Efficient water treatment is becoming increasingly important

There is enough water on earth. However, of the approximately 1.4 billion km³, around 97.5% is distributed in the oceans as saltwater that is of little direct use. Only the remaining 2.5% is considered fresh water, which is vital for biological life on the land mass. Unfortunately, only 0.3% of this is accessible to us in lakes, rivers and wells, the rest is trapped as ice in glaciers in the mountains, Arctic and Antarctic. In addition, deep groundwater that is difficult to access forms part of this total amount.

Snow in mountains and glaciers are an important drinking water resource for more than 2 billion people around the world, as well as being important for agricultural irrigation and energy production. The thaw water feeds rivers and lakes and is stored as snow and ice in the cold phases.

Reserves are getting smaller

Due to climatic changes, these reserves are in danger of
to become smaller or disappear completely in the future. This means an urgent need for alternative supply routes for many parts of the world.

Seawater desalination or the purification and direct reuse of wastewater are possible but costly solutions. It is important that fresh water remains affordable and accessible as the basis of life. The process engineering methods and systems for this exist and are constantly being developed further.

A high degree of automation and, in future, AI, which will be
fed with measurement data from smart sensors, are the
requirements for the maintenance and production of qualitatively and
sufficient quantities of water.

With its sensor and automation program, Jumo supports plant
Jumo's sensor and automation range helps plant manufacturers worldwide to master this mammoth task. The products are used in all quality and application levels of the valuable water, from seawater to drinking, process or cooling water to ultra-pure water of the highest quality for pharmaceutical use.

A drinking water supply project in Solapur in India, which I know well from my work, is a good example of this. The water there is taken from a dammed river. The water in the river is polluted to varying degrees by the surrounding industry. The measurements at the inlet and outlet of the waterworks should make it possible to record these inputs from industry over a longer period of time and to derive measures from this as to how the water can be made available to the population in even better quality. Effective water treatment can therefore put a stop to water shortages and mitigate them.

Overall, the water supply in India is critical despite regions with strong monsoon seasons. Part of the country needs meltwater from the Hindu Kush-Himalya region. Several large rivers run through this region, supplying more than 1.5 billion people in India and other neighboring countries with drinking water and water for irrigation purposes in agriculture.

A lack of meltwater would be a fatal development there. Jumo took part in a symposium in Chennai in October 2024 as part of a German business delegation. Sponsored by the Federal Ministry of Economics and organized by the Indo-German Chamber of Foreign Trade with the involvement of GWP e.V. (German Water Partnership), around ten German companies from the water sector were able to exchange ideas with local Indian politicians, scientists and water companies and develop concrete solutions.

There is no question that the global water crisis will unfortunately continue to occupy us for years to come. Efficient water treatment is therefore becoming increasingly important.