Method of inhibiting scale formation and deposition in desalination systems

1. A method of inhibiting formation and deposition of scale in a thermal desalination process, the method comprising adding to a saline aqueous source of the thermal desalination process a composition comprising (i) an acrylic acid 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropyl sulfonic acid copolymer, wherein said copolymer optionally comprises a fluorescent moiety and (ii) an oligomeric phosphosuccinic acid produced from reacting fumaric acid and hypophosphite in the presence of an initiator, wherein the thermal desalination process produces a water temperature of from about 80° C. to about 160° C., wherein said copolymer and said oligomeric phosphosuccinic acid are present in the composition at a copolymer-to-oligomeric phosphosuccinic acid weight ratio of about 1:2.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the oligomeric phosphosuccinic acid is a phosphinosuccinic acid oligomer having a formula [R X —(POOM)-R1 Y ], wherein R and R1 independently are H, [CH(COOM)], or [CH(COOM)-CH(COOM)], X and Y are either 0 or a small whole number, the sum of X and Y being greater than 2, and M is selected independently at each occurrence from the group consisting of: H, Na, K, NH 4 , and combinations thereof.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the oligomeric phosphinosuccinic acid comprises less than about 22 mole percent monosodium phosphinicobis-succinic acid; less than about 26 mole percent monosodium phosphinico-succinic acid; less than about 12 mole percent sodium phosphosuccinic acid; less than about 5 mole percent sodium phosphate; less than about 6 mole percent sodium hypophosphite; and greater than about 32 mole percent phosphinosuccinic acid oligomer having a formula [R X —(POOM)-R1 Y ], wherein R and R1 independently are H, [CH(COOM)], or [CH(COOM)-CH(COOM)], X and Y are either 0 or a small whole number, the sum of X and Y being greater than 2, and M is selected independently at each occurrence from the group consisting of: H, Na, K, NH 4 .

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the oligomeric phosphosuccinic acid comprises: (a) phosphinosuccinic acid oligomer having formula [R X —(POOM)-R1 Y ], wherein R and R1 independently are H, [CH(COOM)], or [CH(COOM)-CH(COOM)], X and Y are either 0 or a small whole number, the sum of X and Y being greater than 2, and M is selected independently at each occurrence from the group consisting of: H, Na, K, and NH 4 ; (b) about 36 mole percent to about 49 mole percent bis phosphinosuccinic acid adducts and about 26 mole percent to about 35 mole percent oligomeric phosphinosuccinic acid adducts; and (c) about 22 mole percent monosodium phosphinicobis-succinic acid, less than about 26 mole percent monosodium phosphinico-succinic acid, less than about 12 mole percent sodium phosphosuccinic acid, less than about 5 mole percent sodium phosphate, less than about 6 mole percent sodium phosphate, less than about 6 mole percent sodium hypophosphite, and greater than about 32 mole percent phosphinosuccinic acid oligomer having the formula [R X —(POOM)-R1 Y ].

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the composition comprises about 40 weight percent maleic anhydride reaction products.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the composition comprises mono, bis, and oligomeric phosphinosuccinic acid adducts.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the composition comprises mono, bis, and oligomeric phosphinosuccinic acid adducts selected from the group consisting of: about 20 mole percent to about 85 mole percent bis phosphinosuccinic acid adduct; and about 36 mole percent to about 49 mole percent bis phosphinosuccinic acid adducts and about 26 mole percent to about 35 mole percent oligomeric phosphinosuccinic acid adducts.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the composition is added to the saline aqueous source in an amount sufficient to provide a concentration of from about 0.01 ppm to about 10,000 ppm, based on the saline aqueous source.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the composition is added to the saline aqueous source sufficient to provide a concentration of from about 0.1 ppm to about 10 ppm, based on the saline aqueous source.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the saline aqueous source comprises at least one of: calcium, phosphate, magnesium, sulfate, bicarbonate, silicate, carbonate, iron, and combinations thereof.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the saline aqueous source is capable of forming and depositing scale comprising at least one of: calcium sulfate, calcium carbonate, magnesium hydroxide, magnesium carbonate, and combinations thereof.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the saline aqueous source comprises seawater.

13. The method of claim 1 , further comprising adding the composition to a recirculation brine of the thermal desalination process.

14. The method of claim 1 , further comprising adding to the saline aqueous source an additional scale inhibitor as part of said composition, separately, sequentially, or simultaneously, the additional scale inhibitor selected from the group consisting of: a polyacrylate, a polycarboxylate, polymaleic acid, and combinations thereof.

15. The method of claim 1 , further comprising adding to the saline aqueous source a component selected from the group consisting of: a corrosion inhibitor; an additional scale inhibitor; a fluorescent tracer; a water treatment polymer; a pH-controlling chemical; and combinations thereof, either as part of the composition or added separately, sequentially, or simultaneously with the composition.