Date:09/07/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/09/stories/2008070955581500.htm

National

Barge-mounted sea water desalination plant commissioned

Mumbai: The Bhabha Atomic Research Centre has commissioned a barge-mounted sea water desalination plant for technology demonstration.

The 50,000-litre-a-day capacity plant will be parked by the Indian Rare Earth (IRE) in one of its units either in Kerala or Orissa, said P.K. Tiwari, Head, desalination division of BARC.

The plant uses reverse osmosis technology, he said adding, BARC had developed the technology for water purification of brackish water but was still working on the technology for sea water.

BARC has recently set up 1.8 million-litres-a-day capacity desalination plant at Kalpakkam in Tamil Nadu and is about to complete another type Multi-Stage-Flash with a capacity of 4.5 million tonnes a day in Kalpakkam.

Several desalination plants had been set up by BARC in rural Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat, producing 30,000 litres a day. The technology had been licensed to seven industries, he said. — PTI