Americans and Canadians got a peek into the future when the City of Toledo shut its drinking water taps in 2014, issuing a do-not-drink order on the municipal water supplies serving 500,000 people. Levels of microcystin, a potent liver toxin produced by blue-green algae, were more than double the World Health Organization's safe limit. More than 700 square miles of the Lake Erie surface was covered by a harmful algal bloom (HAB), and drinking water plants couldn't remove the algal cells and the toxins they produced.
There are a variety of reasons for wanting accurate flow metering — e.g., billing purposes, precise proportioning of chemical injections, and other process flow decisions. That is why highly accurate mag meters are so popular in many applications. Now, new lightweight, corrosion-resistant mag meters provide the same advantages as plastic piping for harsh environments and flows that cover all the bases…and acids.
A common misconception among wastewater plant managers is that pressure-based blower controls remain an industry “best practice” for aeration. The problem is this approach was developed during an age when most blowers were constant speed machines with outputs that could only be governed by the manipulation of inlet valve position or header pressure. Newer self-tuning, airflow-based control systems save energy, improve effluent, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
While municipalities have been working for several years to address per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as PFAS, a growing number of industrial operations are being prompted to treat their wastewater and stormwater for the contaminants. While any steps taken to reduce PFAS are positive, performing a thorough investigation before selecting a solution is critical to getting the best results at the lowest cost.
One of the most perplexing challenges that wastewater plant operators face is the need to measure the various sources of influent. For closed-pipe systems, the use of traditional flow devices requires intensive and expensive engineering to keep the pipe full at the point of measurement. The good news is that there is an emerging solution that measures flow in a less-than-full pipe.
Once you know Grundfos, you realize the company’s commitment to promoting sustainability is genuine. The global leader in pumps spearheads programs worldwide to help promote the efficient and sustainable use of water and energy.
Blades, Delaware, a small town in Sussex County, provides drinking water to more than 1,300 residential and business locations throughout the community. In 1981, the citizens of Blades voted to improve their water and sewage facilities by establishing a central water supply and tying all properties into the nearby Seaford Sewer System. By February of 1982, the project was complete and since then the town has had a clean and safe municipal water supply.
A growing number of wastewater treatment plants are banking on biogas from their sludge as a supplemental power source. Unfortunately, biogas is notoriously difficult to quantify. Ultrasonic flow meters specifically designed for biogas applications can provide a solution that addresses many of the issues created by traditional technology.
Open channels are an efficient way to feed wastewater treatment facilities but pose a challenge because the flow rate can be difficult to measure with traditional devices. Until recently, radar level measurement devices have been cost-prohibitive for most municipalities. Newer advancements, however, have brought the cost down significantly, so it is now feasible for wastewater plant managers to consider adopting the technology for open-channel applications.
Drinking water taste and odor issues — which have increased in both frequency and intensity in recent years — are putting municipalities in a tough spot. Beyond the simple aesthetic ramifications, failing to address these issues invariably creates consumer uncertainty about the quality and safety of the water. The good news is that dosing powdered activated carbon into the water stream provides an efficient and cost-effective solution to looming taste and odor problems.
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