Water is a valuable commodity that necessitates careful management in order to ensure supplies are sufficiently available for everything from residential and leisure purposes to agricultural, commercial and industrial use.
Water industry. Image Credit: ABB Measurement & Analytics
With just 0.32% of the total water supply on Earth being immediately accessible and fit for human use, it is crucial to ensure that the supplies available are suitably monitored and measured as carefully as possible.
In acknowledgment of this fact, several industrialized countries have put national strategies in place to regulate water use from surface and underground water supplies and to protect the quality of those supplies.
Measuring the amount of water abstracted from boreholes is one of the ways in which consumption of water is managed.
There are many different international standards; for instance, in the UK, anyone wishing to abstract over 20 cubic meters (approximately 4,400 gallons) a day must be in possession of an abstraction license.
Abstraction licenses detail a certain number of criteria, including:
- Details of where the water can be abstracted from
- The amount of water that can be abstracted
- The purposes for which the water can be used
All license holders are required to measure the volume of water abstracted. Depending on the license category, measurements must be taken and submitted at varying frequencies, ranging from daily through to weekly and monthly. Additionally, license holders must also keep a detailed record of meter readings.
The Process
Since October 2001, a 12-year limit has been placed on abstraction licenses. Once lapsed, the license holder must apply for their license again. Part of this application process necessitates proving that the license holder has been using their supplies efficiently and in line with the terms of their license.
An additional challenge is the ability to prove that the abstracted water is fit for human consumption and that it is in compliance with levels of quality.
It is also advised that the license holder ensures the backflow measurement in the flowmeter is recorded. This can help save precious time by preventing looking for non-existent leaks.
Combining ABB electromagnetic flowmeters and ScreenMaster paperless recorders can help regulate water abstraction from both borehole and surface water supplies. The flowmeters offer precise measurements of the quantity of water abstracted. The ScreenMaster recorder then records the data taken from the flowmeters.
To help protect the quality of water, ABB’s ScreenMaster recorders can also acquire data transmitted from on-line analytical instruments measuring parameters including turbidity, pH and manganese. This data can then be evaluated or applied as the fundamental information for further reporting.
The data the recorder collects can be readily downloaded to a PC. This data is then used to generate reports for submission to the Environment Agency to demonstrate its compliance with the stringent terms of its abstraction license.
Image Credit: ABB Measurement & Analytics
What ABB Products are Suitable?
ScreenMaster RVG200
A 24 input touch screen recorder incorporating swipe gesture control which offers rapid and intuitive operation.
Process data (for instance, flow, turbidity, pH, manganese) is clearly displayed to the local operator through a variety of formats, including bar graphs, charts and digital indicators. The RVG200 has the capacity to collect data from the flow meters and analyzers utilizing Modbus communications without requiring an analog input card.
ScreenMaster RVG200 paperless recorder. Image Credit: ABB Measurement & Analytics
Flow totalizers can be configured easily to automatically reset at specific intervals (for example, daily, weekly or monthly). When reset, the value of the totalizer is recorded in the totalizer log to produce a convenient history of flow totalizer values.
When monitoring flow totals need to adhere to stringent limits (for example, the total amount of water abstracted), it is possible to configure the recorder’s alarms to warn of an approaching limit or a limit has been reached.
Totalizer Log. Image Credit: ABB Measurement & Analytics
Other ScreenMaster features include:
- Automated process data management using DataManger Pro PC-based historical data analysis tool. ABB also has other paperless recorders appropriate for this application, such as SM500F (7 channel)
- Hose-down protection to IP66 and NEMA 4X
- Remote access and operation via Ethernet, telephone/ mobile network. Remote operation allows complete control of your process at the convenience of your PC, tablet or smartphone.
DataManager Pro
DataManager Pro is a sophisticated process data management and analysis tool used to review and store data archived by ScreenMaster paperless recorders.
Some of the primary features of DataManager Pro include:
- Annotation functionality to mark alarm, audit and totalizer logs on the chart for easy, rapid analysis.
- The ability to export the totalizer log information to Excel workbook format speeds up reporting, making it much simpler.
- Ability to accumulate a range of graphical charts to compare multiple parameters, plus a dual cursor function that allows operators to review data over specific periods of time and for particular recorders. The analysis function between the cursors displays the minimum, maximum and average values.
- Functionality to add comments and signatures securely to the chart – perfect for approval or verification purposes. Also, secure data packages (that preserve the original data file integrity) can be generated and passed to customers for verification and analysis.
DataManager Pro Chart view. Image Credit: ABB Measurement & Analytics
This information has been sourced, reviewed and adapted from materials provided by ABB Measurement & Analytics.
For more information on this source, please visit ABB Measurement & Analytics.