← Decision Patterns Water Supply
What problem does this solve?
Some regions have abundant seawater but insufficient freshwater. Conventional sources (rainfall, rivers, groundwater) cannot meet growing demand.
How it works
Seawater is forced through reverse osmosis membranes that remove salt and contaminants, producing fresh drinking water independent of rainfall.
Typical infrastructure
Intake systems, pre-treatment, reverse osmosis membrane arrays, energy recovery devices, brine outfall
Typical monitoring
Membrane performance, energy consumption, product water quality, marine environmental impact
Strengths
Completely independent of rainfall and climate; can be scaled to meet large demand; technology costs have fallen dramatically
Trade-offs
Energy-intensive; brine disposal can harm marine ecology; expensive compared to conventional treatment where freshwater is available
Related use cases
Operational scenarios where this pattern is applied:
Case studies
Real-world examples of this pattern in action: