Case Study – Granular Activated Carbon – Strategic asset management and optimisation

Isle has recently completed a commission for two UK Water companies (Confidential) to undertake the development of a GAC Guidance Manual.

Overview

Isle has recently completed a commission for two UK Water companies (Confidential) to undertake the development of a GAC Guidance Manual. The manuals evaluated current GAC management practices and outlined innovative GAC monitoring and management methodologies to provide recommendations for the optimisation of Granular Activated Carbon assets with the ultimate goal of reducing the costs and carbon footprint of the process. Project Outline

The projects were comprised of a review of historic GAC quality data, evaluation and application of optimal GAC quality monitoring techniques and strategies, evaluation of alternative GAC system designs and regeneration methodologies and an investigation on the efficiency of GAC in combination with other treatment systems. The projects involved a combination of desktop research, interviews to GAC suppliers and service providers, and practical laboratory tests. The guidance manuals ultimately provided clients with recommendations on:

• Alternative technologies and methodologies to respond to specific issues identified within historical GAC assets data,

• Optimised asset management strategy (including process operation and monitoring),

• Site-specific GAC management, and

• Optimised GAC services procurement process.

Overall, the clients now possess a tool to assist in the implementation of highly strategic GAC management protocols. Additionally, their current GAC monitoring and regeneration frequency schemes have been optimized, therefore reducing the overall expenditure on the asset while continuing to maintain process quality.