As part of its collaboration agreement initiated in 2009 with King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Dow Water & Process Solutions has announced a large-scale pilot plant that will serve as a water technology research center beginning in the second quarter of 2014.

 

With access to seawater from the Red Sea, top water scientists will use the Dow Industrial Scale Water and Process Solutions Pilot Plant to test real-world scenarios at industry scale to further advance water filtration and purification.

 

Seawater desalination in the Middle East is challenging primarily due to fouling problems. With the resources at KAUST, Dow will be able to offer better solutions to reliable drinking water production.

 

The multi-million dollar KAUST facility is part of Dow’s global research and development (R&D) organization and is committed to delivering science-based solutions for some of the world’s biggest challenges such as health, energy, climate change, transportation and sustainable consumption.

 

“Investments in Saudi Arabia represent a big step forward in our thirty-year commitment to the region, and a tremendous opportunity for Dow to better serve its customers with strong R&D and commercial manufacturing facilities,” said Snehal Desai, global business director for Dow Water & Process Solutions.

 

“Our presence in the region strengthens our ability to address the area’s unique water needs and provides us with access to emerging markets, such as Eastern Europe, China and Southeast Asia.”