DESALINATION

ELSEVIER

Desalination 130 (2000) 155-168

www.elsevier.com/locate/desal

Use of evaporation ponds for brine disposal in desalination plants

Mushtaque Ahmed a, Walid H. Shayya b*, David Hoey c, Arun Mahendran c,
Richard Morris d, Juma A1-Handaly a
aDepartment of Soil and WaterScience; bDepartment of Bioresource and Agricultural Engineering,
Sultan Qaboos University, PO Box 34, Al-Khod 123, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman
Tel. +968 515-227; Fax +968 513-418; email: wshayya@squ.edu,om
CDepartment of Land and Water Conservation, New South Wales, Australia
dRichard Morris and Associates, Glasgow, Scotland

Received 8 May 2000; accepted 30 May 2000

Abstract

Desalination plants are being used increasingly in inland areas of many countries for supplying water for domestic
purposes. If these areas are too far away from the sea, the opportunity to dispose the reject brine (also known as
concentrate, reject water, or wastewater) in the ocean no longer exists, given that ocean disposal is the common practice
for plants located in coastal areas. Evaporation ponds are especially suitable to dispose of reject brine from inland
desalination plants in add and semi-arid areas due to the abundance of solar energy. In irrigation projects facing a soil
salinity problem due to a shallow saline groundwater table, evaporation ponds are also in use. Saline water tables are
lowered by pumping or tile draining and the drainage water is stored in evaporation ponds. While evaporation ponds
have long been used for salt production in many parts of the world, the disposal of concentrate from desalination plants
in inland areas using evaporation ponds is of much significance both economically and environmentally. Guidelines are
needed for the design, construction, maintenance, and operation of evaporation ponds for reject brine disposal in an
economical and environmentally-sensitive manner. This paper provides a critical review of concentrate disposal
technology using evaporation ponds. Relevant topics are also covered including chemistry of brine, brine disposal
methods, use of evaporation ponds in agriculture, determination of evaporation rate, and evaporation enhancement
methods.
Keywords: Evaporation ponds; Desalination; Inland plants; Brine disposal; Concentrate

1. Introduction

Throughout the world, many communities

with limited water resources have witnessed
*Corresponding author.

considerable growth in population. Severe water

shortages can lead to the deterioration of people's
health and may severely constrain the development o f the community. A number o f such
communities have turned to desalination as a
solution. In these cases desalination, usually

0011-9164/00/$- See front matter 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved
PII: S 0 0 1 1 - 9 1 6 4 ( 0 0 ) 0 0 0 8 3 - 7

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M. Ahmed et al. / Desalination 130 (2000) 155-168

recognized as being relatively expensive, has

proved to be an affordable and feasible
alternative.
Until the early 1960s, the use of desalination
processes was very limited in the water industry.
Their applications were restricted to activities
where almost distilled water was required. Since
then, many plants have been erected in various
parts of the world for supplying water for various
purposes. Based on the process, desalination
plants can be categorized into two types. The first
involves plants that employ a phase-change
process. In such plants desalination takes place
while there is a change of phase (i.e., evaporation
or freezing). Plants that follow such a process
include multi-stage flash (MSF), multi-effect
boiling (MEB), vapor compression (VC), solar
distillation, and freezing. The second type of
desalination plants are single phase. In such
plants the extraction of salt takes place while the
solution remains in the liquid phase. These
include reverse osmosis (RO) and electrodialysis

(ED).
One common aspect to both categories of
desalination plants is the production of concentrate. The amount of concentrate as a percentage
of the feed water varies depending on the choice
of method, initial salinity of feed water, and
factors affecting the choice of disposal method.
Awerbuch and Weekes [ 1] reported that brackish
RO plants, in general, produced 25% of the total
feed water flow as reject brine. They described
the use of evaporative brine concentrators to
reduce the RO reject brine to 2% of the overall
flow. According to Alaabula'aly and AI-Saati [2],
groundwater RO plants typically produce a brine
stream of ! 0-25% of the feed. Thermal processes
such as MSF and MEB have relatively low water
recoveries. The concentrate from thermal
processes is typically mixed with cold water prior
to discharge. The dilution of concentrate results
in a final discharged effluent that is rarely more
than 15% higher in salinity than the receiving
water [3 ]. Other wastes produced by desalination

plants (e.g., cleaning wastes) are either mixed

with the concentrate or stored separately to be
disposed of later.
The disposal of wastes from inland plants
must be addressed. Otherwise serious issues will
develop as the numbers of inland plants increase
and expensive remedial measures will have to be
taken to rescue the delicate ecosystems into
which the brine will be discharged [4]. In this
paper a critical review of concentrate disposal
technology using evaporation ponds is presented.
Special focus is placed on the chemistry of brine,
brine disposal methods, use of evaporation ponds
in agriculture, determination of evaporation rate,
and evaporation enhancement methods.

