DRINKING WATER

getty-2093684567-water-flow Unlocking The Flow: The Transformative Value Of Meter Data Management For Water Utilities

MDM systems transform raw meter data into actionable intelligence, enhancing operational efficiency, driving proactive leak detection, improving billing accuracy, and supporting vital water conservation initiatives.

DRINKING WATER CASE STUDIES AND WHITE PAPERS

  • Case Studies Make A Strong Case For Ozone Sidestream Injection

    This article will explore various SSI systems and the principal benefit that each setup delivers. 

  • A More Efficient Approach To EPA Stage 2 DBP Compliance

    Everyone wants pathogen-free drinking water, and adding chlorine is a great way to get it. Unfortunately, the dirtier a water treatment plant (WTP)’s raw water inflow — in terms of natural organic matter (NOM) or microbial organisms — the more disinfection byproducts (DBPs) the chlorination process will generate in the form of trihalomethanes (THMs) and haloacetic acids (HAAs). Those DBPs increase the risk of non-compliance with the U.S. EPA’s Disinfectants and Disinfection Byproducts Rules. Choosing the right instrumentation to measure NOM through spectral absorption coefficients (SACs) can have a big impact on treatment strategies — in terms of both costs and compliance performance.

  • Hydra-Stop Solutions Isolate Damaged Valve During Water Main Replacement

    The Village of Covington, Ohio had an ambitious 90-day project to replace the water main, taps, sewer main, laterals, and storm sewer through the center of town. Unfortunately, on day one, an unknown water service line was snagged and the top half of an 8” valve blew off, causing water to shoot 10”–12” out of the street.

  • Using AI To Reduce Water Loss And Enhance Pipe Reliability

    AI models give utility managers actionable insights into the health of their pipe networks, enabling a shift from reactive to predictive maintenance.

  • Membrane Aerated Biofilm Reactor Technology Validated For Title 22 Compliance

    Title 22 of California’s Water Recycling Criteria is among the strictest water treatment standards for water recycling and reuse in the United States. Fluence’s MABR demonstration plant was installed at the Codiga Resource Recovery Center (CR2C) in Stanford, California, in January 2018 for the purpose of third-party evaluation. The testing parameters included criteria to evaluate reliable enhanced nutrient removal in the form of Total Nitrogen, which is increasingly important across the United States and difficult and costly to achieve through conventional wastewater treatment.

  • 4 Trends For Water Infrastructure Longevity And Conservation In 2016

    Looking back on 2015, severe droughts, flat budgets, and insights on decreased reading system life have affected the way utility managers make decisions about water metering systems. As utilities plan for 2016, managers should consider four key water metering technology trends predicted to help utilities meet their water management initiatives in 2016 and beyond

  • District Heating In France: A V-Cone Customer Success Story

    The V-Cone® is widely known for its success as a metering solution in the oil and gas industry, but it’s also a burgeoning solution for many industrial applications, including district steam. The V-Cone’s tolerance for a range of flow conditions and media, as well as available customization, make it a viable, lasting solution for many unique new and retrofit steam applications.

  • Indiana American Water Eliminates Gaseous Chlorine At Hidden Lake WTP In Warsaw, Indiana

    In 2000, Indiana American Water, a subsidiary of American Water Company, purchased the Warsaw Indiana system which serves a population of over 16,000. Indiana American then completed a Comprehensive Planning Study that included a number of upgrades and improvements to enhance the reliability, safety and water quality of the system.

  • From Carbon Supply To System Optimization Services: Calgon Carbon's Total Solutions Advantage With Field Services

    While any company can claim to offer these services, WTPs need a total solutions provider that understands GAC technology as only a manufacturer can.

  • Water Meter Upgrade Delivers More Than Accurate Readings

    Municipality benefits from guaranteed savings, reduced costs, and customer service accolades

DRINKING WATER APPLICATION NOTES

DRINKING WATER PRODUCTS

Installed under pressure, up to 250 psi, the Insta-Valve 250 increases operator safety, limits environmental impact, and saves up to 100% of the costs related to system shutdown.

Blue-White’s Polysulfone Flow Meters have durable meter bodies with excellent heat and chemical resistance.  Units for use in UltraPure environments are available.

ECT2’s SORBIX™ H Series is designed for applications requiring flow rates of up to 1,357 GPM per vessel, such as drinking water systems. Additional vessel trains can be added to achieve any required flow rate.

Endress+Hauser is committed to your business, for improved plant performance.

The flowI® 2100 & 3101 series Encoded Meter is a smart water meter based on the latest ultrasonic technology. The meter has no moving parts and maintains its accuracy throughout its entire lifetime of 20 years.

