Kris Villez
The Challenge
Most water treatment systems require human intervention to adapt to various factors and changes, both during design and operation. NAWI explores innovations and approaches to integrated water treatment and production systems through optimal design and advanced controls and sensing networks at the plant-wide level. Various treatment technologies have been identified through previous NAWI research. However, there are two barriers to any technology being integrated into functional treatment trains: predicting their behavior in a full-scale, operational context, as well as economic and reliable operation of treatment trains for their site-specific implementation.
Our Approach
NAWI’s research activities under the Treatment Trains Topic Area accelerate the evaluation and design of breakthrough technologies and improve control tool capabilities to enhance the resilience and reliability of non-traditional water treatment through plant-wide optimization, monitoring, and autonomous operation.
Under this topic area, NAWI’s mission to secure the U.S. water supply proceeds along two objectives:
- Accelerating the design, piloting, and commissioning of innovations that move the needle on cost-effective and reliable water treatment
- Performing breakthrough research on the design and operation of complete treatment trains functioning under realistic loads and operational conditions.
The evaluation and design of breakthrough technologies focuses on three water sources: industrial water reuse, where high-quality water is critical for plant-internal reuse; production of fit-for-purpose water from brackish groundwater; and sustainable potable water in urban environments.
In addressing reliable operation of treatment trains, NAWI’s goals for research include reducing the levelized cost of energy; improving the efficacy of innovative water treatment trains, specifically from alternative water sources; and improving the reliability of treatment trains. Following on from NAWI 1.0 research, industry needs to be equipped with the tools to ensure the quality comparison of technologies prior to piloting, the adaptive and reliable operation of complex treatment trains, and the need for evidence-based operation and optimization of flexible systems. We draw on evidence-based expertise to satisfy these needs on the path to more efficient, reliable, and secure treatment trains.