2. Chemistry of concentrate
The characteristics of reject brine (concentrate) are directly related to the quality of the feed
water, the desalination technology used, the
percent recovery, and the chemical additives
used. Khordagui [5] presented the chemical
properties of reject brine from some Gulf region
desalination plants (Table 1). Mickley et al. [3]
classified wastes generated by the different
components of the membrane desalination
process into the following categories: pretreatment waste, membrane concentrate, cleaning
waste, and post-treatment waste.
In RO systems, especially in plants that
produce drinking water, pretreatment may consist
of acidification, addition of anti-scalant chemicals, chlorination, and de-chlorination. For poor
quality water, filtration, coagulation, flocculation, ion exchange, and carbon adsorption may
also be used. All these processes generate wastes
that are removed before the membrane process
starts.
Membrane concentrate is primarily a concentrate of the feed water that includes the raw water
along with the added chemicals for pretreatment
purposes. If post-treatment is done on the

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M Ahmed et al / Desalination 130 (2000) 155-168

Table 1
Characteristics of reject brine water from some desalination plants in the Gulf region (after Khordagui [5])
Parameters

Abu-fintas
Doha/Qater
seawater

BWRO
Ajman

BWRO
Um Quwain

Qidfa I
Fujairah
seawater

Qidfa II
Fujairah
seawater

Temperature, C
pH
Electrical conductivity
Ca, ppm
Mg, ppm
Na, ppm
HCO3, ppm
SO4, ppm
CI, ppm
TDS, ppm
Total hardness, ppm
Free C12,ppm
SiO2, ppm
Langlier SI
Cu, ppb
Fe, ppb
Ni, ppb
Antiscale, ppm
Antifoam, ppm

40--44
8.2
NR
1300-1400
7600-7700
NR
3900
3900
29,000
52,000
NR
Trace
NR
NR
<20
<20
Trace
0.8-1.0
0.04-0.05

30.6
7.46
16.49
312
413
2,756
561
1,500
4,572
10,114
NR
NR
23.7
0.61
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR

32.4
6.7
11.33
173
282
2,315
570
2,175
2,762
8,276
32
0.01
145
0.33
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR

32.2
6.97
77.0
631
2,025
17,294
159
4,200
30,487
54,795
198
NR
1.02
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR

29. l
7.99
79.6
631
2,096
18,293
149.5
4,800
31,905
57,935
207
NR
17.6
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR

NR, not reported.

concentrate, its characteristics are further
affected. Mickley et al. [3] reported on concentrate quality from some membrane drinking-water
plants in Florida. The tests they used revealed a
total of 40 different inorganic chemicals.
Chemical concentrations in the concentrate
depend on the membrane system recovery and the
membrane rejection of a particular chemical. The
concentrate from membrane desalination processes is characterized by high total dissolved
solids (TDS) and has minimal amounts of
process-added chemicals. In general, raw water
quality determines the final concentrate quality.
The degree of concentration, also called the
concentration factor (CF), is defined as:
1
CF (l)
I-R

where R is the fractional recovery. The above

relationship is valid for chemicals that are
completely rejected by the membrane but is a
good approximation for most chemicals in
brackish and seawater RO systems.
Alaabdula'aly and Khan [6] analyzed the feed,
permeate, and brine waters of four groundwater
RO plants in the central region of Saudi Arabia
for 12 metals (AI, As, Ba, Cd, Cr, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb,
Se, and Zn). Nickel and copper were found to be
absent in all samples. All other metals were
found to be within the limits prescribed by W H O
for drinking water. Rao et al. [7] described a case
study in India where seepage from reject brine
caused contami-nation of groundwater of the
source well and resulted in abnormal increase in
hardness of the groundwater.

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11/[.Ahmed et al. / Desalination 130 (2000) 155-168

3. Brine disposal methods

Reviewing the characteristics of brine
disposal from desalination plants, Koening [8]
noted that brine disposal is in a different category
than sewage disposal. He also stated that there is
no way to reduce brine to simpler and harmless
compounds as they are already the simplest of
inorganic compounds. He went on to say that no
good way exists to reclaim the carrying water
from the dissolved solids, for if there were, it
could be used in the desalting process. While the
quantities of materials are very large, Koening
[8] emphasized that these materials do not look
attractive economically.
Guidelines issued by the US Federal Water
Pollution Control Administration [9] for disposal
systems in the USA emphasize that such systems
must comply with federal, state, and local
regulations; avoid pollution, lawsuits, and be in
good engineering practice; be capable of
adequately taking care of all the effluents
continuously over the life of the plant; not unduly
harm the land, surface, and underground fresh
water sources, sheltered bays and estuaries, or the
seas; and not contaminate the feed water intake
or future resources. In the Gulf countries most of
the large-scale desalination plants are located on
the coastline. These plants discharge their
concentrate into near shores. Khordagui [5] and
the SWCC [10] looked into this issue in a
comprehensive manner. Desalination industry
experts have accepted the fact that the ocean
brine disposal method is the least expensive
method. They argue that rapid mixing and
dilution makes it a"safe" disposal option. Mandil
[11] observed that the environmental impact of
brine discharge is related to the physical,
chemical, and biological characteristics of the
receiving marine environment. The recovery
ratio, or the amount of feed water that must be
provided to the plants for each unit of product
water, has significant environmental implications. The higher the recovery ratio, the greater
the salinity of the concentrate.

