Empresarios Agrupados’ accomplishments on desalination
Publish date: 07/05/2026
Empresarios Agrupados (EA) has explored how the Low‑Temperature District Heating Reactor (LDR) can help address growing urban freshwater demand through desalination.
Empresarios Agrupados’ accomplishments on desalination
The high demand for fresh water in urban areas makes coupling the Low-Temperature District Heating Reactor (LDR) with a desalination plant a highly attractive option. Empresarios Agrupados (EA) has reviewed the most commonly used desalination technologies with different suppliers - Reverse Osmosis (RO), Multistage Flash Distillation (MSF), and Multi Effect Distillation (MED) - concluding that the viable alternatives for utilizing the thermal power generated by the LDR reactor are MSF and MED. Following a comparative assessment, MED is preferred over MSF because it is more energy efficient, taking advantage of the residual heat from each stage to preheat the feedwater in subsequent stages, thereby optimizing overall energy use.
EA’s main objective of integrating the LDR with an MED desalination system is to exploit the low‑pressure hot water from the LDR tertiary cooling system, which is heated during the cooling process of the LDR secondary cooling circuit. Technicians from specialized suppliers confirm the possibility of using low‑pressure hot water directly as a heat source for the desalination process. By means of a flashing tank, the vapor required for seawater desalination is generated from the low‑pressure hot water, enabling a desalinated water production capacity of approximately 7,860 m³/day, equivalent to the consumption of a city with an estimated population of 52,400 people.
Furthermore, EA has developed, with the code EcosimPro, a model of the desalination plant coupled to the tertiary circuit of the LDR reactor. Results from this model are used in the subsequent safety analysis devised by EA.
For more information, do not hesitate to reach out to:
Javier Gallo Carrasco