Water & Wastewater Asia November/December 2020

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42 VIEWPOINT By Grant McNay, Veolia Water Technologies With any piece of equipment, maintenance and repairs are required to ensure the system is performing at the highest standard. But how can one tell if a water (and wastewater) treatment plant is performing optimally? What are some tell-tale signs that reveal possible issues with a treatment system? As these treatment systems can have significant impact on a business’s competitivity and continuity, it is imperative for businesses to pay closer attention to when the systems require refreshing — either in the form of repairs or upgrades. Read on to find out more about five common warning signs that a water or wastewater treatment system may not be performing properly. 1 . REDUCED SYSTEM RELIABILITY For any manufacturer, ensuring the reliability of the production processes is of utmost importance. Any system downtime, including breakdowns, can impact the bottom line significantly. If a plant is experiencing downtime or breakdowns more frequently, it might signal that the plant’s process water or wastewater treatment systems are not running normally. Production processes that rely heavily on a stable water treatment system will be adversely affected and operations can be halted altogether — ultimately leading to financial losses — if the reliability of the water treatment system deteriorates. Regular checks can be adopted as a preventive measure and the need for an upgrade can be identified and addressed early. 2 DECREASE . 3 . IN EFFICIENCY An inefficient water treatment system can result in undue expenses on higher energy, water, and even chemical usage just to produce water or discharge of a certain quality. In the long term, a system’s sub-optimal performance may also mean a higher FLUCTUATIONS IN WATER QUALITY Water and wastewater treatment plant operators are no strangers to the standards for water or discharge quality (usually for compliance with local regulations). These standards serve both as a guide for the business and as a target for plant operators, which goes a long way to ensuring that the plant serves the business’s production needs well. When the water quality produced by a plant begins to deteriorate or fluctuate despite all other factors remaining constant, it could be an indication of issues with the treatment system. Variability in risk of equipment failure due to the greater strain it places on the equipment. Plant operators who are observing an increase in consumption of resources, such as electricity, water, and chemicals, should assess the systems to determine if there are issues with the plant that may have caused efficiency levels to dip. conductivity, total organic carbon (TOC), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total suspended solids (TSS), and pH levels are some common indicators. When a system performs inconsistently, there can be serious repercussions for the business, such as delays to the production process or even additional cost to treat the water or wastewater again. Plant operators can look into upgrading systems to advanced water or wastewater technologies that will allow them to achieve a steady water or discharge quality — ensuring production process or environmental discharge requirements are met. November / December 2020 • waterwastewaterasia.com
VIEWPOINT 43 . DECLINE IN TREATMENT treatment system, engineers considers the 4 CAPACITY plant’s water needs and specifies a system Another indication that the water with the required capacity. A decline in treatment system is not working well is the system’s treatment capacity reflects a decline in capacity that may lead to possible issues with the plant and that it an inability to support production. One may be due for some repairs or upgrades. such example is a dip in the system’s flowrates. When designing a water INCREASED REPORTS OF control agent when treating process water 5 . SAFETY INCIDENCES so as to control pure water quality and Most facilities that deal with water or prevent biofouling. wastewater treatment are classified hazardous due to the high amounts Safety incidences are serious warning signs of energy and chemicals consumed that the water treatment system is not during the treatment processes. performing optimally and presents risks It is also important to monitor the to both the staff and equipment involved. operations for safety hazards like rising Plant operators will do well to ensure their gas pressure in tanks or a sudden treatment systems meet safety standards release of pressure, gases, or heat — through conducting regular audits to which are complications that could identify gaps in processes or issues with arise due to the processes involved the current system. Automated solutions in treating water or wastewater. For like chemical dosing equipment can also be example, nitrogen gas is commonly adopted to reduce employee exposure to injected to the stream as a bacterial chemicals and to minimise risks. OPTIMISATION TO ENHANCE BUSINESS COMPETITIVITY Water (and wastewater) treatment systems that perform sub-optimally can affect production lines, damage reputations, and even lead to financial losses. Businesses may need to constantly optimise their water and wastewater treatment systems in order to remain competitive. An experienced partner like Veolia can offer businesses a comprehensive range of service offerings, including maintenance services, audit programmes, and real-time digital monitoring tools, which can mitigate possible performance issues and overcome the challenges in managing the health of their treatment systems. November / December 2020 • waterwastewaterasia.com
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Page 5 and 6: VIEWPOINT 36 Sustainable technology
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