Khordagui [5] supported the practice of ocean

brine disposal with the argument that the amount
of seawater withdrawn for desalination is
relatively minute when compared to the water
mass of the open sea. He stated that the amount
and nature of salts discharged with the brine are
identical to the salt content of the open sea, with
the concentration factor increasing by no more
than two. In order to avoid recirculation of plant
effluents to the intakes of the desalination plants,
Khordagui [5] emphasized that the outlets should
be specifically engineered to discharge in coastal
areas where maximum circulation patterns and
hydrographic currents can easily disperse and
dilute the brine. On the other hand, Del Bene et
al. [12] concluded that dense brine discharge into
the ocean can impact the benthic environment.

4. Disposal from inland plants

Various options exist for the disposal of reject
brine from inland desalination plants. These
include waste minimization, discharge to surface
water, discharge to wastewater treatment plants,
deep wells, land application, evaporation ponds,
and wastewater evaporators.
Khordagui [5] identifiedthe following options
for disposal of reject brine from inland RO
desalination plants: pumping into specially
designed, lined evaporation ponds; deep-well
injection; disposal into surface water bodies;
disposal through pipelines to municipal sewers;
concentration into solid salts; and irrigation of
plants tolerant to high salinity (halophytes).
Mickley et al. [3] identified the factors that
influence the selection of a disposal method.
These include volume or quantity of concentrate,
quality or constituents of concentrate, physical or
geographical location of the discharge point of
the concentrate, availability of receiving site,
permissibility of the option, public acceptance,
capital and operating costs, and ability for the
facility to be expanded. They also presented a

M. Ahmed et al. /Desalination 130 (2000) 155-168

survey of drinking water plants in the continental

US (for drinking water membrane plants having
a capacity of 98 m3/d or more) that included 137
plants where 48% dispose of the concentrate to
surface water, 23% dispose to the head-works of
wastewater treatment plants, 12% utilize a land
application process, 10% dispose via deep well
injection, and 6% use evaporation ponds.
According to the ESCWA [13], cost plays an
important role in the selection of a brine-disposal
method. The cost of disposal ranged from 5-33%
of the total cost of desalination for all methods.
The cost of disposal depends on the characteristics of reject brine, the level of treatment before
disposal, means of disposal, volume of brine to
be disposed of, and the nature of the disposed
environment. Glueckstern and Priel [14] found
that the disposal costs of inland RO desalination
plants are higher than that of plants disposing
reject brine in nearby seas or lakes.
Waste minimization is an approach in which
the objective is to produce less concentrate
(generally by membrane-process recoveryenhancement techniques) or to reduce the
concentrators prior to ultimate disposal [3]. This
particular approach is not usually very
economical since the increase in cost is
substantial, given the need for an extensive
pretreatment and the increased membrane area.
Although the volume is reduced, the concentration of various minerals and chemicals
increases. Such high concentration can create
special problems with disposal since many
disposal regulations are based on concentrations,
not volume.
By discharging into surface water (where
available), the brine is diluted. The increase in
concentration of minerals and salts due to brine
disposal into large bodies of water is insignificant
if the volume of reject brine is not large (relative
to the volume of surface water). The selfpurification capacity of the receiving water is an
important consideration. This capacity must not
be exceeded when brine disposal is made.

159

Disposal into surface water bodies can be

permitted only if such discharges will avoid any
detrimental impact on environmentally-sensitive
areas.
Squire et al. [15] described a method of
surface water disposal of RO membrane concentrate by blending the concentrate with backwash
water from sand filters. Many small RO plants
dispose their reject brine in municipal sewerage
systems. This process has the attraction of
lowering the BOD of the domestic sewage.
However, the increase in TDS may have some
effects on the microorganisms of the system and
may make the treated effluent unsuitable for
irrigation purposes. Moreover, the disposed reject
brine may overwhelm the existing capacity of the
sewerage system. The recovery of mineral salts
from reject brine was looked into by different
researchers [16]. This option will prove to be
attractive only if the cost of production is
economical. Irrigation of salt-tolerant plants by
reject brine will be possible provided soil
salinization is maintained at an acceptable level
and the potential risk to groundwater is minimal.
Deep injection wells (depths ranging from
330-2,600 m) can be used to inject liquid wastes
in porous subsurface rock formations. Site
selection, which is dependent upon geological
and hydrogeological conditions, is extremely
important in the design of injection wells. Such
wells, for example, should not be located in areas
vulnerable to earthquakes or regions with mineral
resources. Another consideration in the design
and operation of such an option is the nonmovement of wastes into or among underground
sources of drinking water. As such, site selection
is the most important step in the development of
an injection well.
Disposal of reject brine by mechanical
evaporation is a costly process. In plants where a
zero-liquid discharge concept is in practice,
mechanical evaporators are used. Costs are high
due to the high energy consumption and costs
required for final salt or brine disposal.

