Singapore water

Singapore water

The seawater being turned into fresh water through a membrane
separation process is Singapore's very own. This is a rare
ownership right that is to be savored.

There are encouraging precedents. Reverse osmosis (a much
cheaper method of desalting than distillation, which uses more
fuel) is a technology that has a history of about four decades.
American research reports show that pure water had been produced
using this method for industrial, military and laboratory uses.

Drinking water began coming onstream after the mid-1980s. The
same membrane and energy-saving advances that allowed the Hyflux
plant to be built at moderate cost could evolve continually to
make replications feasible. Oil price is a bugbear, as experts
keep forecasting new price benchmarks.

But scientists' ingenuity in improving membranes and pumps
knows no bounds. Desalination need not remain a niche method
forever.
-- The Straits Times, Singapore