Automated metering systems (AMSs) or “smart meters” can provide valuable data for electric and water utilities. Data analytics can be used to improve customer service, boost conservation, monitor the system, and even forecast demand. An ultimate goal might be to eventually monitor everything from streetlight intensity to fire hydrants.
Produced water (PW) is salty water trapped in the reservoir rock and brought up along with oil or gas during production. It subsists under high pressures and temperatures, and usually contains hydrocarbons and metals. Therefore, it must be treated before being discharged to surface water. Different techniques are being used to treat PW through phase separations, system control and design, and chemical treatments. In this paper, we discuss our experimental results on treating PW through electrocoagulation (EC).
Ever since Coriolis flow measurement technology achieved mainstream appeal, industry has been fervently striving to take advantage of its benefits. And while Coriolis is clearly a highly advantageous solution for many crucial flow measurement applications, it is not without flaw.
Wales is said to be wetter throughout the year than Northern Ireland and England, and is known for intense rainfall activity. Therefore, effectively treating and managing the country’s substantial stormwater runoff is of utmost importance. It’s also subject to increased scrutiny from governing bodies.
Stricter environmental policies and regulations worldwide are changing how industry approaches all aspects of business. Likewise, EU (European Union) environmental policies governing air, soil, and water quality have become progressively stringent.
These policy changes affect the power industry’s balance of meeting growing European energy demands with compliance to environmental standards. In order to conform with EU standards specific for flue gas, a coalfired generation plant (at the time owned by Endesa, Italia, S.p.A.) in Monfalcone, Italy, undertook the measure of installing a state-of-the-art FGD (flue gas desulfurization) system at their facility. This system would remove SO2 (sulfur dioxide) from the emissions for the 336 MW coal-fired power station.
In a recent keynote speech at Wharton’s Initiative for Global Environmental Leadership (IGEL), Innovyze CEO Colby Manwaring took the stage to address the current state of flood modeling techniques. The story? We can do better.
The City of Chester, IL was getting only about 6 months life out of the mechanical seals in their former non-clog lift station pumps. While replacing seals twice per year was difficult and expensive, the more serious problem occurred when the seals failed with the Mississippi River at flood stage and with the sealed lift station underwater.
When looking for a way to reduce plant operating costs, one of the potentially simplest and often least expensive solutions is to measure liquid and gas flow more accurately. Plant upgrade projects that focus on the continuous improvement of flow measurement and control can trim overall production costs by eliminating waste and reducing maintenance costs.
Coriolis measurement has been adopted as a default technology in many application scenarios due to its high accuracy and immunity to process variables (temperature, pressure and flow profile). However, Coriolis wasn't always widely accepted. Two applications, in particular, helped what was once a nascent flow measurement technology gain a foothold in the marketplace.
The Dallas County Water and Sewer Authority (DCWSA) in Selma, Alabama recently found itself in a tough spot: under the scrutiny of the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM). The wastewater treatment system needed better means for control. Ammonia, TSS, cBOD, and TKN readings were out of compliance. Then they discovered a new testing method known as simplified-TKN (s-TKN), and with it, better process control to achieve regulatory compliance. By Andrew Antonio, Municipal Wastewater Market Manager and Derek Walker, Applications Development Manager
Heat and power generation in biofuel engine cogeneration plants has become increasingly important as process industries look for more economical and environmentally friendly ways to produce energy.
Dosing of the precipitant was adjusted manually based on the laboratory measurement value of the daily composite sample and so was unable to respond to possible peaks. Although being compliant with the effluent limits, the values observed fluctuate between 0.2 and 0.8 mg/L.
Providing the best value to wastewater customers requires a team of operators that have a deep sense of ownership and are committed to continuous improvement. Such is the case for the operating staff at one wastewater treatment plant whose progressive attitude and a philosophy of “do it right” led them to an investment in online instrumentation and SCADA for compliance, monitoring, and control.
The Minnesota River Valley Public Utilities Commission (MRVPUC) provides wastewater treatment for the City of Le Sueur and the City of Henderson in south-central Minnesota. A significant factor facing the utility is the highly varying phosphorus load that challenges operators to meet the utility’s annual average discharge limit of 1.0 mg/L total phosphorus.
Rising energy prices have made accurate energy measurement a hot topic in recent decades. The need for accurate measurement technologies extends to many different application areas, including heating and cooling; compressed air; steam production and distribution; heavy fuel oil consumption; energy monitoring; and custody transfer. In response, new technology is being developed that integrates tasks previously requiring several measurement devices.
The VertiCel® system is superior to other aeration technologies because it saves energy and space, while producing an unparalleled effluent quality. It is ideally suited for wastewater treatment plants with process flows above two million gallons per day. The VertiCel® tanks in series design consists of an aerated-anoxic tank followed by an aerobic tank.
Alkagen® Solution is a fast-acting pH shift technology that effectively controls odors and corrosion in wastewater systems. This unique, proven product is environmentally safe and uses a combination of alkaline and nitrate technologies to remove and prevent hydrogen sulfide. Alkagen solution also reduces the impact of fats, oils, and grease (FOG) in the system while providing a beneficial alkaline supplement for the treatment plant.
Evaporation is an effective and reliable method to treat wastewaters that contain relatively high concentrations of total dissolved solids (TDS).
The Lamella® is the original inclined plate gravity settler. Introduced by Parkson in 1971, it has been the industry standard for this technology.
Capital Controls® Series 3700 Skid Mounted Gas Feed Systems are complete, pre-engineered packages which are factory assembled for easy, economical installation and operation.
Recently, I had the opportunity to tour a unique and innovative facility, the Bureau of Lab Services (BLS), the “water quality heartbeat of the Philadelphia Water Department” (PWD), as described by BLS director Gary Burlingame.
A real-world, industrial application of remote process monitoring proves that a little technology can go a long way in terms of cost savings and process improvement.
Rather than waiting on water scarcity and reacting to a crisis, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission is forging its own future, and that of others, by blazing a trail of water-reuse practice and policy.
This overview of computational fluid dynamic (CFD) modeling for wastewater treatment plant design reveals how it is applied to different system components, as well as why (i.e., the benefits) and when (in the design process) it should be applied.
Jon Loveland, Global Practice Leader - Alternative Water Supply at Black & Veatch, shares insight on a major development for membrane bioreactor (MBR) systems and potable reuse.
As we approach the hottest months of the year, wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) operators face a range of challenges arising from elevated summer temperatures. With all due respect to Eddie Cochran, this article outlines some of the cures — or at least preventive steps and countermeasures — for wastewater treatment’s “summertime blues.”
This video tells the story of how the community of East Bayfront converted an industrial area into a beautiful park that also acts as a neighborhood-wide stormwater treatment system, and what role the TrojanUVFit plays in the treatment train.