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M. Ahmed et al. / Desalination 130 (2000) 155-168

Single-effect evaporators or vapor compression

evaporators are widely used for mechanical
evaporation.
Irrigation systems, percolation ponds, and
infiltration trenches can also be used for disposal
purposes. For irrigation, the quality of reject
brine must satisfy crop and soil requirements.
The presence of high concentrations of exchangeable sodium or trace elements can render reject
brine unsuitable for irrigation purposes. Mickley
[3] listed the following design criteria applicable
to irrigation with reject brine: site selection, preapplication treatment, hydraulic loading rates,
land requirements, vegetation selection techniques, and surface runoff control.

5. Use of evaporation ponds

Evaporation ponds have been used over the
centuries to remove water from saline solution.
Mickley et al. [3] listed several advantages for
disposal of reject brine using evaporation ponds.
They stated that evaporation ponds are relatively
easy to construct, while requiring low maintenance and little operator attention compared to
mechanical systems. They added that no
mechanical equipment is required in evaporation
ponds, except for the pump that conveys the
wastewater to the pond. Finally, they emphasized
that evaporation ponds are frequently the least
costly means of disposal, especially in areas with
high evaporation rates and low land costs.
Mickley et al. [3] also listed some disadvantages
including the need for large tracts of land when
the evaporation rate is low or the disposal rate is
high, the need for impervious liners of clay or
synthetic membranes such as PVC or Hypalon,
and the potential of contaminating underlying
potable water aquifers through seepage from
poorly constructed evaporation ponds.
Evaporation ponds can be successfully used as
a disposal method especially in countries with

dry and warm weather, high evaporation rates,

and availability of land at low cost. Sealing of
evaporation ponds reduce the risk of groundwater
contamination. Truesdall et al. [ 17] observed that
evaporation ponds were used in some of the small
desalination plants in the US. Evaporation ponds
ranging from 13.6 to 34.3 ha are used for disposal
purposes in the desalination plants in the central
region of Saudi Arabia [2]. Mickley [18]
considers evaporation ponds most appropriate for
relatively warm and dry climates with high
evaporation rates, level terrain, and low land
costs.
Soil salinity is an increasing problem in many
parts of the world. In Australia, over 150,000 ha
may be affected by salinization associated with
irrigation and additional 2,000,000 ha may be
affected by dry-land salinization in the Murray
Darling Basin alone [ 19]. One way to control soil
salinization is to lower the saline groundwater
table through groundwater pumping. The pumped
groundwater can be put in disposal basins that
can be either evaporation or holding basins.
Holding basins are used for effluents with low
salinity. Therefore, these effluents may be reused
with or without prior treatment or dilution.
Evaporation basins are designed to concentrate
the received effluent and reduce its volume
through evaporation. The Murray Region of
Australia includes more than 150 basins for
evaporative disposal of large volumes of groundwater and saline surface drainage. However, no
standard design appears to have been followed in
the construction of disposal basins. Some of the
basins are natural basins (i.e., no lining or
compaction). Most of the constructed basins are
small (not exceeding a few hectares). When
designing evaporation ponds, it is best if a
number of smaller ponds are constructed and
connected by a pipeline. Smaller ponds are easy
to manage especially in windy conditions where
wave action can damage the levees requiring
costly maintenance. Suitable site selection is very

