Water utilities have an important mission: to provide clean, safe water to their communities.
Distribution network monitoring can help utilities in that endeavor, allowing them to understand what's happening in their networks at any given moment and alerting them to anomalies that could indicate an upset in the system.
When it comes to water quality, time is of the essence. From contamination to pressure loss, minutes count when responding to an event. Unlike grab samples, which only provide a snapshot of water quality at a specific time and place, continuous water quality monitoring gives water utilities access to real-time water quality data and analysis to spot irregularities and notify them that there's an issue.
Utility Smart Water Expert Interview
Matt Stephenson is the Director of Software Marketing for Badger Meter. Before joining the company, he spent over two decades in the water sector—including 10 years with a water utility serving a million people in the U.K., as well as time working with utilities in the U.S., Australia and many other parts of the world with solving their water supply challenges. In a recent interview, Matt shared his perspectives on water quality monitoring and how innovative technologies are helping water utilities safeguard their water supply.
Why does water quality need to be monitored in the distribution network?
In my opinion, monitoring water quality in the distribution network should be the next big thing. When water leaves the treatment plant, it's well-monitored and in pretty good shape for consumption. But the subsequent journey that water takes through miles of pipe is where challenges exist. In many cases utilities are unaware of what's going on inside their pipe networks.
There are almost always deteriorating pipes that can distribute particles and sediment through the network. These microparticles can be a nuisance as they can discolor the water and make their way to consumers when disturbed by sudden hydraulic changes. Deteriorating pipes can also affect the chemistry of the water which can have consequences for consumers by increasing the concentration of inorganic elements in the water.
The final issue with deteriorating pipes is that they can also create a safe environment for bacteria to live—either in the sediment they produce or the rough surface of a degraded pipe. High and irregular bacteria concentrations across the network give utilities little choice but to over-disinfect in upstream parts of the network to ensure a disinfectant residual remains at the end of the network.
Tracking chlorine levels in a water network is the only way to truly understand the seasonal and daily variations in chlorine consumption and the net effect on consumers. Inefficient disinfection regimes are costing utilities thousands in unnecessary chemical spend, can adversely affect the consumer experience, and also increase the risk of creating dangerous disinfection byproducts (DBPs).
Without in-line network water quality monitoring, there is really no easy way to know what is happening inside your network, or to apply solutions to these very common problems where they are most needed.
How can continuous water quality monitoring change the way these problems are solved?
If we monitor multiple points across a network throughout the day and across the seasons, we can see how water quality changes across a city or town. By understanding where and when issues are occurring, solutions can be applied more efficiently bearing in mind there are really only four things a utility can do to solve these common water quality problems—water flushing, boosting chlorine, changing the water chemistry, or changing the pipes. Large-scale pipe replacement is really not an option, so online water quality monitoring coupled with more cost-effective remedial actions allows a targeted and informed approach which utilities report is the most efficient way to deal with some of these challenging situations.
Most water quality events are transient, meaning they don't happen 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Rather, they might happen when the right or wrong conditions occur, such as a higher than normal movement of water, or seasonally when demand might be significantly different. Typical spot samples can’t be expected to catch all the changes that occur over the course of a day, week or month, and often short water quality events last less time than it takes to take a sample. So acute events often don't get picked up by the utility, and seasonal trends are also harder to spot. Water quality data by itself tells you one thing, but when you can see trends and tie changes back to specific events, then you have a much more powerful tool at your fingertips.
Where should a utility install water quality monitoring devices?
The first places to consider are known trouble spots. Where have there been issues before? Are there areas where chlorine has been too high or too low? Are there areas with high turbidity? Where are customers complaining? There are solutions to each of these problems, but first you understand what the problem is. And that comes from monitoring.
What are some typical parameters that water utilities monitor?
Monitoring chlorine is very typical, as well as temperature and turbidity. Another important parameter is pH, as it can affect the way pipes react to the water. Certain pipe materials will begin to degrade or corrode when pH is out of range.
Depending on where you are in the world and what kind of water you have, other factors may be important as well. So having the ability to choose a whole range of parameters and be able to analyze and interpret the information that comes from online monitors is valuable.
What are some advantages of real-time water quality monitoring versus sending grab samples to a lab?
The biggest advantage of real-time monitoring is that you can tie together cause and effect. Take the example of the fire hydrant. Let's say someone opens a hydrant a mile away from where you're monitoring water quality, and it causes a short sharp increase in turbidity that consumers are unhappy about. With regular grab sampling, it would be nearly impossible to connect the event to the hydrant. You certainly wouldn't get the results back quickly enough to draw those conclusions either. Real-time monitoring allows utilities to move to a higher level of understanding, to be able to compare cause and effect, and ultimately apply remedies as efficiently as possible.
The one-time grab sample can also be misleading and is something that could come back to haunt utilities. If they assume that their water quality is great based on a snapshot once a day somewhere in their system, it's not a true representation. A sample could be taken at 9 a.m., but there could be a problem at 9 p.m. that the utility can’t identify. Even if you take thousands of samples every day across the network, which many utilities do, it's still just a series of snapshots. Real-time monitoring data, on the other hand, gives you the confidence that you won't miss a thing.
Real-time water quality monitoring can also have a very positive impact on customer service. Consumers want to know that their water is safe. Continuous online monitoring gives water utilities the confidence to say—and show—that it is. They can say, "Here's a result from two minutes ago," instead of relying on a single sample taken five streets away two weeks earlier and assuming it hasn't changed.
If a water utility is thinking about water quality monitoring, what are some important considerations when evaluating different technologies?
The experience of the company that's providing the technologies is essential. When utilities are deciding where those monitors should go, are they able to lean on the company that's providing the monitors to give them some guidance? Utilities should also be sure the monitors are going to help solve the specific problems they are having. That's where it's helpful to know where your problem areas are.
The quality and robustness of the monitoring devices is important, too. Are they battery-powered? Do they use reagents? A reagent-free solution is a standalone device that doesn't require repeat visits to change or replace chemicals. This is key for reducing maintenance.
Final Thoughts
Continuous water quality monitoring is crucial for water utilities to provide safe drinking water. Real-time systems allow for quick detection of issues, enhancing operational efficiency and public trust. By strategically implementing advanced monitoring technologies, utilities can better assess water quality and respond effectively, ultimately ensuring the health of the communities they serve.
