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Technical Seminar Trip Report September 22, 2010 for Engineered Equipment Integration Co.
By: Don Voigt, P.E., CEM
www.equipintegration.com
Introduction
This summary represents a technical seminar trip report - to Europe in September of 2010. The main
purpose of this trip was to conduct a review of best practices in energy conservation in water and
wastewater systems at a world-wide environmental equipment conference. This conference is known
as IFAT technical conference and is held in Munich, Germany approximately once every three years (
see http://www.ifat.de/link/en/16607391 ) . It is recognized as the worlds largest exhibition of
water/wastewater and environmental renewal equipment.
Subsequent to the attendance at the three day conference, my spouse, MaryAnn and I, traveled more
than 1,000 miles in a mini vacation trip through the mountains and valleys of southern Germany and
Austria from farms to mountain tops, a great adventure in experiencing how these stern folks work,live, and enjoy life (see Chapter III of this report).
Chapter I International Water and Wastewater Equipment Exhibition (IFAT). Munich Sept 2010
This conference is held approximately once every three years and represents a broad cross section of
manufacturers of environmental and municipal equipment related to water, wastewater, and solid
waste utilization/recovery. Attendance is generally in the range of 120,000 people and brings a broad
cross section of world engineers/technicians, plant operations staff, and managers together.
On my previous visit to this conference (2008), I had reported on a strong growth in green energy
technologies from solar power to biogas recovery and re-use. I also observed a significant marchtoward single home/cluster wastewater treatment technologies where these (latter mentioned
technologies) were growing at an incredible rate.
As overall perspectives from this conference, I sense the
following:
1. Attendance was significantly less at this conference
vs previous (110,000 this year). And, exhibits and
hospitality booths were generally smaller and
more conservative in their offerings. The two
story booths of the past have all but disappeared
and obtaining a beer in a booth (common practice
to serve beer in booths) was often a challenge. All
of this suggested a more conservative marketing
approach and of course suggested a more
restricted financial budget.
2. In past IFAT conferences, there has always been a
particular technology which had been the talk of
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the show. I did not see such a technology, this year though my focus was more on energy
and energy conservation technologies. It seemed that this year there were more of the same
vs the new and innovative of the past. But, again, this is only my perspective.
3. There seemed to be less equipment on the floor and more exhibits and posters showing
installations. Again, this is often driven by cost and budgets are obviously being tightened.
4. Most booths had some theme related to operating costs reductionssome of these were energy
related. Operation and maintenance costs were a focal point and lots of buzz words working off
of total cost of ownership. I was amazed at the number of booth staffers who were willing to
quote delivered prices right on the floor for equipment being shown.
5. Since my focus for this conference was related to energy issues, it was natural to be aware of
the blower/aeration vendors on the exhibit floor.
Aeration, after all, accounts for on average
40% of the typical wastewater treatment energy
cost. For blowers, it was interesting to note the
comparison of WEFTEC 2009 to IFAT 2010. Such acomparison showed a dramatically higher number
of turbo blowers at WEFTEC vs IFAT. It seems
that, in Europe, the PD blowers like Aerzen and
Kaeser are still the mainstay of the smaller
capacity (1,000 to 5,000 cfm) aeration blowers
(vast majority of our municipal plants). High
speed Turbo blowers were shown in 4 booths that
I saw (Turblex, Atlas Copco, and Piller) but it was
dramatic to see the apparent minimal number of
Turbo style blowers and more of the PD (Positive
Displacement) blowers on display. Atlas Copco hadtwo blower technologies sitting side by side in their
booth their new screw compressor (as is offered at
Port Washington) and their Turbo Blower recently introduced into the market. Either one was
offered on the floor for about $20,000 US. That seemed to be an incredible bargain price
but, its a long way from the shop floor to an
operating installation. They (Atlas Copco) say that
they are marketing through factory direct people
yet, the Port Washington blower was through a
distributor. When I pushed the sales person to
give me his opinion on the merits of one vs the
other, he stated that the screw compressor might
be less efficient but it is simpler to understand
and maintainI could see that this would be true.