M. Ahmed et al. / Desalination 130 (2000) 155-168

important. Unlined ponds located in light soils

will leak resulting in the movement of salts to the
groundwater.
Large public schemes require extensive operation and maintenance investment. The biggest
cost is transporting effluent to the disposal site.
Pumping saline water, which may have high
dissolved gas levels (leading to cavitation in
pipes) or iron sludge (due to the presence of iron
bacteria), can cause rapid deterioration of the
screens, pipes, and pumps. Once in the
evaporation basin, moving the concentrate from
bay can be labor-intensive, particularly if active
salt pro-duction is required. Other maintenance
includes erosion control, wildlife management,
and seepage control.
Evaporation ponds are designed to concentrate effluents. Therefore, they aim to reduce
effluent volume by evaporation, occasionally
producing salt as part of the process. Hoxley [20]
developed a rating system to evaluate disposal
basins in terms of basin size, ratio of inflow
volume to evaporative capacity, potential for
leakage to groundwater, ownership and
monitoring fre-quency, existence of re-use, and
other factors. Realica and Williams [21] also
reviewed evaporation basins in New South
Wales, Australia, using these criteria. They
focused on determining the effective hazard of
using evaporation basins. The information in both
publications can be used to identify disposal
basins that are likely to cause environmental
hazards. Hostetler et ai. [22] produced an
interactive GIS database of disposal basins in the
Murray Basin in Australia. The database also
includes scanned images of air photos, Internetaccessible documentation, and software
downloads.
As with most engineering structures, there are
environmental risks associated with the use of
saline disposal basins. The movement of salt (and
possibly toxic materials) outside the drainage or
salt containment area poses the greatest threat.

161

Following accepted engineering standards will

minimize the risks while management and
decommissioning plans will increase confidence
that basin operators are minimizing environmental risks.
The use of evaporation basins is at times
emotive, especially for some farmers whose lands
are adjacent to these basins. However, evaporation basins remain in many cases the most
cost-effective means of saline water disposal. By
concentrating the saline "waste", evaporation
basins also offer an opportunity to develop
resource recovery measures such as aquaculture,
brine shrimp, beta-carotene production, salt
harvesting, recovery of bitterns, and linking to
solar ponds for electricity generation. While
research for many of these beneficial uses is at an
early stage, it is important not to lose sight of the
opportunities that can develop from scientific
management of evaporation basins.

6. Design considerations of evaporation ponds

Mickley et al. [3] stated that the proper sizing
of an evaporation pond depends on accurate
calculation of the annual evaporation rate, as
evaporation ponds function by transferring liquid
water in the pond to water vapor in the atmosphere above the pond. Higher evaporation rates
will require smaller-sized ponds. Pond size
includes two components: surface area and depth.
The evaporation rate determines the surface area
whereas the calculation of depth is based on
surge capacity, water storage, storage capacity for
the salts, and freeboard for rainfall and wave
action.
Evaporation rates can be determined using
various methods. A standard evaporation pan
(class A pan) is widely used to measure pan
evaporation rates. The latter is multiplied by a
pan coefficient to determine the evaporation rate
[23]. Water balance calculations in lakes can also

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M. Ahmed et at/Desalination 130 (2000) 155-168

be used to estimate likely evaporation rates from

ponds.
Salinity of water influences the rate of
evaporation. As the salinity increases, evaporation decreases. Mickley et al. [3] suggested the
use of evaporation ratio of 0.7 for multiplying
calculated solar evaporation rate to incorporate
the effect of salinity. They also suggested that
pond depths ranging from 25 to 45 cm are optimal
for maximizing the rate of evaporation. Very
shallow evaporation ponds are subject to drying
and cracking of the liners. An ideal evaporation
pond must be able to accept reject brine at all
times under all conditions. Freeboard for rainfall
is to be estimated on the basis of rainfall intensity
and duration. Freeboard for wave action is based
on the wave height likely to be produced in the
pond. Standard formulas are available for such
calculations [24].
Accurate evaporation data are required for
designing an efficient evaporation pond. In
addition, one must ensure that the average annual
evaporation depth exceeds the depth of water that
would have to be stored in the pond. One must
also remember that the rate of evaporation varies
from location to location.
The following formula was proposed for
calculating the open surface area of the
evaporation pond:

APen -

V'rejectfl
E

(2)

where Anpen is the open surface area of evaporation pond (m2), Vrejectis the volume of reject water
(m3/d), E is the evaporation rate (m/d), and fl is a
safety factor to allow for lower than average
evaporation rates.
During the winter, the pond tends to store the
reject water. The minimum depth required to
store the volume of water is calculated using the
formula:

dm~n= E~v~f2

(3)

where dm~n is the minimum depth (m), Earc is the

average evaporation rate (m/d), andrE is a factor
that incorporates the effect of the length of the
winter. A freeboard (defined as the depth above
the normal reject water surface) must be provided
so that rainfall and periods of abnormally low
evaporation do not cause reject water to spill out
of the pond. A freeboard of 200 mm is recommended.
In general, the walls of ponds are constructed
above the ground level. A controlled spillover
facility is also needed as an integral part of the
evaporation pond. This facility accommodates
any spilled water from the pond. Liners are the
most important feature of an evaporation pond.
They should be mechanically strong and
impermeable. All liners must be strong enough to
withstand stress during salt cleaning. Sometimes
sands can be placed over liners to facilitate salt
removal. Sealing of liner joints is crucial as
leakage usually takes place along joints. A
subsurface drainage system should also be
installed to remove the leaked wastewater. In the
course of time, salts deposited in ponds must be
removed. Options for safe disposal of salt
deposits include their sale to interested buyers,
disposing of the salt to the sea, or the disposal of
the salt to an approved waste disposal site.
Basins used for disposal can be natural basins
(to take advantage of the natural depression in the
earth's surface), modified natural basins, or
constructed basins excavated from the ground.
The natural basins include saline lakes, billabongs, salinas, or dry natural depressions. Figs. 1
and 2 represent small evaporation ponds at a farm
scale. Their size does not exceed a few hectares
(the largest being l0 hectares). It is best if a
number of smaller ponds are constructed adjacent
to one another and connected by a pipeline
placed no more than 30cm above the bed

