What type of water is typically used for desalination?

The process of desalination is specifically aimed at removing salt and other impurities from salty or seawater to make it suitable for drinking and irrigation. This type of water is chosen because it contains high levels of dissolved salts, predominantly sodium chloride, which makes it unsuitable for direct human use or agriculture. Desalination technologies, like reverse osmosis or distillation, are designed to extract this salt from seawater, allowing for the conversion of an abundant natural resource into fresh water.

Using rainwater, freshwater from lakes, or groundwater does not require desalination, as these sources already have much lower salt concentrations and can typically be used directly without further treatment, making the use of seawater the most relevant choice for this process.