The screw compressor is very small in size for
what it delivers. Yet, it does have conventional
bearings and gear reducer and will require routine
maintenance (mechanical) which has not been the
case for Turbo type compressors. In going from
the Atlas Copco booth to the Kaeser compressor
Atlas Copco Screw Compressor
and Turbo Blower (latter on right)
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booth, the Kaeser sales person had a Kaeser conventional lobe PD compressor and next to it
a screw compressor which he claimed to be identical to the Atlas Copco compressor. When I
asked him if there was an advantage of one over the other, he told me that the screw
compressor would be more costly than the rotary lobe compressor for smaller flows but
added that their screw compressor is made of non corroding material while Atlas Copco is using
a Teflon coated design which he claimed will be required to be periodically recoated. He was
going to send me a comparison and he clearly inferred that Atlas Copco was stretching the facts
to claim an improved efficiency for the screw compressor for low pressure and low flow
applications (stating that the screw compressor is more intended for higher pressure
applications).
Regarding the Turblex and ABS and similar/other booths, I did not spend equivalent time there
but they had equipment similar to the WEFTEC 2009 equipment in their booths. HSI and Kturbo
and Neuros did not seem to have booths at this conference at least I did not see them. Tim
Dobbins (of Turblex) advised that they are working with ASME and another standards group in
developing standards for comparing turbo style blowers and they will be putting on technical
seminars at their facility in Missouri this coming year for engineers. Not sure I want to go
through the arduous trip to their factory for such a seminar but Im sure it will be interesting.He also alluded to the fact that they are apparently moving everything to the Chicago area in
about 18 months (related to the Siemens consolidation?).at least that is what I believe he
said. Then, it will be very convenient.
For diffusers for the infusion of air into conventional waste treatment basins, it was near
universal consensus (also see chapter II below) membranes are the device of choice. The style
of membrane is in debate depending upon site/tank constraints but membranes were the
method of choice. I did not see a ceramic diffuser on display,
anywhere.
6.
Regarding methane/bio gas recovery, I didnt see anythingnew or remarkable. I observed that people are going to heat
exchangers on about everything hot in order to recover and
re-use energy. Engines nearly all have some type of siloxane
cleaning skid. Most have heat recovery on exhaust and engine
heat. Many are using common engines by a common
manufacturer and their specific claim to uniqueness is in their
systems approach to providing a system vs an engine or
components. As I guess we knew was coming manufacturers
want to be offering more than hardware, they want to provide
systems and turnkey approaches.
7. In the area of controls/automation, I was enlightened to find that installing watt meters on small
motor loads is not as common as I had thought. Most manufacturers of motor control centers
offer watt meters as a built in option at about $300 premium per motor starter. Of the booths
toured, only Siemens seemed to be focused on energy monitoring as part of their
SCADA/Control center offering. A company called Schraml (a European SCADA systems
integrator) was doing energy monitoring and transmittal and alarming but they are limited to
European work. So, Siemens seemed to me in the best position to leverage their knowledge
in the USA markets. In speaking to the USA Siemens Control Systems Sales manager, he did not
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seem to be seeing much demand for energy monitoring on
remote sites nor in main control systems overall. That
seemed interesting and disappointingbut, he may be
disconnected from what is going on on the street. I just
dont know.
8. There was a lot of talk on the floor about general
directions for biosolids disposal/reuse. As you may recall,
Europe had for the past 5 years been going away from
reuse of biosolids and had been co-incinerating sludges
on the basis that the cradle to grave problems with
toxins in sludges held too much liability for the industry. This time, I heard that this whole
concept is now being re-thought and that taking biosolids back to the land after
disinfection is the new vogue. So, there were new green house type dryers being shown
where heat recovery from other processes is used to dry the sludges in continuous plough and
auguring buildings.
Chapter II The State of Things in Europe
At IFAT, the European community gathers together to team up in providing an overview of water and
wastewater services. The German equivalent of the EPA is the DWG and they lead the overall report
writing on the conditions of markets in Europe and of course more specifically, Germany. There
were several excellent papers provide on the conditions of the water and wastewater market and these
are on CD and available through my office. This is an overview of the key elements on the CDs based
on my interests.
1. 99% of Germanys citizens are connected to public wastewater treatment works. About 90%
are connected to public water works. This is higher than most other European nations butFrance and England are not too far behind.
