(479d) Optimization of Water Networks in Industrial Processes from a Management Point of View

Water networks have always been an extremely important part (sometimes vital) in industries. However, from the management point of view, the water system had not had the same importance. In the past, water was widely available and cheap, which meant that any attempt to reduce the consumption of water would not be practical from the economical point of view. Water scarcity and costs are making this problem relevant. The conflicts between the solutions from a conventional optimization and corporative point of view, which include financial, operational, social, economical, governmental factors, among others, need to be addressed together with the cost. As a first step to approach this problem, we address the financial aspects. Our new proposed methodology constructs a profile of maximum savings through the range of possible reuse options to obtain the ROI profile. This solution points out some optimal networks related with certain feasible reuse ranges. Then, an wider view of cost-benefits, operability range and flexibility is pursued. We will illustrate several intricacies of this approach.