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If you Google "Why is industrial water treatment important?" you will get 231 million results (give or take a few). Could there really be that much to say on the topic?

I'll admit, I haven't read every one of 231 million, but I have read those included in this article. What makes each of these special? They are exclusively focused on industrial heating and cooling for process applications. Read on to learn how effective water treatment can improve process efficiency, increase equipment lifespan and reduce downtime.

1. The Importance of Maintaining Boiler Feedwater

As James Adgey notes in his article, the water delivered to your plant is not simply a mixture of oxygen and hydrogen. Instead, it contains traces of all of the substances it has encountered on its journey, and its composition varies from one location to the next. These impurities, unsurprisingly, can pose a serious threat to the internal components of a steam system.

As such, it is important to know where and how these impurities can affect boiler operation and maintenance. Read the full article.

High efficiency removal of fine particles and suspended solids can help reduce maintenance and operating costs.

2. Using Film-Forming Amines for Water Treatment

Film-forming amines can deliver effective heat transfer equipment protection and a lower cost of ownership while conserving natural resources, notes Shawn McGrade in his article. The water treatment chemicals lay a microscopic film on surfaces and create a hydrophobic — or water-repelling — barrier. This barrier can protect the metals in the system from impurities such as mineral salts, oxygen, carbon dioxide and carbonic acid.

When FFA-based boiler treatment is applied, boiler cycles of concentration can be increased. Read the full article here.

3. Seawater Cooling Systems Treatment

A thorough understanding of how water-chemistry characteristics vary around the world is required to effectively treat, control and optimize seawater cooling systems, notes Emregul Cetin Yurteri in his article.

Although once-through seawater systems are still common, he notes, drivers such as concerns about high discharge flow rates and the impact of thermal pollution near the discharge point are accelerating the use of open cooling systems. An effective plan to treat, control and optimize seawater cooling systems is needed. Read the full article here.

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4. How Clean Is Your Process Cooling Water?

The presence of fine suspended and dissolved solids, in high volumes, can be harmful to a cooling tower and water loop, affecting the performance of the entire system, notes Mike Ditton in his article. Scaling, fouling and bacterial growth such as Legionella can cause quick degradation and lead to increased maintenance costs and health concerns.

A high efficiency media filtration system can optimize water treatment efforts in several ways. Read the full article here.

5. Webinar Highlights How Effective Water Treatment Improves Heat Transfer

Avoiding scale, corrosion and microbiological growth — all of which diminish effective heat transfer — is the focus of any water treatment approach for water-contacted process heating and cooling equipment. In a one-hour webinar, Jay Farmerie explores external and internal treatment techniques of boiler and cooling tower water, focusing on removing impurities before they inhibit heat transfer surface. Watch the full webinar here.