DRINKING WATER
A New Approach To Infrastructure Resiliency
Extreme weather and seismic threats are driving a new collaborative approach to infrastructure. By aligning utility needs with academic research and manufacturing innovation, providers can validate resilient technologies and deploy data-backed solutions for long-term reliability.
DRINKING WATER CASE STUDIES AND WHITE PAPERS
-
![uv-disinfection]( "Advances In UV Disinfection For Wastewater Tertiary Treatment In Open Channels")
Advances In UV Disinfection For Wastewater Tertiary Treatment In Open ChannelsMeeting modern water reuse goals requires moving past legacy disinfection. Advances in UV technology now provide chemical-free, reliable pathogen inactivation for even high-flow, open-channel tertiary treatment.
-
![iStock-172292853]( "Seal The Deal: Shielding Against A Mag Meter's Achilles Heel")
Seal The Deal: Shielding Against A Mag Meter's Achilles HeelWhen it comes to metering water flow — drinking water or wastewater — full-bore mag meters offer many advantages. While the underlying technology based on Faraday’s Law of electromagnetic induction is shared among all styles of full-bore mag meters, specific implementations have impacts on longevity and accuracy. Here is what to look for when the time to choose arrives.
-
![1195764431]( "Case Studies Make A Strong Case For Ozone Sidestream Injection")
Case Studies Make A Strong Case For Ozone Sidestream InjectionThis article will explore various SSI systems and the principal benefit that each setup delivers.
-
Theoretical Operation Of High-Efficiency Ultraviolet Water Treatment Chamber
The NeoTech Aqua ReFleX™ water purification chambers are the most efficient and compact units available today. They require an order of magnitude less energy and less than 25% of the system volume to achieve the same or better purification result as competing chambers. This is the first in a series of three white papers explaining the benefits of these systems. By J. R. Cooper, Ph.D, NeoTech Aqua Solutions, Inc.
-
![KASCO_CertiSafe_SM50_0.5HP-3]( "Challenges In Ensuring Long-Term Water Quality (And How To Address Them)")
Challenges In Ensuring Long-Term Water Quality (And How To Address Them)Read about how mixers help prevent stratification, maintain consistent disinfectant distribution, and reduce sediment buildup, thereby mitigating public health risks associated with water storage.
-
![Connectionspd03.jpg]( "Thrust Restraint Design Of Vertical Offsets And Tees")
Thrust Restraint Design Of Vertical Offsets And TeesThere are numerous fitting combinations and configurations that are used in the everyday construction of pressurized water lines. This report describes vertical offsets, tees, and using joint restraint products to simplify their installation. The use of joint restraint products virtually eliminates thrust blocks and tie rods.
-
![GettyImages-1152275506_450_300]( "Operational Resilience Through Temporary Water Reuse Solutions")
Operational Resilience Through Temporary Water Reuse SolutionsTemporary water reuse systems help industrial plants avoid costly downtime by maintaining treatment capabilities during maintenance, failure, or testing—offering fast deployment, flexibility, and permanent-quality results.
-
![panoramic-aerial-view-of-a-upscale-suburbs-iStock-1292500139]( "Achieving Better Visibility With Less Work Through Software As A Service")
Achieving Better Visibility With Less Work Through Software As A ServiceOperating a water treatment and distribution system is difficult enough on its own, but the job gets even more complex for utility managers struggling to harness their metering data.
-
![SaintPaul]( "Saint Paul Regional Water Services Upgrades To Corrosion-Resistant Zinc-Coated Ductile Iron Water Main")
Saint Paul Regional Water Services Upgrades To Corrosion-Resistant Zinc-Coated Ductile Iron Water MainIt is no secret that a large portion of the drinking water infrastructure in the U.S. is near or past its intended design life. Our nation’s water infrastructure needs an overhaul, and the cost of doing so is climbing rapidly. ASCE’s 2017 Infrastructure Report Card graded the nation’s drinking water infrastructure a D. According to AWWA, an estimated $1 trillion is necessary to maintain and expand drinking water service to meet demands over the next 25 years.
