Multi-stage flash distillation

[2] The plant has a series of spaces called stages, each containing a heat exchanger and a condensate collector.

[citation needed] The process goes through the following steps: The total evaporation in all the stages is up to approximately 85% of the water flowing through the system, depending on the range of temperatures used.

[4] The feed water carries away the latent heat of the condensed steam, maintaining the low temperature of the stage.

[citation needed] The heat added in the brine heater usually comes in the form of hot steam from an industrial process co-located with the desalination plant.

Reverse osmosis, MSF distillation's main competitor, requires more pretreatment of the seawater and more maintenance, as well as energy in the form of work (electricity, mechanical power) as opposed to cheaper low-grade waste heat.