C-FLUOR sensors are compact, low-power digital fluorometers designed for in situ monitoring. Available for chlorophyll, CDOM, phycocyanin, turbidity, and more, they provide highly sensitive measurements with simple integration into moorings, gliders, or autonomous vehicles. Rated to 2000 meters and factory calibrated, C-FLUOR delivers robust, continuous data for deep ocean research as well as long-term water quality applications.

LATEST INSIGHTS ON DRINKING WATER

DRINKING WATER VIDEOS

In 2007 he was named People magazine's Sexiest Man Alive, but these days, Matt Damon is getting noticed for something far less sexy. During a trip to Africa in 2006, Damon made it his mission to help people in developing countries have access to safe water and sanitation. He talks to Katie Couric in "World 3.0".

This video gives an overview of the features and benefits of the YSI Professional Plus, or Pro Plus, handheld multiparameter water quality instrument.

Lead poisoning water service lines are turning up around the globe at an alarming rate leaving millions angry. ePIPE's innovative technology creates a new pipe barrier inside the service lines eliminating water contact with the lead service lines.

Fresh off TrojanUV being named manufacturer of the year by the WateReuse Association, Water Online caught up with Jennifer Muller, Vice President of Global Municipal Sales for TrojanUV at this year’s WEFTEC, to understand how ultra violet systems are being applied in the growing movement towards direct and indirect potable water reuse.

How does a combined sewer work? A representative from the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District (NEORSD) takes 60 seconds to draw a combined sewer and why they matter.

ABOUT DRINKING WATER

In most developed countries, drinking water is regulated to ensure that it meets drinking water quality standards. In the U.S., the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administers these standards under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)

Drinking water considerations can be divided into three core areas of concern:

  1. Source water for a community’s drinking water supply
  2. Drinking water treatment of source water
  3. Distribution of treated drinking water to consumers

Drinking Water Sources

Source water access is imperative to human survival. Sources may include groundwater from aquifers, surface water from rivers and streams and seawater through a desalination process. Direct or indirect water reuse is also growing in popularity in communities with limited access to sources of traditional surface or groundwater. 

Source water scarcity is a growing concern as populations grow and move to warmer, less aqueous climates; climatic changes take place and industrial and agricultural processes compete with the public’s need for water. The scarcity of water supply and water conservation are major focuses of the American Water Works Association.

Drinking Water Treatment

Drinking Water Treatment involves the removal of pathogens and other contaminants from source water in order to make it safe for humans to consume. Treatment of public drinking water is mandated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the U.S. Common examples of contaminants that need to be treated and removed from water before it is considered potable are microorganisms, disinfectants, disinfection byproducts, inorganic chemicals, organic chemicals and radionuclides.

There are a variety of technologies and processes that can be used for contaminant removal and the removal of pathogens to decontaminate or treat water in a drinking water treatment plant before the clean water is pumped into the water distribution system for consumption.

The first stage in treating drinking water is often called pretreatment and involves screens to remove large debris and objects from the water supply. Aeration can also be used in the pretreatment phase. By mixing air and water, unwanted gases and minerals are removed and the water improves in color, taste and odor.

The second stage in the drinking water treatment process involves coagulation and flocculation. A coagulating agent is added to the water which causes suspended particles to stick together into clumps of material called floc. In sedimentation basins, the heavier floc separates from the water supply and sinks to form sludge, allowing the less turbid water to continue through the process.

During the filtration stage, smaller particles not removed by flocculation are removed from the treated water by running the water through a series of filters. Filter media can include sand, granulated carbon or manufactured membranes. Filtration using reverse osmosis membranes is a critical component of removing salt particles where desalination is being used to treat brackish water or seawater into drinking water.

Following filtration, the water is disinfected to kill or disable any microbes or viruses that could make the consumer sick. The most traditional disinfection method for treating drinking water uses chlorine or chloramines. However, new drinking water disinfection methods are constantly coming to market. Two disinfection methods that have been gaining traction use ozone and ultra-violet (UV) light to disinfect the water supply.

Drinking Water Distribution

Drinking water distribution involves the management of flow of the treated water to the consumer. By some estimates, up to 30% of treated water fails to reach the consumer. This water, often called non-revenue water, escapes from the distribution system through leaks in pipelines and joints, and in extreme cases through water main breaks.

A public water authority manages drinking water distribution through a network of pipes, pumps and valves and monitors that flow using flow, level and pressure measurement sensors and equipment.

Water meters and metering systems such as automatic meter reading (AMR) and advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) allows a water utility to assess a consumer’s water use and charge them for the correct amount of water they have consumed.