will need to supply the building

with 25,000 - 30,000 L/day (including other uses of water for the building, e.g.

cleaning, etc.). Although the water production of the Single Building RO surpasses the

given range (actual range depends on how long the device is left running), we will

assume a water production is within the range of 25,000-30,000L.

3.1. Energy Consumption

Energy consumption is a major factor to be considered while determining the best

purification method. The energy consumption of a water purification system must be

low in order for the standing cost to be kept as low as possible once the device have

been installed. RO consumes substantially less energy than other available

technologies since it depends mostly on pumping energy. We were able to retrieve

the energy consumption of each device based on the interview with M. Maarouf PhD.

(2014). Table 1 compares the energy consumption for each device.

RO Device

Capacity

Power Consumption

Single Building

25,000-30,000

10-15 kWh

L/day
Single Outlet

12-14 L

0.03-0.04 kW*

Table 1: RO Energy Consumption Data

*The energy consumption of Single-Apartment ROs is static. i.e. it treats a definite amount of water to fill its 12-
14 L tank and refills once the tank is empty, compared to the constant flow in Single Building ROs.

3.2. Purification Level

Reverse Osmosis provides up to 98-99% purity (Maarouf, 2014). Allowing the
production of potable water with an average of 200-500ppm salinity

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Implementation of Desalination Techniques In Lebanese Households

compared to an original 35,000-36,000ppm in feed which meets the standards

of allowable salinity set by the World Health Organization (WHO) as stated by
Gilau, A. and Small, M. (Designing cost-effective seawater reverse osmosis
system under optimal energy options for developing countries, 2006).

Purity level varies according to the quality and type of materials used in the

membranes and the chemicals used in final treatment. Another factor is the

pumping pressure; the higher the pressure the more water is purified.

3.4. Recovery and Waste

Recovery of ROs is basically how we are actually getting from the water
being processes by the RO. ROs can generally provide a range between 42-
55% (Maarouf, 2014). Recovery i.e. we can attain up to 55% of the pure water
contained in seawater. This percentage might appear to be very low compared
to 99-100% recovery in vaporization devices, but with the valid assumption
that saline water is constantly fed into the city, hence, we dont need to
account for recovery due to the constant flow.

Recovery can be increased depending on the conditions provided to the RO.

Pumping pressure applied on the feed water is the major determinant of the
recovery ratio. The more energy fed into the RO the higher the pressure
exerted and thus the more pure water passing the membrane into the product.
For the purpose of this research, we will assume a high pressure RO device to
insure a recovery ratio over 50%.
The remainder of the water goes along with the salt in the reject rendering it
liquid. This makes it easy to dispose as the liquid waste can be drained into the
sewage system with no harm or risk of clogging.

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Implementation of Desalination Techniques In Lebanese Households

3.5. Price and Maintenance

Having listed the appropriate specs of our recommended RO device we will
look into the major concern of our project, the cost.

Since RO operation is mostly based on pumping energy required which has

been proven to be lower than other methods, ROs stand out as low in
expenses.
a. Single outlet RO: In this case, every apartment wants to provide its own

RO, single outlet ROs prices range from $400-700. No generator is needed
to run the device. It can simply be plugged to an outlet in the apartment.
b. Single-building RO: Depending on the desired level of purity, these ROs
cost between $10,000 to 15,000 including shipments and installation. The
ROs would require a generator to supply energy. The price of a generator
varies between $2,000-5,000.The numbers might seem large, but this
design is suited for a whole building. In the case of no government aid, if
the price were distributed among all the apartments, the price on each
household of a residential building is less than $800, and with a good
payment plan over a few months the price will be covered unnoticed.
As for maintenance, ROs are highly durability. With proper use, an RO can last
for as long as 3-5 years with no major maintenance. Major maintenance
(changing membranes and filters) should occur every 4-6 years and are
relatively cheap. Regular cleaning of membranes with water every few months
and routine system check-ups (pumps, pipes, etc.) can insure a 5-7 year
lifetime of the membranes.

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Implementation of Desalination Techniques In Lebanese Households

4. Conclusion, Review and Recommendations

Due to a severe water shortage, the Lebanese public have had to use water from the

sea in order to meet their water needs. With the failure of the government to act in

response to the problem along with the continuous depletion of freshwater sources,

we have decided to research the different desalination methods available to treat

seawater in order to provide the public with clean water.

We emphasized on Reverse Osmosis being the most economically feasible technology

available and further focused on comparing two different RO devices. The first device

is a Single Building RO - installed in buildings and powered by a small generator - and

the second is a Single Outlet RO usually installed on specific water outlets around the

house. We have discussed the price of both RO devices as well as a distributed

payment plan for the more expensive Single Building RO. However, since we cannot

realistically expect all residents of a building to commit to a payment plan, we

recommend the use of a single outlet RO rather than a Single Building RO. Having

stated that, the Single Building RO would be a better alternative if all residents of the

building were willing and/or contractually obligated to committing to a payment plan.

Given the information specified in this research, along with the fact that RO

treatment is successfully being implemented in many countries with water deficits, we

hope to advocate the implementation of RO technology in Lebanese houses.

REFERENCE


Ministry of Environment (2010). State of The Environment Report. Retrieved
from: http://www.moe.gov.lb/getattachment/The-Ministry/Reports/State-Of-the-
Environment-Report-2010/3-Water-Resources.pdf.aspx

Personal interview with M. Maarouf, PhD. an engineer at National Water Technology

in Kuwait. (September 30,2014)

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Implementation of Desalination Techniques In Lebanese Households

Lebanon geography, climate and population (2008). Retrieved from:

http://www.fao.org/nr/water/aquastat/countries_regions/lbn/index.stm

Gude , V. (2010). Energy consumption and recovery in reverse osmosis.

Gilau, A. and Small, M. (2006) Designing cost-effective seawater reverse osmosis

system under optimal energy options for developing countries.