The perfect formula for a wastewater treatment plant
October 2014Analytical Instrumentation & Environmental Monitoring
Energy consumption in the biological stage is one of the main cost drivers in wastewater treatment plants. This is mainly due to the oxygen blowers in the aeration process, thus optimisation of this process offers enormous potential for energy and cost savings.
More efficient aeration control
Oxygen blowers are often operated in a time-based manner or using only a simple form of oxygen control. Hence, in many cases the blowers run longer than necessary resulting in wasted energy. Endress+Hauser offers an aeration solution for dynamic control of blower hardware in accordance with the actual load: Liquicontrol.
It optimises operating times for nitrification and de-nitrification processes, which minimises energy consumption and operating costs. Moreover, Liquicontrol ensures accurate and reliable outlet values at all times.
Easy integration into existing plants
As a modular and scalable system, Liquicontrol can also be used for phosphate elimination. Precipitant pumps are controlled based on the actual load, offering significant savings on precipitant costs. Based on a PLC and individual signal interfaces, it is available as a standalone solution or as a master-slave configuration for larger plants with multiple aeration basins. This allows simple integration into an existing process control system and incorporation of existing instrumentation. What’s more, the remote access functionality offers flexible and effective process monitoring.
Process reliability and control
Due to continuous measurement and signal validation, Liquicontrol guarantees stable plant operation and reliable plant discharge. Should a measured value, or even a blower fail, the system switches the affected control loops to a failsafe condition and sends error or warning messages. The original plant operation settings can be restored at any time via selector switch. With Liquicontrol, plant personnel can switch between intermittent or continuous automatic mode and manual mode at any point, ensuring that they maintain complete control at all times.
Michael Szegedi, operating manager of Waldhausen Wastewater Treatment Plant had this to say about the system. “I was amazed by how fast and smoothly everything went. Within a few hours, the controller was up and running. After just a few weeks, we saw that we were able to operate the system at a very stable level while almost halving aeration times. Obviously, this saves energy.”
* Liquicontrol: optimising biological treatment at the highest level.
* Efficient: dynamic control of blower hardware and precipitant dosing pumps in accordance with the actual load.
* Reliable: constant signal and sensor validation ensure stable plant operation and reliable outlet values.
* Flexible: simultaneous control of nitrogen and phosphate elimination in multiple biological stages.
* Easy: quickly integrated into an existing process control system thanks to modern bus technologies.
* Convenient: intuitive menu and management of measured values and parameters – even with remote access.
Inspiration for times of change Endress+Hauser South Africa
News
More than 2000 customers, partners and experts gathered in Basel, Switzerland, for the Endress+Hauser Global Forum in April 2026. Under the theme of driving sustainable transformation together, the event combined keynote sessions on strategy, technology and the future of work with practical case studies from across the process industry.
Read more...Importance of gas analysis in the petrochemical industry Elemental Analytics
Analytical Instrumentation & Environmental Monitoring
Gas analysis plays a critical role in petrochemical operations, supporting process optimisation, product quality and plant safety. As an experienced and expert gas analysis supplier, Elemental Analytics can provide the correct analyser and sample system package to meet individual plant requirements.
Read more...Optimise sludge treatment and reduce operational costs Endress+Hauser South Africa
Sensors & Transducers
Endress+Hauser’s inline measuring devices, the Proline Teqwave MW 300 and the Proline Teqwave MW 500, determine the total solids content of wastewater directly through microwave transmission.
Read more...Fully integrated standalone thunderstorm warning system Senseca
Sensors & Transducers Analytical Instrumentation & Environmental Monitoring
Senseca South Africa has introduced its BTD-1 fully integrated, standalone thunderstorm warning system, which detects lightning by monitoring the background quasi-electrostatic field. The system can generate alerts before the first lightning strike, with a detection raterange of up to 83 km.
Read more...Environmental monitoring with testo Saveris 1
Analytical Instrumentation & Environmental Monitoring
The testo Saveris 1 environmental monitoring system has been in continuous use since 2010 at Jungbunzlauer, a biotechnology company in Germany, providing seamless temperature and humidity data for audit-ready, GxP-compliant processes across laboratories, warehouses and production areas.
Read more...Reliability restored through systemic vibration analysis Wearcheck
Analytical Instrumentation & Environmental Monitoring
Condition monitoring specialist, WearCheck uses a variety of testing techniques to enhance reliability in machinery components and prevent failures.
Read more...Level measurement for hygienic applications Endress+Hauser South Africa
Level Measurement & Control
Endress+Hauser’s Liquiphant is considered to be the most reliable and safe point level detector in industrial plants. The latest generation of devices is ready for Industry 4.0 and, with the Liquiphant FTL63, is ideally suited for applications with hygienic requirements.
Read more...Meteorological data logger with up to 32 analogue sensors Senseca
Analytical Instrumentation & Environmental Monitoring
Senseca has introduced its advanced data acquisition system for environmental monitoring, which has a universal data logger for up to 32 analogue, pulse and smart digital sensors.
Read more...Yokogawa’s free chlorine analyser is gold standard for water treatment utilities Yokogawa South Africa
Analytical Instrumentation & Environmental Monitoring
One of the key factors in ensuring safe drinking water is the accurate monitoring of free chlorine residuals. This is where advanced online analysers, such as Yokogawa’s FC800 free chlorine analyser, are becoming increasingly valuable for water treatment operators and municipal utilities.
Read more...Cooling tower bleed control
Analytical Instrumentation & Environmental Monitoring
Cooling towers rely on evaporation to remove heat, but this process also concentrates dissolved solids in the system. Left unmanaged, this buildup can lead to scaling, corrosion and fouling, reducing efficiency and increasing maintenance costs.
While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained herein, the publisher and its agents cannot be held responsible for any errors contained, or any loss incurred as a result. Articles published do not necessarily reflect the views of the publishers. The editor reserves the right to alter or cut copy. Articles submitted are deemed to have been cleared for publication. Advertisements and company contact details are published as provided by the advertiser. Technews Publishing (Pty) Ltd cannot be held responsible for the accuracy or veracity of supplied material.
printer friendly version