10 ways plants may be wasting water and money without realizing it

Your plant is in the midst of seismic change.

With climate change less a looming threat and more a difficult reality, and governments and business alike racing to adapt, your plant faces more pressure than ever before to meet net zero emissions standards and achieve environmentally friendly operations.

But if you’re like many plants around the world, you’re either overlooking or underestimating a major factor in your environmental impact and economic health: your water

usage. Unfortunately, wasting water is an all-too-common bad habit of plants, risking big costs to the planet and your bottom line.

Why? Because many organizations still believe water access is cheap, easy, and bountiful. But that’s largely proving false: Water is becoming more expensive and harder to attain.

And it will only get harder.

So, while you may have once been able to get away with inefficient once-through cooling methods or subpar cooling tower performance, water waste will have a bigger and bigger impact on your business’ time, money, and efficiency.

Your first step to solving your potential water woes? Awareness. Here are 10 ways your plant may be wasting water and undermining environmental initiatives – and your business – without even noticing:

1. Once-through cooling leads to surprise water waste

If you’re like many plants, you’re sourcing water for cooling and other processes from local rivers, lakes, and other bodies of water.

It’s easy to take nature for granted. And while it may feel like your sources will consistently flow as much water as you want, whenever you want, for minimal costs, that couldn’t be further from the truth. This becomes especially dangerous when sourcing water for once-through cooling.

Oftentimes, we extend our assumptions to flow rates: If there’s a consistent source of water, we think, there’s a consistent flow of water. We assume flow rates are constant.

The reality is this: Nature is not constant. Seasons change, temperatures fluctuate, and rainfall varies. So do flow rates. So, when plants draw water for once-through cooling purposes, they often fail to account for the range in flow rate.

Not only does this lead to excess water use, but assumptions of cheap, consistent water obscure the sheer volume of water wasted. These rates can blindside your business.

2. Your open-looped systems may be wasting water

But these false assumptions can extend past flow rates.

It’s not just a matter of falsely assuming your water sources and cooling process are constant. It may also be a matter of falsely assuming your systems are constant.

Engineers often design cooling systems with a set range of water use in mind. But between the natural wear and tear caused by weather and climate, and the inevitable aging of equipment, a cooling system’s water use may balloon up to millions of gallons above design.

This is especially problematic in one-off – also known as “open-looped” – systems.

A system designed to reuse water may mitigate the impact of excess flow rates and the variance between a system’s actual water use and its design. But without a system like this in place, plants may be cycling out up to millions of gallons of one-off water. Potentially overwhelming wastewater facilities or the local ecosystem, while accruing excess costs.

3. Effluent water can harm the environment – and your business

When it comes to the environment, wasting water is just half the problem. It’s also a matter of water temperature.

Whether it's down to your plant’s systems or seasonal conditions, water can easily become too hot for use. Even hot enough to change or damage the local environment.

This is a major issue for plants that utilize open-looped cooling systems running water back into the ecosystem. Effluent water pushed directly back out into the ecosystem can profoundly and negatively impact wildlife and the immediate environment.

Effluent water isn’t just damaging. It’s wasteful. Open-looped cooling systems perpetually source reusable water for single-use purposes, then run the risk of harming the very bodies of water they source from.

4. Your cooling towers consume too much water

There’s no doubt that your cooling towers consume massive amounts of water.

It’s a normal and accounted-for part of the cooling process. But when facing an increased heat load, cooling towers become less and less efficient. And these issues may magnify over time. Consider the factors that can lead to increased water use from your cooling towers:

• Over time, heat load can increase and compound, outpacing the initial design.
• Climate change can cause wet-bulb temperatures to slowly rise.
• Aging, corrosion, solids, and other chemical and physical processes can build up.
• Cycle rates may lower.
• Evaporation rates may increase.
• The make-up water temperature can increase.
• High drift losses can occur.

Like it or not, your cooling tower systems can stray far from your designed systems. And one of the biggest casualties? Your water usage.

5. Cooling tower performance falters in the summer

As temperatures rise over the summer, cooling towers often use more water and chemicals to keep your plant running smoothly. Excess make-up water is virtually a given.

However, climate change is increasing temperatures around the world, leading to summer-like conditions earlier – and longer – throughout the year. Plants engineered without climate change in mind face a future where increased make-up water and chemical use becomes the new normal.

To make matters worse, make-up water can mean even more problems. Excess make-up water and poor cooling tower performance may signal your equipment is under strenuous conditions, decreasing operational efficiency while increasing the risk of shutdown.

Accelerated by wasting water, summer heat can lead to the following operational issues:

• Uncomfortable working conditions, leading to health and productivity issues
• Enhanced risk of equipment failure and rate of swap-outs
• Decreased efficacy of lube oil or other critical materials and chemicals
• Increased frequency of planned and unplanned maintenance
• Unprecedented or unpredictable expenses caused by changes in water use

6. High ambient temperatures lead to fouling and failure

When it comes to cooling equipment, variable climates, and a range of ambient conditions, a degree of fouling is inevitable.

Especially when the threshold for most equipment is 90°F.

