Product category:
Industrial Drives/Controls
News Release from: Danfoss Motion Controls | Subject: VLT 8000 Aqua VSD motor control
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 07 February 2006
Drive keeps water flowing in Nebraska
Variable speed drive controlled pump system lets Nebraska City Utilities provide reliable water pressure throughout the area even when the water tower is out of service for maintenance.
Since implementing a variable speed drive (VSD) controlled pump system, Nebraska City Utilities no longer needs 24-hour manual pressure adjustment during water tower maintenance The facility can now provide reliable water pressure throughout the Nebraska City area in the USA, even when the water tower is out of service for maintenance
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 28 Jan 2002 at 8.00am (UK)
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Imagine looking forward to a nice hot shower in the morning and only a weak stream of water falls from the showerhead.
This happened all too often to residents of Nebraska City before the recent upgrade of the area's water treatment plant.
A pumping system with Danfoss VLT 8000 Aqua VSD motor control resolved the pressure problems and brought water quality up to the latest public health regulations.
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"It's a challenge to make sure all community residents will have water whenever they turn on their tap for a drink or get under the shower," said Dean Hauptman, Superintendent of Nebraska City Utilities Water Treatment Plant.
"When something affects the pressure, as when the tower is down, we had to be here around the clock opening and closing valves".
The city also had to meet new water quality standards.
Nebraska City gets its water through the wells from groundwater sources.
The treatment facility had to increase the time the water was exposed to chlorine to destroy health-threatening bacteria and micro-organisms.
The high-flow conditions did not allow this.
There was the added problem that the water tower level was maintained exclusively by on-off control.
As a result, there were pressure fluctuations and a lot of water loss due to leaks, which meant big non-revenue water costs.
The upgrade was demanding; to regulate pressure, increase chlorine contact time, and diminish leakage.
Many factors caused water delivery problems in and around the city, including droughts, the aging treatment facility, and the long distance of the water tower from the water supply plant.
The solution was a high-service pump equipped with VLT 8000 Aqua drive with AHF harmonic filtration, and VLT Soft Starter MCD 3000.
Now, instead of the four pumps in the old system, the new system uses just one high-service pump.
Electronic control is more energy efficient than valve control.
The frequency converter constantly matches the speed of the pump to the pressure demand to keep the pump operating at its highest efficiency point for less energy usage.
"Not only does the new system regulate the pressure throughout the distribution system but it also dramatically reduces harmonic distortion with Danfoss AHF filters," said Gary Sasse, Nebraska City Branch Manager for JEO Consulting, which designed and engineered the upgrade project.
Significantly improved water flow and overall system efficiency were followed by tighter pressure set-point control, reduced non-revenue water costs, fewer customer complaints about pressure fluctuations, and a smaller energy bill.
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