Water & Wastewater Treatment Magazine
Issue link: https://fhpublishing.uberflip.com/i/1223154
30 | APRIL 2020 | WWT | www.wwtonline.co.uk Pumps & valves: overview es are dependent on time used and will vary based on a combination of availabil- ity and demand, power usage per volume pumped, and number of duty cycles." While the BHR Group's Dawson predicts that the demands of a rising population and climate change will mean the existing infrastructure will have to be refurbished. "The cost of managing increases in ash oods and storms along with changing sludge pro- les will need to be balanced against Ofwat's drivers of a‚ ord- able bills and customer expectations," says Dawson. "Dealing with these pressures will mean optimising existing assets to reduce costs and increase capability. This will mean improved real-time monitoring and control, leading to a smarter management of systems. "Advanced digital technology like BHR's SLOT 2.0 system losses tool have a part to play," he adds. "The so‰ ware was developed as part of a research programme originally funded by UK water companies and suppliers and can mini- mise the risk in sludge process design and maximise system eŒ ciency. It can identify the most e‚ ective pumps to use on a given system – selecting the optimal size, type, quantity and con- guration, right down to the manufacturer." PR19 – the dawn of a new era? In December, Ofwat published the eagerly awaited PR19 price determinations, which included a string of demands for the sec- tor, such as reducing mains bursts by 12 per cent and reducing pollution incidents by 12 per cent. "Water companies are being chal- lenged to optimise their existing facilities in the next asset management period, AMP7, which starts on 1 April 2020," says Dawson. "They are also being asked to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2030. "Now is the time for utilities to invest in new technology, if it is going to have the desired impact on these stretching targets. Utilities can no longer squander energy and emit unnecessary carbon and the cost challenge means they need to get to know their assets and process streams much better," he adds. "More eŒ cient pumping of sludge could also help utilities achieve both ends, whether users are moving sludge within a treatment facility or between sites. As with any application, accurate selection and sizing of pumps used for the transport of sewage sludge has important cost implications, along with operational risk management considerations. Under- sizing can mean failure to achieve the required throughput, whilst oversizing leads to excessive capital cost and energy consumption," explains Dawson. "SLOT 2.0 is one technology that can help calculate how much energy is re- quired, which pipes and pumps o‚ er the greatest eŒ ciency and whether a system has the capacity and resilience to manage changing sludge properties. The reality is that existing equipment now has to work harder, moving thicker, more concen- trated sludges that are more diŒ cult to pump." Black & Veatch's Tattersall says he be- lieves that big data and how it will impact the maintenance of assets will be a "big feature of the coming AMP cycle". "The start of the new cycle allows all those involved, utilities and suppliers alike, to align on how that data can be delivered and interpreted to provide better outcomes to consumers," he adds. While Wilo's director of water manage- ment, industry, energy solutions and OEM, Simon Oakes tells WWT the biggest challenge of the PR19 time period is "resilience". "That's equipment that can extend op- erational performance and interact on its own intelligence to limit human interac- tion for basic and sophisticated decision- making to reduce costs," adds Oakes. Fujitsu UK's Wright says PR19 will lead to better management and optimisation of pumping across both waste and potable water. "The key outcomes of this will be im- proved resilience, decreasing leakage and pollution events, lowering costs, as well as increasing overall performance. Whether the optimisation process will be executed as a service by the suppliers of the equipment, or by the utility them- selves, or by other third parties, remains to be seen. The challenge will be having the skilled sta‚ in place to carry those changes out," adds Wright. Like so many parts of the water industry, the role pumps and valves play is evolving. From helping to generate performance data to generating renew- able industry, it is clear pumps are no longer just simple pumps. They have earned their place as the beating heart of an industry, which provides a vital service to homes, businesses and communities across the country. Learning lessons from the recent fl oods February saw large parts of the UK battered by torrential wind and rain, which lead to fl ooding in various parts of the country. According to the Environment Agency, England received over 200 per cent of its average February rainfall with some areas experiencing a month's worth of rain in 24 hours. "The wettest February on record, following on from a very wet autumn and winter, has placed exceptional strain on stormwater management assets," says Black & Veatch's Tattersall. "Storm and fl ood water management consists of a mixture of passive and active mitigation measures. The heart of active mitigation systems are large pumps and valves (o en referred to as gates) to control and direct stormwater fl ows. In addition, the short-term recent events have demonstrated the importance of having dependable access to portable high-volume pumps that can be deployed swi ly to the areas of greatest need."