ENERWATER - A standard method for assessing and improving the energy efficiency of wastewater treatment plants

This paper describes the first methodology specifically tailored to estimate energy efficiency at wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Inspired by the cycle of continuous improvement, the method (i) precisely defines the concept of energy efficiency in WWTPs, (ii) proposes systematic and comparable ways to measure it, and (iii) allows benchmarking and diagnosing energy hotspots. The methodology delivers an aggregated measure of the WWTP energy efficiency defined as the Water Treatment Energy Index, a single energy label that uses universally known illustrations enabling wide communication of standardized information on the WWTP energy status. The accuracy, reproducibility and generality of the methodology were validated by a widespread energy benchmarking method, and a case study is presented to show its capabilities. By promoting dialogue towards the creation of a specific European Standard, the actions accomplished by the H2020 Coordination Support Action ENERWATER should positively contribute to improving the exchange of information on energy saving actions and results between wastewater utilities and towards other stakeholders We thank Benedetto Mirko d’Antoni and Diego Cingolani for their contribution to the development of the ENERWATER methodology. Stefano Longo, Miguel Mauricio-Iglesias and Almudena Hospido belong to the Galician Competitive Research Group (ED431C 2017/029) and the CRETUS strategic partnership (AGRUP2017/01), co-funded by FEDER (EU). Besides, they are supported by ENERWATER Coordination Support Action (www.enerwater.eu) that has received founding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 649819 SI