engineering

Desalination & Water Purification

The engineering of turning seawater into freshwater — reverse osmosis membranes, multi-stage flash distillation, electrodialysis ion transport, forward osmosis draw solutions, and passive solar stills.

desalinationreverse osmosiswater purificationmembrane technologydistillationelectrodialysiswater engineering

Desalination transforms saline or brackish water into potable freshwater, a capability of growing strategic importance as climate change intensifies droughts and groundwater depletion accelerates worldwide. Over 21,000 desalination plants operate globally, producing more than 100 million cubic meters of freshwater daily — yet the energy cost and brine disposal challenges remain active frontiers of research.

These simulations let you explore the dominant technologies side by side: pressure-driven reverse osmosis membranes, thermal multi-stage flash distillation, electrically driven electrodialysis, osmotically powered forward osmosis, and the elegantly simple solar still. Adjust feed salinity, pressure, temperature, and membrane properties to understand the thermodynamic and economic trade-offs that define modern water engineering.

5 interactive simulations

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Electrodialysis Ion Transport Simulator

Simulate electrodialysis desalination — explore how voltage, membrane pairs, feed salinity, and flow rate control ion removal and energy consumption

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Forward Osmosis Draw Solution Simulator

Simulate forward osmosis desalination — explore how draw solution concentration, membrane properties, feed salinity, and temperature affect water flux and dilution

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Multi-Stage Flash Distillation Simulator

Simulate MSF distillation — explore how number of stages, top brine temperature, feed salinity, and steam ratio affect freshwater yield and thermal efficiency

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Reverse Osmosis Membrane Simulator

Simulate reverse osmosis desalination — explore how feed pressure, salinity, membrane permeability, and recovery ratio affect freshwater production and energy consumption

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Solar Still Evaporation Simulator

Simulate passive solar still desalination — explore how solar irradiance, basin depth, glass angle, and ambient temperature affect freshwater yield and thermal efficiency