Fouling leads to increased make-up water. And while a degree of fouling is unavoidable, too much fouling can amount to a huge issue. This can force plants into a big, costly catch-22:

• Accept the increased cost and inefficiency caused by rising make-up water rates.
• Or allow fouling to lead to scaling and expect either partial or full shutdowns.

Make-up water is wasted water. And wasted water is lost efficiency.

And there’s more than one culprit. While climate change may bring hotter conditions, plants that fail to adapt risk amplifying its effects and causing high ambient temperatures. Think overheating equipment, sweltering conditions, and increased maintenance workload.

Meaning water use isn’t just an environmental problem; it’s an operational problem too.

7. Heat and aging impact your designed projections

Almost every water-utilizing system looks great on paper.

When equipment is brand new, and conditions are favorable, reality lives up to the idea. However, the moment weather or aging creeps in, reality deviates far from the design.

With heat and age comes an increased impact of heat loads on your cooling systems. For plants, this can become a compounding issue: Whether it's a matter of multiple cooling towers or a complex cooling system, your plant may be vulnerable at many touchpoints.

Often, plants only implement a handful of cooling towers to account for the most ideal conditions. Unfortunately, engineers can severely underestimate the actual need.

The gap between designed projections and actual operations can be large. But it’s more than a matter of individual cooling processes: The sum of its parts can cost your plant up to millions of gallons of wasted water, excess chemical usage, and avoidable emissions.

And with temperatures rising steeply around the world, and climates reaching unprecedented levels, those gaps risk stretching into chasms.

8. Your plant fails to use existing exhaust

You could be wasting water in more ways than you realize.

While the most in-your-face issue may be the gallons upon gallons of effluent water you’re sending back into the nearby rivers and streams, your plant is also giving off massive amounts of exhaust. Losing water to the atmosphere, with no way to ever get it back.

Even a well-designed water-cooling system lets potentially reusable water go to waste without even realizing it. Effectively allowing inflowing water to disappear into the ether.

Where are the roots of your plant’s excess exhaust?

• Inefficiently engineered systems generate more energy – and exhaust – than needed.
• Hot summer conditions bring the heat to your plant for months at a time.
• Subpar cooling and air-conditioning systems create unnecessarily high temperature conditions, generating avoidable exhaust and water waste.

In other words, you may be losing more water than you realize. It’s not just sent to a wastewater facility for processing or sent back to the nearest body of water. It’s in the air.

9. Seasonal conditions result in increased water use rates

Different climates expect different ranges of temperature and humidity.

And most climates also expect those ranges to change with the seasons. But whether they realize it or not, many engineers fall for the fallacy that conditions are consistent. Either designing a plant for the most or least favorable conditions, with little, or no, flexibility for the fluctuations.

With heatwaves, hot summers, and climate change comes an increased load on your cooling towers, compounded by an increased – and increasing – demand for water.

Consider all the touchpoints where your plant draws, utilizes, and disposes of water, and you’ll quickly see all the opportunities for rising flow rates and make-up water rates.

For plants, avoiding wasting water isn’t usually a matter of plugging a single leak.

It’s a matter of identifying flaws in a complex, flowing system.

10. Your plant overlooks unique water-wasting inefficiencies

That’s not to say water-saving is systematic. While many plants waste water in the same way, every plant has a specific set of needs and circumstances. To minimize your plant’s excess water use, you must recognize the quirks and conditions unique to your plant.

Unlike net zero goals, where you can make clear, definitive decisions by changing fuel sources and business practices, reducing water usage can feel more abstract. Water is seemingly plentiful. Most plants don’t spend a lot of money to acquire and use it. So even the ability to overcome universal water-wasting problems can seem hard to grasp.

But whether its specific weather and climate conditions caused by your plant’s location, or a distinct manufacturing process or equipment based on your sector or product, every plant has a unique set of circumstances to overcome.

What are some ways your plant may be uniquely wasting water?

• Proprietary manufacturing practices
• Treating or processing rare, difficult, or resource-intensive materials
• Operating in hot, humid, or extreme locations
• Intensive process or materials requiring increased energy and exhaust
• One-off, “open-looped” water usage
• Extensive cooling and/or refrigeration
• Increased flow rates and/or water use caused by sudden or extreme heat waves
• Process cooling procedures for product treatment

That being said, like many aspects of water usage, many plants are conditioned to assume their conditions are standard, making many operators blind to their faults, risks, and opportunities.

It’s one thing to look over your cooling and water systems. It’s another to look over what makes your cooling and water systems unique.

Final thoughts

Worldwide, plants are setting net zero targets to achieve net zero emissions. Why? To decrease their environmental impact while saving costs and increasing efficiency. However, most companies neglect the positive environmental and economic impact of water-saving measures.

Water is the most plentiful resource in the world. But with climate change impacting water access around the world – notably in regions with big influences on key sectors, and even bigger impacts on the world economy – plants must be significantly more aware of their water usage.

Water will become more expensive and harder to attain. The companies that take action now will have a competitive edge over companies that rest on their laurels.

Want to avoid these expensive, avoidable, and water-wasting pitfalls? Download our whitepaper, 10 ways to reduce water usage in your plant, to discover the solutions available.

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