Desalination, desalination everywhere

摘要

By the end of this year, Long Beach, Calif., expects to begin operating the largest federally funded water desalination plant in the United States, says the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which is helping fund the project's construction. Like most of the growing number of desalination projects around the world, Long Beach is creating drinking water from seawater using reverse osmosis membranes. This technology's rising popularity is mainly attributable to technical improvements that have improved its reliability and cost, and the Long Beach plant will demonstrate a new approach that promises to advance the technology even further.