Chlornet provides vital understanding of NETWORK chorine deterioration

Severn Trent Water is the first utility company to introduce a portable chlorine monitoring system to one of its district metering areas.

ATi’s ground-breaking ChlorNet monitor has helped produce an evaluation of where and how chlorine 'disappears' and proved to be a huge success that saved the company £15m on un-necessary work.

The numbers generated from the ChlorNet gave information on where and when chlorine levels dropped. This revealed where to inject secondary chlorine levels incrementally to prevent customer complaints for taste and odour, whilst complying with chlorine levels being greater than 0.2 PPM.

The use of ATi’s portable, continuous chlorine monitors allowed STW to gather useful data, without the expense of large investments to install power and develop new buildings for fixed units.

In addition to the overall value of the numbers that were generated, the data also showed the lack of maintenance and calibrations needed during the year trial. On some sites, only a couple of calibrations were needed and most sites only required two maintenance checks over the 12 months period.

The project has proved to be a great success with immediate payback and huge savings for STW. Following this success, ATi’s UK Sales Manager, Tristen Preger, is now dealing with several of the other major water companies on improving their knowledge of what happens to chlorine in a known DMA.

ATi has invested heavily in producing the ChlorNet, portable versions of its market-leading fixed chlorine monitors, and this investment is now proving invaluable.

ATi’s UK Sales Manager, Tristen Preger, said: “The challenge for the ChlorNet was to retain the accuracy, reliability and ease of use of our market-leading fixed chlorine monitor and apply this within a potable water network. As ATi is a leader within the water industry, we feel it is vital to develop what the market demands and we strive to continue providing our customers with innovative monitors.”

In addition to the ChlorNet’s major role to play in understanding network chlorine deterioration, ATi’s NephNet can also assist customers in their investigations. With one of the reasons for loss of chlorine being biofilm, ATi’s portable turbidity monitor, the NephNet, can also be used to assist with finding out where the biofilm is released, therefore helping to identify why chlorine levels drop. The NephNet can then provide customers with data that demonstrates the particular reasons for the loss of residual chlorine, allowing them to make a decision on whether to re-condition the leg of the mains or whether major work was needed.

For further information on the ChlorNet or NephNet, please contact ATi, Tel: +44(0)1457 873 318 or visit the website.