KNOWLEDGE-BASED SYSTEMS FOR DESALINATION PROCESSES

Although artificial intelligence is an old field of computer science w hich dates back to the 50s, it didn't reach a deserved state of promin ence till the mid-80s. Its application was originally aimed at: ill st ructured problems where there is no rigorous mathematical model, the k nowledge of the problem is incomplete or uncertain, or when general al gorithmic methods lead to combinatorial explosion problems. A brief re view of artificial intelligence techniques is presented below. In this paper the introduction of artificial intelligent techniques to MSF de salination plants is investigated. They could be involved in designing , operating, or optimizing plant performance. The purpose is achieving better design, improved efficiency, and increased operational safety. There are many opportunities for introducing artificial intelligence into MSF desalination plants; examples of important and pervasive appl ication areas are also presented.