-
Cheyenne Board Of Public Utilities In Cheyenne, Wyoming Successfully Moves From Calcium Hypochlorite Tablets To Microclor® On-Site Hypochlorite Generation
The Cheyenne Board of Public Utilities (BOPU) operates the water and wastewater systems for the capital of Wyoming which has a population of more than 63,000. Located in the fast growing Front Range Urban Corridor, BOPU is challenged by growth, periodic water scarcity and aging infrastructure.
DRINKING WATER APPLICATION NOTES
-
How To Read An Encoder9/13/2013
The HR-E LCD encoder has a 9-digit Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) to show consumption, flow and alarm information. The display automatically toggles between 9-digit and 6-digit consumption, rate of flow and meter model.
-
Operations And LRV Calculations At Southwest Pipeline Project Drinking Water Treatment Facility4/14/2016
This presentation will discuss the operation of a 4 MGD pressurized two-stage Ultrafiltration (UF) plant over a 14 month period at the Oliver-Mercer-North Dunn (OMND) Drinking Water Treatment Facility, North Dakota.
-
Bardac® LF 18 — A Novel Cooling Water Algaecide10/23/2020
The active ingredient in Bardac® LF 18 is dioctyl dimethyl ammonium chloride. This product comes in two concentrations: -10WT (10% w/w) and -50WT (50% w/w). Several chemical properties of this product yield key benefits that set it apart from other industrial cooling water products. It is a quaternary ammonium compound (quat). Quats are typically low cost and highly effective biocides for a broad spectrum of organisms.
-
Real-Time Conductivity Monitoring Estimates Chloride Levels In Minnesota Watershed By Using The Aqua TROLL 20011/18/2011Monitoring deicing chemical levels can help researchers, city governments, and regulatory agencies understand runoff impacts on surface water, groundwater, and surrounding environments.
-
Flexible Expansion Joints Provide Protection For Pipelines Subject To Subtle Or Sudden Movement12/7/2020
Flex-Tend flexible expansion joints have a proven record of providing protection for pipelines subject to subtle or sudden movement. As with all products used in the water and wastewater industry, protection is optimized with the selection of the proper assembly incorporated into a sound design. This paper is intended to provide assistance in both of these areas.
-
Determination Of Pesticide Residue In Vegetables9/10/2014
QuEChERS is a Quick-Easy-Cheap-Effective-Rugged-Safe extraction method that has been developed for the determination of pesticide residues in agricultural commodities.
-
The Basics: Testing RO Quality4/28/2014
Osmosis is the phenomenon of lower dissolved solids in water passing through a semi-permeable membrane into higher dissolved solids water until a near equilibrium is reached.
-
Take Control Of Your Water Distribution Network With Digitalization And Remote Monitoring5/19/2022
Any process plant constantly generates a high volume of status data. Today, this data can be extracted from the plant, stored, analyzed, and prepared to meet operator needs and lower marginal costs.
-
Hemodialysis Patient Health10/29/2021
Controlling dialysate quality is critically important to hemodialysis patient health. Complications as minor as nausea and fatigue or as severe as metabolic acidosis and sepsis can result if dialysate composition is incorrect. All the factors that ultimately affect dialysate composition must therefore be carefully monitored and controlled: proper proportioning and mixing of concentrates with water; the quality of water mixed with concentrates to form dialysate; and the quality of water used in the reprocessing of hemodialyzers, system maintenance and disinfection.
-
Cloth Media Filtration Removes Coal Ash And Coal Fines At Power Plants1/15/2019
Coal-fired power plants generate coal fines and coal ash from a number of sources, including coal combustion residuals (CCR), particularly fly and bottom ash from coal furnaces, and coal pile runoff during rain events. In support of an industry-wide effort to reduce, improve, and remove coal ash ponds, a variety of technologies have been tested and employed. Read the full application note to learn more.