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M. Ahmed et al. /Desalination 130 (2000) 155-168

Top of levee

Water level

lm

Fig. I. Generalized embankment dimensions.

Top of levee

Sub-soil

Core trench,
if necessary

Sub-soil

Fig. 2. Cross-section of embankment.

of the pond. Smaller ponds are easy to manage
especially in windy conditions where wave action
can damage the levees, thereby increasing
maintenance costs. The length of the pond should
be placed at right angles to the predominant
direction of wind to dissipate wave damage. This
is particularly important if the pond is
plastic-lined.
Suitable site selection is very important.
Ponds located in light soils will leak, resulting in
the movement of salts to the groundwater. In such
cases plastic linings or other treatment will be
needed to reduce soil permeability. Banks should
be 1 m in height and 2.4m wide at the crest to
allow for the movement of light vehicles. To
minimize bank erosion, an inside slope of 1:5 is
recommended (see Fig. 1). This will absorb much
of the wave energy. The outside bank can be
constructed at a 1:2 slope. Before construc-tion,
the topsoil where the bank is to be located should
be removed. If the site contains good
impermeable clay to a depth of 3 m or more, then
the top 0.5 m can be used to form the banks. The
topsoil can then be pushed against the outside
banks to encourage cover by vegetation. This will

reduce erosion in low-salinity disposal areas. The

banks should be compacted during construction
using a sheepsfoot roller. Laser leveling of the
bed will increase evaporation by gaining even
spread of water. As an additional precaution to
control lateral seepage, a small diameter interception well may be installed along the perimeter
of the ponded area and the effluent pumped back
into the ponds. Additional guidance on small
scale (less than 100 ha) salt disposal basins is
given in Jolly et al. [25].

7. Construction, operation, and maintenance

of evaporation ponds
Evaporation ponds for disposal of concentrate
from desalination plants need to be constructed
as per the design and maintained and operated
properly so as not to create any environmental
problem, especially with regards to groundwater
pollution. It has been suggested that it is
unnecessary that evaporation ponds remain wet at
all times. It is more sensible to ensure that the
average annual evaporation rate exceeds the

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M. Ahmed et al. / Desalination 130 (2000) 155-168

depth of water that would have to be stored in the

pond.
Evaporation ponds are constructed along a
basic pattern of a series of shallow concentrating
ponds followed by crystallization ponds. The
main problems centered around finding the best
operating depth of pond as well as the number
and size of ponds [26]. Large ponds tend to have
excessive depths along one side and the control
of wave action becomes a problem [27].
Evaporation ponds designed to prevent leakage
must have impervious linings or be provided with
seepage-collection systems.
It has been recommended that no salt should
be removed from the pond for the first year or
two of operation so that a hardpan is permitted to
develop at the base of the pond. This hardpan can
only develop if the pond completely dries out
during the hottest periods of the year. Salt should
be removed during the dry months. If salts are
left in the pond for extended periods of time, the
storage volume is reduced and spillover can take
place. For a given salinity, Fig. 3 provides an
estimate of precipitate produced for each foot of
wastewater discharged to the pond.
Evaporation-pond liners need to be installed
in accordance with manufacturer's instructions.
Sealing adjacent sections of the liner must be
done properly. However, it may be unnecessary
to reduce leakage/seepage to the same extent in

s
0.1

0.01

J~

g
0.001

0.0

. . . .

50.0

100.0
Salinity

of waste

. . . .

