Automation of water treatment plants: a study technical-economic
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.6008/CBPC2237-9290.2022.002.0004Keywords:
Raw water, Treatment efficiency, Economic feasibility, Financial indicatorsAbstract
The alarming predictions of population growth lead to the development of new technologies and/or methods to supply the growing demand for water in urban areas. In this way, different forms and technological levels are available to carry out the water treatment process aimed at public supply, with the purpose of better efficiency and lower operating and maintenance costs. For this, one option would be to optimize the water treatment process through instrumentation, control and automation of water treatment plants (WTPs). In this context, the aim of this study was to evaluate the treatment efficiency and the technical and economic feasibility of automating a water treatment plant, compared to conventional treatment plants. For this, four plants with similar characteristics were selected (flow rate, raw water characteristics and/or design) and evaluated in terms of implementation costs, operation, net present value, internal rate of return and payback in different scenarios (State company and private). The results showed that WTP-2, with an automation system, presented a similar result to WTP-1 (without automation system) and was considerably better than other WTPs with similar flows rates. The use of a treatment plant automation system is capable of saving 80.00%. Both scenarios demonstrated a positive net present value. The payback indicators showed that the value of the investment with the acquisition and installation of the equipment can be recovered in up to 4 years at the state-owned companies and 7 years at the private companies. Overall, this study provides insights that intrinsically contributes to the application of automation systems in water treatment systems, demonstrating efficiency and technical-economic feasibility.
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