DRINKING WATER

mueller-AMI Success Roadmap For Advanced Metering Infrastructure Installations

For a water utility of any size to function properly, effective meter reading is a vital aspect of day-to-day operations. Meter reading supports both ends of the transaction, ensuring that water is being properly delivered, accounted for and billed each month.

DRINKING WATER CASE STUDIES AND WHITE PAPERS

  • Aclara RF Network System Stands Up To Hurricane Sandy

    When Hurricane Sandy struck in October of 2012, Aclara's RF network technology, which was installed across New York City's five boroughs, was under pressure to perform effectively. 

  • Medium Pressure UV: A Sustainable Solution For Water Disinfection And Dechlorination

    Take a closer look at medium-pressure UV systems, which offer a 2-in-1 solution with simultaneous disinfection and dechlorination for greater environmental savings.

  • Jar Testing Gets An Upgrade

    Jar testing is a common laboratory procedure used at water and wastewater treatment plants. In a set of beakers a defined amount of water is mixed with varying amounts of coagulant, and through observation by a trained operator the optimal amount of coagulant can be determined.

  • ABB Flowmeters Help Keep Macallan Whisky At Its Peak

    Accurate measurement delivered by a range of ABB flowmeters is helping the company behind the world-renowned Macallan whisky brand to maintain its high product quality standards following its move to its new 187.2M USD distillery.   

  • V-Cone Differential-Pressure Meters: Accuracy To Go With The Flow

    When space is tight and straight-run piping is at a premium, V-Cone differential pressure (DP) meters are an excellent choice — especially where the potential for turbulence raises metering accuracy issues with other conventional meter styles. This article describes how to satisfy some challenging water infrastructure applications with V-Cone meter accuracy at a low permanent pressure loss.

  • Groundwater Replenishment System - Orange County, California

    The full-scale advanced treatment system takes filtered secondary effluent from the neighboring OCSD treatment plant and converts it to water that exceeds all drinking water quality standards.

  • The Village Of Frankfort Awarded For Operational Efficiencies Achieved Through The Mi.Net™ System And Meter Replacement

    Most recently, Frankfort Village officials decided to replace its water and electric meters and implement an advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) network to increase the operational efficiencies of its water and electric infrastructure in ways that would help improve employee safety, water and energy conservation and customer service while also reducing operational costs.

  • Top 12 Communication Hacks

    As a meter technology company, we understand the importance of approaching challenges with smart solutions and proactive communication. Ultimately, our technology is all about helping customers and utilities to feel empowered, connected, and capable of taking on problems. Master Meter, Inc. created a list of the top 12 communication hacks found to be most successful in 2020. Implement these tactics and watch your utility connect with your customers and build trust with your community.

  • Florida County Aims for Full Usage Of Reclaimed Water

    In 2016 Hillsborough County Public Utilities, a forward thinking organization, initiated the first direct potable reuse pilot project in Florida. In its efforts to utilize 100 percent of its reclaimed water, the progressive utility created a successful program to effectively suspend surface water discharges. The pilot project validated direct potable reuse, which is now a key initiative for many central Florida utilities due to the implementation of the Central Florida Water Initiative requiring the additional utilization of reuse water resources.

  • Chlorine vs. Chloramine: A Tale Of Two Chemistries

    Here are some insights that can help water treatment plant (WTP) operators deal with their internal concerns about DBPs and residual chlorine or ammonia levels, as well as their external concerns about customer perceptions of water quality.

DRINKING WATER APPLICATION NOTES

  • Oxidation Reduction Potential
    10/29/2021

    What is ORP? Oxidation Reduction Potential or Redox is the activity or strength of oxidizers and reducers in relation to their concentration. Oxidizers accept electrons, reducers lose electrons. Examples of oxidizers are: chlorine, hydrogen peroxide, bromine, ozone, and chlorine dioxide. Examples of reducers are sodium sulfite, sodium bisulfate and hydrogen sulfide. Like acidity and alkalinity, the increase of one is at the expense of the other.

  • Solution For Algae Blooms
    12/17/2015

    Harmsco® Filtration Products is pleased to offer a solution to the ever increasing blue-algae blooms in water sources. A multi-barrier approach is necessary to physically remove intact (algae and cyanobacteria) before they rupture in the treatment process and then remove extracellular cyanobacteria through adsorption.

  • Ultrapure Water For Determination of Toxic Elements In Environmental Analyses
    4/10/2018

    In this paper the importance of reagent water quality for toxic element environmental analyses is discussed, and the suitability of fresh ultrapure water produced using MilliporeSigma water purification systems for ICP-OES and ICP-MS trace element analyses in environmental laboratories is demonstrated.

  • Water Determination In Liquefied Petroleum Gas Using GC BID And Ionic Liquid Column Watercol™
    6/28/2018

    Water in petrochemical feedstocks can cause problems for processors. Freezing of pipe lines and valves and poisoning of expensive catalysts are just a few examples.