150.0

200.0

. . . .
250.0

( p p m x 10 "3)

Fig. 3. Depth of precipitate (adapted from USDI [28]).

all circumstances. Soil conditions, geologic

substructure, plant operation schedule, and the
desired life of the pond must be considered in
making a decision [28]. The ponds should be
monitored regularly. It is recommended that both
the volume of reject brine into the evaporation
pond and water levels in the pond are recorded on
a continuous basis. Also the levels of groundwater and salinity adjacent to the ponds should be
regularly monitored. Reporting based on monitoring data and relevant operation and maintenance
information is also an important step in the
management of disposal systems of desalination
plants.
8. Surface disposal of brine and pollutant
movement through the soil
Assessing the extent and rate of pollutant
movement through the soil profile from the
disposed brine of inland desalination plants is
extremely critical. It provides a means for
addressing the water quality issues associated
with the deep percolation of the rejected brine
when this by-product of desalination is discharged improperly. In addition, understanding
the movement of the concentrated brine along
with heavy metals is essential in evaluating their
negative impacts on the environment and
addressing the regulatory aspects of brine reject
discharge.
Models that describe the physical, chemical,
and biological processes associated with the
movement of solutes in the soil profile have been
derived and investigated by many researchers
[29-31]. According to Addiscott and Wagenet
[32], such models range from being deterministic,
where individual processes are defined mathematically, to stochastic, where the emphasis is
less on the process but more on predicting the
statistical distribution of a given characteristic.
The former category of models is usually
complex in nature as it emphasizes the processes

165

M. Ahmed et al. / Desalination 130 (2000) 155-168

involved and the interactions among these

processes. They often include partial differential
equations that must be solved numerically, rather
than analytically.
Campbell [33] presented the basic equations
describing the transport of solute through the soil
profile. He classified them into soil interacting
and soil non-interacting solute transport equations. The first situation represents a mass flow
process where the solutes are assumed to be
totally dissolved in water and transported through
convection without dispersion. This represents a
simplified approach to solute transport within the
soil profile where the change in concentration of
a solute moving by steady-mass flow is described
by the following equation [33]:
OS
OS
lab--~ = q Oz

(4)

where Ph is the soil bulk density (M.L-3), S is the

solute present per mass of soil (M.M-1), t is time
(T), q is the water flux density (M.L-2.T 1), and z
is the soil depth (L). Using the above equation
and assuming that the flow velocity of the
solution in the soil profile is uniform, this form of
solute transport movement is termed piston flow.
The term S combines the solution and sorbed
components of the solutes present per mass of
soil. It can be expressed as
S = N + 0 mc

(5)

where N is the sorbed chemical per mass of soil

(M.M-~), 0,, is the water content of the soil on
mass basis (M.M-1), and c is the solute
concentration in the soil solution (M.M-1).
An alternative equation for modeling the
transport of solutes in the soil profile incorporates the movement of solutes due to hydraulic
and concentration gradients [33]. This equation is
referred to as the convection-dispersion equation.

It can be developed by combining the convection

and dispersion fluxes to determine the total flux
of solutes [34]. The resultant equation is
expressed as follows:

0 [pwD(O,q)Oc]
lab

0S =
Ot

~z

(6)

Oz

where Pw is the density of water (M.L-3), D is a

diffusion coefficient (LZ.T-1) that includes both
molecular diffusion and hydrodynamic dispersion, and 0 is the volumetric water content of the
soil (L3.L-3).
Both piston flow and convection-dispersion
equations are time-dependent one-dimensional
partial differential equations that cannot be
solved analytically. Approximate numerical
solutions, using the finite difference or finite
element methods, are usually employed in
solving these equations after incorporating the
appropriate boundary conditions. The resultant
systems of equations are non-linear, requiring the
implementation of iterative solutions. Although
the presented one-dimensional equations are
widely used in modeling solute transport in the
soil profile, many problems require the solution
of two- and three-dimensional differential
equations. Again, these equations must be solved
numerically after employing iterative solution
schemes, given the non-linear nature of the
equations. Surface disposal without any surface
barrier and the consequent solute movement in
the unsaturated zone before solutes reach the
water table can be assessed using such models.
Likewise, leakage from evaporation ponds can be
analyzed using the same approach.

9. Determination of evaporation from brine

Evaporation rates from large freshwater
bodies are dependent on many factors such as

166

M. Ahmed et al. / Desalination 130 (2000) 155--168

wind speed, temperature, and vapor pressure.

Two main approaches exist for determining
evaporation. These include the energy budget and
mass transfer methods. In the former method the
conservation of energy principle is used while
estimating the amount of energy needed to
change water from the liquid to the vapor phase.
The energy used in evaporation of a liquid can be
expressed as:
Qe = Ep L

(7)

where Qe is the energy used in evaporation

(W/m2), E is the rate at which water is evaporated
(mm/d), 9 is the mass density of the evaporated
liquid (kg/m3), and L is the latent heat of
vaporization at the liquid surface temperature
(KJ/kg).
In the mass transfer method the mechanism of
removal of fluid vapor is by diffusion. This
method is built around the well known Dalton's
formula on the rate of vaporization of liquid into
gas [23]. The method is expressed as

where E is the evaporation rate (mm/d), C~ is an

empirical coefficient, ew is the partial pressure of
liquid (mm of Hg), and ea is the partial pressure
of air (mm of rig).
Another approach for estimating the evaporation rate utilizes the water budget method that
is based on the law of conservation of mass
where the inflow into and out of tank or pond are
tracked. However, the most widely used method
for determining evaporation is based on measured
pan evaporation. A multiplying factor (pan
coefficient) is used to convert pan evapo-ration
from surface water bodies. Many factors
influence both evaporation from pans and the
coefficient to be used for conversion. Dissolved
solids reduce vapor pressure of the solution
resulting in lower evaporation.

