[myuncle (OP)]

Has it being tried? You connct seawater through a pipe system, take the seawater to the hottest flattest area of the desert, keep the level of the water always constant, 1 cm deep, so the water will evaporate very quickly. The salt left, can be collected by robots, and be sold later. The flat area must be rocky surface, so the water doesn't penetrate, or it can be manmade using cement. The bigger the pool, the bigger the evaporation. What do you think?

[chris]

Forgive me, but I don't see the point of doing this. Why do we need to make salt in the desert?

[wolfekeeper]

It's been proposed. Doing it might help bring water vapour to the Sahara for agriculture etc.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sahara_Sea

[chris]

Interesting; I was previously unaware of these ideas. I'm with the guy that predicted a disease-laden swamp being the outcome though...

[wolfekeeper]

Well, there's already salt marshes there, and seas usually do better than lakes because they have a steady source of water and evaporation keeps things cool. In this case there's been proposals to put hydroelectric generation in the mix as well:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qattara_Depression_Project

The main problem seems to be simply cost.

[evan_au]

The Dead Sea is an area in the desert that is already being used for salt production.
The water levels are dropping because agriculture is taking away the inflow.

But there are proposals to use it for hydropower too:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediterranean%E2%80%93Dead_Sea_Canal

[myuncle (OP)]

Well, there's already salt marshes there, and seas usually do better than lakes because they have a steady source of water and evaporation keeps things cool. In this case there's been proposals to put hydroelectric generation in the mix as well:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qattara_Depression_Project

The main problem seems to be simply cost.

Qattara Depression Project is exactly what I was imagining. They could also use giant mirrors to heat the water even more quickly .