  • Scrubber Application
    1/27/2022

    This customer supplies district heating and electricity for the region of Sønderborg. For one of their waste applications a MAG meter failed within 6 months, and was successfully replaced with a Panametrics Aquatrans AT600.

  • Take Control Of Your Water Distribution Network With Digitalization And Remote Monitoring
    5/19/2022

    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.

  • Optimizing Brine Flow In A Geothermal Power Plant
    1/27/2022

    Different flow meter technologies were used in this geothermal power plant to monitor and measure brine. However, these traditional technologies failed. That’s where Panametrics PT900 Portable Ultrasonic Flowmeter was able to help.

  • Innovative Solutions To Drinking Water Decontamination In Small And Medium Treatment Plants
    9/21/2017

    Air stripping technology effectively removes VOCs, THMs, and CO2 for improved adherence to water quality regulations.

  • Application Note: Busseron Creek Watershed Partnership Addresses Concerns In A Rural Watershed
    1/20/2010
    As with other watershed organizations, the Busseron Creek Watershed Partnership (BCWP) exists because of surface water quality degradation. In this case, those waters drain 163,231 acres of a watershed that crosses the boundaries of Vigo, Clay, Green, and Sullivan counties in West- Central Indiana. By YSI
  • Industry-Specific Applications For UV Technology
    6/17/2024

    In Microelectronics, Aquafine UV systems provide a synergistic approach towards the reduction of trace organics and microbial contamination for ultrapure water.

DRINKING WATER PRODUCTS

The OPTIFLUX 1050 is a cost-effective electromagnetic flowmeter (EMF) with lightweight wafer-style design. The meter is a very economical solution for simple applications with conductive liquids (≥ 5 μS/cm) involving low solid content (up to 10%). This particularly includes applications in water, wastewater, mobile applications, agriculture or firefighting where extremely high accuracy, extensive diagnostics or a wide range of communication options are not a priority. The extra isolation of the electronic device and housing makes this EMF also suitable for use in areas with extreme humidity.

The DPS5000 SDI-12 from Druck, part of the UNIK5000 family, offers integrated digital electronics to enhance the performance level of the UNIK 5000 Pressure Sensing Platform to levels unmatched by traditional analogue sensors. It uses SDI-12 protocol, over which fully compensated readings of pressure and temperature are sent, as well as control of many functions of the device.

McCrometer’s ExactSteam V-Cone System is a complete flowmeter for steam metering, factory configured for energy metering or mass flow. The meter accurately measures steam across the entire range with technology-leading low flow cut off.

HYMAX GRIP  joins and restrains a wide selection of pipes of different types and diameters, easily and reliably. Due to its patented design, it allows the joining of pipes of the same or different materials and diameters and prevents axial pipe movement.

This proprietary composite spiral element is available in fiberglass and netting wrap configurations with an anti-telescoping device (ATD) on both ends. A brine seal (one end) is available on the fiberglass wrap only.

The OPTIFLUX 2100 is an electromagnetic flowmeter (EMF) for standard water and wastewater applications. It is the ideal solution for all general flow applications where reliable flow measurement with sufficient yet not extremely high accuracy is required. Installation in measurement chambers subject to (constant) flooding is possible with the remote IP68 / NEMA 6P rated version.

LATEST INSIGHTS ON DRINKING WATER

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.
  • 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.

  • Amid the AI-fueled gold rush, more leaders are beginning to pay attention to the short- and long-term natural resource concerns, especially around all the water needed to keep data centers running.
  • Water pricing often fails to reflect scarcity, quality, or long-term risk, forcing companies to act internally. But this action is not being done in a vacuum. The ripple effect of internal water pricing is bound to impact water utilities, and ultimately, ratepayers and consumers.

DRINKING WATER VIDEOS

Across North America, streams and rivers are becoming saltier, thanks to road deicers, fertilizers and other salty compounds that humans indirectly release into waterways. At the same time, freshwater supplies are becoming more alkaline.

After rising public pressure and lawsuits over health concerns, the city of Newark, New Jersey (a half-hour from New York City) is undertaking one of the most ambitious and impactful infrastructure projects in the country: replacing all of its residential lead service lines within 2 years.

This 45-minute webinar will explore the latest technology and methodologies that are transforming water management. Participants will gain a comprehensive understanding of how real-time data analytics can significantly enhance the efficiency and accuracy of water-loss detection and proactive management.

Nick Dugan is an environmental engineer working in EPA's Cincinnati laboratory. He is currently focused on bench-scale trials evaluating the impact of common drinking water treatment oxidants on intact, toxin-producing cyanobacterial cells over a range of water quality conditions.

In this episode of Ozone Talks, host Sannel Patel takes viewers deep inside Pinnacle Ozone Solutions’ cutting-edge ozone generation technology. Joined by senior engineer Eric Francis and technician Dayton Julius, the discussion centers around the Quad Block ozone cell—a patented, modular system redefining ozone production through innovation, precision, and durability.

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.