2. About ½ of the population in Germany is served by a water utility which is operated by a private
corporation/contractor. Veolia is the dominant
player in this market in Germany/Europe but
there are many others. This is a growing trend
private operations since it tends to fix the
municipalities expenses and reduce
management/dispute issues which are not
traditionally handled easily in a political
atmosphere (municipal politician atmosphere).
A significantly small portion of the population isserved by private managed wastewater
operators but where these privatizers operate
(mostly very large utilities), they are doing well
and growing.
3. Costs of water and wastewater (per gallon) are
rising but at a rate less than inflation. The cost
German Paper Industry Costs Reduced
Continuous Tracking of Energy Band
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of water is on average - $2.00/cubic meter (I calculate this to be about $1.00/100 gallons).
The consumption of water is about 130 liters per day per person. This is about ½ to 1/3rd
of our
USA consumption. Costs to produce and distribute water are under a constant and precise
microscope. This is partially due to the strict regulations on costs and partially due to the
natural tendency of Europeans to refine costs to their finest elements. They provide in the
documents pie charts with costs for various aspects of water services from infrastructure (80%
of the costs) to labor to electricity/power. Wastewater similarly is well documented and the
cost for wastewater is listed at about $2.50/cubic meter or $0.40/inhabitant per day.
Interesting numbers and I do not know the equivalent comparison in the states left for you to
compare/evaluate. Here in wastewater it is acknowledged that most of the costs for the
user are long term infrastructure construction, upgrade and maintenance. They did note that
sewers can be considered 100 year life investments.
4. Due to the effects of strong water conservation measures throughout Germany, and, due to
populations expected to decline in Europe, there is concern that any further reduction in
consumption is potentially a detriment to the network due to required flushing and low flow
maintenance.
5. About 60% of the sewers in Europe are combined sewers
thus, explaining why many manufacturers have developed
treatment processes for combined sewers.
6. Wastewater treatment in most of Europe has matured to
advanced treatment such that most wastewater plants
either already have nutrient removal in their process or they
are planning on adding this at the next upgrade. There has
been quite a bit of R&D focused on low energy methods for
nutrient removal. Much of this in tandem with Universities
(private/public partnerships). One project showing promiseis the use of rotating drum screens (very fine mesh) for
phosphorous removal/reduction. Treatment facilities in
Europe generally utilize on-line instruments for nutrient monitoring and control. These are just
now becoming of interest in the smaller plants in the USA.
7. Biosolids disposal in Germany has been undergoing transitions. About 60% of their biosolids are
placed back on the land and 40% incinerated or placed in landfills. Over the past 5 years, there
had been a trend to go to incineration as the best solution. This had been driven by industries
and farmers fearing for liability in the toxic contents which had been appearing in sludges. In
recent years, the trend has been back to land disposal/renewal due to the reduction of toxins
found in sludges (better monitoring at industrial plants) and the looming need to reduce energy
consumption in all matters. The latter driver has also seen the growth of low temperature
dryers which use heat recovered from nearby heat sources (such as industries). And, a number
of manufacturers were showing greenhouse type dryers where sludges are mixed with
previously dried cake and use of natural temperature/sun is used to hurry the process along.
With land being relatively plentiful in the states, these processes are likely to gain traction in
certain parts of the US.
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8. Regarding aeration for activated sludge wastewater basins, beyond the large competitive
situation with various blower and diffuser vendors, one speaker gave an intriguing presentation
on the importance of analyzing oxygen transfer as a systems approach vs attempting to define a
single diffuser or blower technology as best. He was a PhD in charge of research for a large
network of wastewater plants (looked like about 50 plants) of various design/operation in the
Rhine valley portion of Germany near colon, I believe). Though the paper is in German
language, he gave the talk (which I was able to attend with my seminar paid entrance fee) in
German but with an English translator. A most impressive presentation and again focused
on the need to look at each plant/process as a system. Nearly all of their plants have converted
to some type of membrane diffuser and he had evidence that diffuser life can extend upwards
to 10 years but very dependent on load and air flow rates. I will make every effort to have the
paper translated. If you wish a copy, let me know.
