Conventional solar stills (Fig. 2) act simultaneously as converters of solar radiation into heat and as distillers. On the other hand, solar assisted desalination consists of two separate parts. The first is a conversion plant which transforms solar energy to either usable thermal energy or to usable electricity. The second part is a
desalination method such as MSF, MES or TVC where thermal energy is produced as vapor, or RO, ED, or MVC, if electricity is produced.