Drives&Controls & BACK TO BASICS n SPONSORED BY We could be using water to generate heat and power Using drives to improve the e ciency of water industry processes is an important step on the path to net-zero. However, it is only a single step in a wider journey. ABB’s Martin Richardson explores whether there are other ways we could be harnessing water’s energy. Improving energy e ciency is a major strand of the water industry’s ambitious plans for decarbonisation by 2030. However, e ciency alone will not deliver the transformative changes required to achieve net-zero within the required timeframes. Flowing water is already harnessed as a renewable energy source in the form of hydroelectric power, but building hydro capacity at scale often requires complex engineering and substantial investments. It can also take decades for these projects to be completed, and we simply don’t have that kind of time before 2030. E ciency is important of course, but water also has a vast potential for additional energy generation, both in terms of heat and ow. There are locations all over the country where gravity is already moving water, and there are almost certainly more places where we could add turbines to harvest energy from water that is already owing. The UK’s rivers also store huge amounts of heat, relatively speaking. Of course, one has to be careful about the environmental impact of extracting large amounts of heat from waterways, but with advances in heat pumps, the potential and the technologies are available to take advantage of a resource that’s already accessible. Water from disused mines is often warmer than surface water and, with the right set-up, this heat could be extracted and fed into a district heating system, as could heat extracted from wastewater treatment processes. The world’s largest CO2-based seawater heat pump recently came online in the Danish city of Esbjerg. This facility uses renewable energy from wind farms to extract heat from the North Sea, and could supply around 280GWh of district heating annually, covering the heating needs of about 25,000 homes. This was obviously a large and complex project requiring buy-in from numerous stakeholders, but my point is: if other countries are making these things happen, then why can’t we, even at smaller scales? If we’re serious about sustainability, then we need to take bold action, and we have to explore all possibilities to reduce carbon emissions and energy usage. Using drives to save energy is an important part of the wider journey, but there’s more we could be doing to harness water’s energy generation potential. ABB will be exhibiting at the Water Equipment Show on 15 May, 2025, at Telford International Centre. Short Lead Time Full Factory Support ory Supp Great Style, Price & Function , Price & Function Front Sheet Customisation Available sales@lamonde.com | www.lamonde.com +44 (0)20 3026 2670 vice pert Ad Quality Products: Ex re & Support Arm Systems HMI Enclosure port Arm Lamonde Automation Limited
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