9. Biogas recovery and use is a top level issue throughout Germany. Most wastewater plants with
an anaerobic digester have recovery in place and are looking to improve upon it. The smaller
plants use simple gas generator sets with heat recovery on any new installation (recovering heat
from exhaust manifolds and from the engine itself). There were multiple vendors at the IFAT
conference who advised that they are in the midst of setting up dealer networks in the states.Most of these advised that the need is not for good salesmanship but rather for good
capability to repair and maintain the units. Most of the vendors offering such systems admitted
to some need for pre-cleaning of gases for siloxane and similar materials. The systems are
almost always sold as systems designed by a vendor with system efficiency warrantees.
10. Europe (and Germany) have
committed to a very tough set of
standards for energy involving
both use of renewables (Biogas
being a very prevalent area of
effort) and reduction of consumption. They are not looking
to Nuclear(actually
decommissioning several nuclear
plants recently) but are looking to
wind, biogas, biofuels (grease
recovery for instance) and solar.
Reduction of consumption is the
norm. From the continued
reduction in their size of autos to
the prevalence of windmills and
solar panels..the evidence of their commitment is ubiquitous. The commitments are backed
by legislation and fueled with specific tariffs intended to change human values/behavior. These
are a people of firm commitments (some say stubborn). They build upon a consensus based on
scientific knowledge. We have much to learn from the Germans and the world community as a
whole.
Heat Exchanger to Scavenge Heat from Sewers and Utilize for Buildings
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Chapter III - Travelling through the countryside of Germany and Austria
After the conference, MaryAnn and I traveled through southern Germany, Bavaria/Austria (and we
watched for unique energy related concepts honest!). We found the landscape full of solar panels,
windmills and wood burning stoves. Roads were incredibly well maintained and dominated by small
compact cars. There were still the larger Mercedes Benz cruisers on the Autobahn but the vast majority
of folks in Europe are embracing the idea of conservation of resources. Bicycles, walking, and mass
transport carry the bulk of those traveling. Autos are most often small Fiats or VW types with diesel
engines and stick shift being standard. Of course, gas is still averaging $1.40 (EURO)/liter (or
$7.00(US)/gallon). This actually down from the last visit but is still enough to make one pause when
the average tank fill is around $75. Houses are small/compact and often more like apartments than
separate homes. Likewise, motel rooms are smaller and more efficient in power consumption than
USAas has been the case for a long time.
Shopping in the streets of cities is an entirely unique
experience vs USA. No Wall marts, Kmarts, nor super
malls. Towns have maintained the central city
shopping areas with little stores with a bakery on everyblock, an ice-cream shop next door, followed by clothing,
shoes, and womens negligee (wow, women in Europe
really wear those skimpy strings?). On evenings and
weekends, the streets of downtowns are full of families,
biking, walking, and sitting in street cafes. A real
dichotomy to our drive to Wal-Mart philosophy.
By the way, I see how McDonalds is growing their business through a very aggressive addressing of the
markets in Europe. They locate McDonalds in either gas stations (like in the USA), in independent
buildings like Port, but also in downtown walking arcades with no auto access right in the middle of
the block. Their stores are of a completely different motif vs USA. In Europe, McDonalds generally has acompletely separate latte/coffee bar away from the hamburger/french-fry counter. The coffee/latte
bar sells mostly expensive latte with lots of flavors and selections and at a very high price (vs standard
coffees we find at our McDonalds). And, their decorating or interior designs are incredible. Two floors
and really cool chairs/lounges and a very special kidsarea with toys and bean bags and things unlike
our slides for kids. Very intriguing and very expensive and, very successful. Id buy McDonalds
stock!
Should you wish to obtain copies of various handouts/CD, I can arrange for these to be reproduced and
sent to you. Simply let me know. I also have about 6 deep stack of literature to peruse through and
will send an update as I complete the review. Finally, I have a series of photos representing both
chapters above both from IFAT and from the traversing of farm, field, and village alike.
Respectfully,
Don Voigt, P.E., CEM
Energy Audit Engineer
Providing Certified Energy Reviews for Cost Reduction
www.equipintegration.com
414-940-9281
A Bakery on Every Block