Desalination & Reuse Handbook - Flipbook - Page 149
Digital desalination
REFERENCE DIRECTORY – DEVELOPERS & PLANT SUPPLIERS
How digital technologies can
evolve the desalination
sector
Explore digitalisation in the
desalination sector and how it can
help solve the sector’s challenges
Access the white paper for:
• The current state of digitalisation
in the desalination sector
Reductions to operational expenditure
Reductions to capital expenditure
Digital optimisation, like machine learning, is
able to reduce opex through further reductions
to energy and chemical consumption without
the purchase and installation of new hardware.
Digital modelling software can aid the design
Energy consumption can account for up
to two-thirds of operational expenditure
in large scale SWRO plants.
•
and process optimisation
the capital cost of plants.
higher recovery rates can reduce the required
size of pretreatment systems, providing:
In the Gulf, the capital cost of replacing
old plants is being balanced out by the
savings in operational expenditure.
Capex
savings
Lower operator
workload
Opex
reductions
Meeting future global water demand
As population growth and water scarcity
continue to become ever more pressing issues,
the reductions provided by digitalisation to
the cost of desalinating water will help with
meeting future freshwater demand.
• The market and growth
opportunities for digitalising
desalination
In order to meet future freshwater
demand, a reduction in the average
cost of desalinated water is needed.
Emerging technologies such as ‘plug and
play’ and autonomous remote operation
will enable this cost reduction.
Digitalisation is the best way to increase
us to reduce required inputs like energy
and chemicals to produce the same
amount of water. At the same time, we
are going to reduce the environmental
footprint of our plants.
Groundwork for digital technologies
Key message: Applying digital technologies like machine
learning requires groundwork on the data side
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Before applying digital technologies to desalination, there is groundwork that
needs to be in place to enable maximum effect. In order to effectively digitalise a
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GWI White Papers
contact:
rd@globalwaterintel.com
strong network of calibrated sensors and processed by a capable control system. If
the original data is not reliable, the software trained on it will not be either.
We’re talking a lot about AI but what we’ve found is the main
problem is the instruments. We’ve found that some use the wrong
method, are in the wrong location, or measure in the wrong range.
We call this uncertainty of inputs: you get out what you put in.
Thomas Altmann, EVP Innovation & New Technology,
ACWA Power
Machine learning
Data collection
Data cleaning
How can digital desalination affect process design?
Capable control
system
Sensors and
instrumentation
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Digital modelling allows for greater experimentation in process design and for easy simulation of
be digitally tested in different set-ups to determine the most effective solution, helping desalters
achieve higher recovery rates and lower energy consumption from existing desalination technology.
VR technologies can help engineering teams design their plants.
The approach allows engineers to digitally walk around a
plant while designing it, allowing them to more easily
conceptualise and optimise plant design.
We strive for design simplicity. If you start with
complexity, reality will double it. You need a
simple, thought out, and proven initial design.
Computerisation is essential for that because we
can model designs before implementing them,
optimise efficiency, and have good synergy with
hydraulic equipment.
Eli Oklejas, President, FEDCO
CHALLENGES
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Scan to download full paper
SOLUTIONS
New high-recovery RO
An integrated suite of modelling
software that covers the entire
RO system, from membranes
to hydraulics, allows complete
digital testing of new RO
area for reducing the costs
of desalting water. However,
current tools for modelling
membranes and hydraulics
are often separate, making it
harder to simulate a new system
construction:
VR tools can help engineers
visualise and optimise the plant
they are working on, before
ground is even broken, This
helps reduce on-site presence,
prototyping costs, and design
commonly the main focus
for improving desalination.
However, reducing plant capex
and ensuring it runs as planned
from day one is also important.
the plant runs as planned.
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