USDI [28] was one of the earliest investigations in this field where it was reported that the
ratio of brine evaporation to that of distilled
water decreased about 1% for each increase of
0.01 in specific gravity. They also reiterated the
conclusion reached by Harbeck [35] who stated
that the salinity in water reduces evaporation.
However, Harbeck [35] stated that it was difficult
to derive a simple expression for the effect of
salinity on evaporation due to the many
interrelated variables involved.
Since the volume of waste is minimized by
evaporation, increasing the evaporation rate
would enhance the volume-reduction process in
evaporation ponds. This would result in reduced
pond size leading to savings in construction
costs. Evaporation rates can be increased by
raising the water temperature, exposing more
water surface area by spraying into the atmosphere, increasing the vapor pressure difference
between the surface and atmosphere, reducing
surface tension or the bond between water
molecules, increasing the exposed surface area,
increasing the wind velocity and ground air layer
turbulence, increasing the surface roughness, and
stirring the pond [36].
Pond depth appears to have some effect on
evaporation. USDI [36] reported on contradictory
research results on this issue. Some research
showed faster evaporation rates at shallow depths
whereas others concluded that deep ponds were
more effective in enhancing the evaporation rate.
Kingdom [37] investigated the concept that
suitable molecules absorbed on the surface of
water may increase the rate of evaporation by
forming weaker hydrogen bonds with water.
The evaporation rate can be enhanced by
increasing the water temperature using a suitable
dye. USDI [38] reported that the addition of
Naphthol Green dye increased the evaporation
rate by 13%. The dye was added at a concentration of less than 2 ppm. However, the cost of
dyes is the major constraint in the application of

M. Ahmed et al. /Desalination 130 (2000) 155-168

this method. Smoak [39] investigated the

spraying method for evaporation enhancement of
fresh water. He reported a 17-60% increase in
the rate of evaporation under a pilot experimental
field.

10. Conclusions

The subject of concentrate disposal technology using evaporation ponds was critically
reviewed. The topics covered, among others,
include brine disposal methods, use of evaporation ponds in agriculture, evaporation pond
design considerations, surface disposal of brine
and pollutant movement through the soil, and
evaporation rate determination and enhancement
methods. It was evident that there are economic
and environmental imperatives for proper
disposal of reject brine from inland desalination
plants using evaporation ponds. The latter can be
successfully used as a disposal method especially
in countries with dry and warm weather, high
evaporation rates, and availability of land at low
cost. Typically, arid and semi-arid areas are
environments where evaporation ponds can be
successfully used for disposal of reject brine
from inland desalination plants.
The last 20 years have seen rapid growth in
the number of desalination plants for producing
drinking water in many parts of the world.
Unfortunately, the environmental implications
associated with the discharge of concentrate from
desalination plants have not received adequate
considerations by concerned authorities. The
likelihood of causing environmental problems
from desalination plants in inland areas is much
greater as concentrates are mostly disposed of on
land. Improperly designed and managed disposal
systems have the potential of contaminating
groundwater resources. While RO plants in
inland areas produce concentrate of high salinity,
such plants are not usually associated with the

167

presence of residual chlorine, heavy metals, and

the problem of thermal pollution. In addition, the
salinity of concentrate from RO plants in inland
areas is much lower than that of seawater plants.
The cost of disposal of reject brine from
inland desalination plants can be quite substantial. However, there is an urgent need to find
cheaper but environmentally-friendlymethods of
disposal. This will ensure that good-quality
drinking water can be supplied to areas of water
shortages where desalination remains the only
viable option. Evaporation ponds, when properly
designed and managed, can be a viable means for
disposal of brine from desalination plants,
especially in inland areas. Evaporation ponds
have also long been used for salt production in
many parts of the world. In irrigation projects
facing soil salinity problem due to a shallow
saline groundwater table, evaporation ponds have
been widely in use. Water tables are lowered by
pumping or tile-draining and the drainage water
is stored in evaporation ponds.
Evaporation ponds are usually the least costly
means of brine disposal in areas with high
evaporation rates and low land costs. However,
seepage from poorly constructed evaporation
ponds can contaminate underlying aquifers.
Contamination of feed water sources is also
likely if the reject brine is improperly disposed,
on the surface close to inland desalina-tion
plants.
Acknowledgements

This study has been made possible partially

through funding from the Middle East Desalination Research Center (MEDRC) under contract
number 98-R-004.

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