DRINKING WATER PRODUCTS
The flowIQ 3200 meter is a great fit for commercial and district metering with its advanced ultrasonic technology and smart capabilities. This meter provides unparalleled visibility into water usage, helping prevent revenue loss and manage your water resources more efficiently.
The PTBT4 is a lab-accurate water quality pocket tester that allows you to use your mobile device and the X2 app to measure, store and export data.
Endress+Hauser releases the Memograph M RSG45 Advanced Data Manager DIN rail version, an intelligent remote device with extensive communication capabilities, making it ideal for IIoT applications and use as an edge device for getting data to cloud-based servers. Thanks to its intuitive operation, Memograph M adapts quickly and easily to any application. The process values are clearly presented on the display and logged safely, limits are monitored and analyzed.
De Nora Water Technologies can help you to optimise your electrochlorination system operation to deliver consistent life long performance.
Endress+Hauser offers a complete assortment of compact thermometers, modular thermometers, thermowells, measurement inserts, transmitters and accessories for all types of process industries such as Oil & Gas, Chemicals, Food & Beverage, Life Sciences, Primaries & Metal, Power & Energy.
Aqua-Aerobic® Membrane Systems featuring NO BREAK Aqua MultiBore® membranes are designed to effectively remove suspended solids, particulate phosphorus, bacteria, cysts and other harmful impurities, resulting in safe, high quality water
LATEST INSIGHTS ON DRINKING WATER
-
![businesswoman asking question in education event-GettyImages-2198836359]( "AMI Under The Microscope: Beaverton Water Division Answers Questions About Its AMI Transition")
Beaverton Water Division’s transition to Kamstrup AMI and acoustic leak detection is modernizing meter reading, reducing infrastructure costs, improving leak identification, and streamlining operations as deployment progresses.
-
![Texas Flag-GettyImages-942623440]( "Meeting Demand, Ensuring Compliance: A Success Story In Executing Fast-Paced Water System Improvements In Missouri City, Texas")
Learn how the Mustang Bayou Service Area (MBSA) Water System Improvements project delivered a fast-tracked, multi-phase response to rapid development and critical capacity challenges in one of the Missouri City’s fastest-growing regions.
-
![Legionella pneumophila-GettyImages-1451790531]( "Legionella And The Need For Next-Generation Detection: Steps Water Utilities Can Take To Alleviate The Risk")
As water systems grow more complex and climate patterns shift, Legionella is emerging as one of the most persistent and underestimated risks in the built environment. The threat to public health from Legionnaires' disease will likely further escalate unless decisive action is taken. -
![maasjackson]( "Metering as a Service Improves Jackson, MS, Water Infrastructure")
The city of Jackson faced a water crisis that went beyond the tap. What began as an ambitious plan to modernize its water metering infrastructure in 2014 became a logistical and financial nightmare, costing the city millions in lost revenue and declining public trust. Metering as a Service (MaaS) offered the city an alternative option. -
![leadpipeInground_Getty-2211014580]( "The Final Mile: The U.S. Simply Must Rush To Finish Its Critical Lead-Pipe Cleanup")
There has been an abundance of funding available to address the estimated 9.2 million lead service lines currently deliver drinking water to homes, businesses, schools, and unsuspecting citizens throughout the United States. So it is disheartening to realize that millions of lead water lines are still delivering water to citizens. -
![Digital communication-GettyImages-2042965298]( "Beaverton's New AMI Solution Checks Every Box: Operations, Billing, Service, And Savings")
This Q&A follows the Webinar: Beaverton's New AMI Solution Checks Every Box: Operations, Billing, Service, & Savings hosted by Water Online on October 21, 2025. The webinar featured the leadership team from Beaverton Water Division as they discussed lessons learned across operations, billing, and customer service, offering a 360-degree perspective on implementing and managing an AMI system.
DRINKING WATER VIDEOS
Discover how specialized restrained joints facilitate efficient horizontal directional drilling and bridge piping through a simplified, tool-free assembly process that ensures long-term reliability in challenging environments.
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:
- Source water for a community’s drinking water supply
- Drinking water treatment of source water
- 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.