A tool for energy management and cost assessment of pumps in waste water treatment plants

Abstract

WasteWater Treatment Plants (WWTPs) are generally considered energy intensive. Substantial energy saving potentials have been identified by several authors. Pumps consume around 12% of the overall WWTP energy consumption. In this paper we propose a methodology that uses the sensors commonly installed in WWTPs, such as volume and energy sensors, to perform energy benchmarking on pumps. The relationship between energy efficiency and flow rate is used to detect specific problems, and potential solutions are proposed, taking into consideration economical and environmental criteria (cost of externalities in energy production). The methodology integrates energy benchmarking, data-mining, and economical and environmental assessment. In order to make better informed decisions, plant managers can now perform a multivariate analysis within a very short time, using information generally available in WWTPs.