Every day, across thousands of industrial facilities around the world, water evaporates silently—along with energy, resources, and untapped opportunities. Cooling towers, essential for thermal comfort and process efficiency, have paradoxically become one of the most overlooked sources of water loss in urban and industrial environments. In regions where water stress is rising and climate variability intensifies, each unnecessary purge from a cooling tower is a double loss: of water, and of adaptive capacity.
This project proposes a bold, scalable, and measurable intervention that transforms structural inefficiency into regenerative performance. By optimizing chemical treatment protocols and implementing real-time monitoring of critical parameters, the initiative aims to significantly reduce blowdown volumes, increase cycles of concentration, and reduce the demand for makeup water, all without compromising system integrity or water quality. The impact is immediate and tangible: the avoided freshwater consumption can match the annual needs of hundreds of urban households per tower.
The project is fully aligned with the Water Positive strategy, meeting the principles of additionality (the water benefit would not occur without the intervention), traceability (continuous digital monitoring of avoided volume), and intentionality (explicit goal to generate a verifiable Water Benefit). In contexts where every drop counts and every strategic decision shapes the future of water, this is not just about efficiency—it’s about setting a new benchmark for industrial water responsibility.
At the operational core of many industries, cooling towers represent a hidden water paradox: systems designed to release heat, yet often losing water beyond necessity. These losses, primarily due to excessive blowdowns and suboptimal cycles of concentration, can account for up to 30% of a tower’s total water intake. The technical root of the issue lies in conservative setpoints, manual control, or inefficient chemical treatments that fail to balance salt concentration with corrosion and scaling risks.
This project unlocks a concrete and strategic opportunity: by redesigning the chemical treatment protocol and deploying continuous monitoring (conductivity, cycles, temperature, pH, and more), blowdown volumes are drastically reduced, raising cycles of concentration from 3.5 to 6 or higher without compromising thermal performance or asset protection. This results in lower freshwater withdrawal, reduced pollutant load in effluents, and less use of aggressive chemicals.
From a Volumetric Water Benefit (VWB) perspective, the VWBA 2.0 methodology explicitly recognizes consumption reduction under the “with vs. without project” baseline scenario. This intervention applies Method A-2 “Reduced Consumption”, officially validated in the VWBA guidance, allowing precise quantification of cubic meters of water saved from unnecessary evaporation and discharge.
The project is driven by a technical-operational consortium formed by the system operator, the specialized chemical treatment provider, and an external structuring entity that ensures traceability, verification, and governance of the water benefit. This synergy enables fast replication across other towers and scalability in hotel chains, food industries, hospitals, or commercial centers.
Acting now is essential, not only for the immediate gains in efficiency, sustainability, and cost savings, but also to prepare companies for a future of stricter regulations, rising water tariffs, and increasing scrutiny on water use. Companies leading such solutions will not only meet their ESG goals, but become powerful stories of regenerative industrial transition in a water-scarce world.
The proposed solution shifts from reactive maintenance to a proactive, automated, and sustainable water management approach in cooling towers. A modular system combining electroporation, advanced oxidation, and in situ chlorination continuously disinfects the water, eliminates microorganisms, and maintains the system’s physicochemical balance without requiring regular purging.
This physical-chemical treatment produces highly oxidizing compounds such as hydroxyl radicals, ozone, and hydrogen peroxide to degrade organic contaminants and prevent biofilm formation. Electroporation directly inactivates bacteria such as Legionella, eliminating the need for external biocides. Simultaneously, free chlorine is generated from naturally occurring chlorides, ensuring residual disinfection without the addition of hypochlorite or other chemicals.
System management is supported by a digital platform enabling real-time remote monitoring of critical parameters (Redox, pH, turbidity, temperature, conductivity), automated cleaning, purge, and maintenance actions, and smart alerts in case of deviations. This reduces operator workload, improves data traceability, and supports regulatory compliance on water quality and public health.
The result is a drastic reduction in water use (up to 90% in purge reduction), a significant improvement in sanitary safety, and a more efficient, climate-resilient operation.
The technology integrates with existing systems through an in-line installation that recirculates water from the tower basin through a modular unit containing the physical-chemical treatment cells. Integration does not interfere with daily operations and requires no structural modifications to existing infrastructure. The system is scalable and can be tailored to various capacities by adding modules based on the flow rate and thermal load of each tower or interconnected tower network.
Equipment is designed for continuous operation with standard three-phase power supply (380 V) and moderate energy demand. Data connectivity can be established via fixed network or proprietary SIM, allowing operation in industrial environments lacking digital infrastructure. Integration includes water quality sensors (pH, ORP, turbidity, conductivity, temperature, filter pressure) and flow meters, along with motorized valves for automatic purging and filter cleaning.
Operations are managed through a cloud-based digital platform that centralizes all system data for real-time analysis. This includes historical records, trend analysis, period comparisons, multivariable diagnostics, and configurable alarms. Digitalization enables predictive maintenance protocols, reduces unscheduled interventions, and enhances traceability. Technicians can remotely control the system, schedule automatic cleanings, adjust dosing, and activate hyperchlorination protocols if needed.
Implementation includes training for client technical staff, operational documentation, and custom action protocols for each installation. The entire system is delivered under a monthly service contract covering installation, operation, maintenance, and technical monitoring. This performance-based model includes a guaranteed water savings commitment (in m³/year), audited through digital records to ensure water benefit traceability and verification.
The technology has been successfully deployed across multiple high-volume cooling applications, including food processing plants, pharmaceutical facilities, logistics complexes, and corporate buildings.
This project addresses a recurring challenge in industrial facilities: the high water consumption of cooling towers and evaporative condensers. These systems, essential for dissipating heat from thermal processes, traditionally operate through evaporation cycles that concentrate salts and contaminants in the water, requiring frequent purges to prevent scaling, corrosion, and health risks. Such purges result in considerable water losses and necessitate constant replenishment, alongside the use of aggressive chemicals such as biocides, anti-scalants, and pH adjusters—raising costs, operational risks, and environmental impact.
The proposed solution implements an innovative technology that completely eliminates chemical usage by deploying a modular, in-line water treatment system. This system integrates three synergistic processes: electroporation, which deactivates microorganisms like Legionella without biocides; advanced oxidation, which degrades organic compounds using free radicals and ozone; and in situ generation of free chlorine from dissolved chlorides, providing a residual disinfectant effect. The system is fully controlled and monitored via a digital platform enabling real-time automation, anomaly detection, scheduled maintenance, and full operational traceability.
The project is specifically deployed in Aragón, in industrial zones across Zaragoza, Huesca, and Teruel, where large cooling towers place significant stress on local aquifers and water supply systems. The intervention can reduce up to 90% of purged water and eliminate up to 95% of chemical use, generating quantifiable benefits in line with VWBA 2.0 methodology. The implementation model includes a monthly service contract, verified water savings, and technical training for plant staff.
This initiative aims to reduce water consumption in industrial cooling systems by applying a comprehensive technological solution that replaces chemicals with advanced physical-chemical processes. The intervention focuses on installing a modular treatment system based on electroporation, advanced oxidation, and in situ free chlorine generation, enabling continuous and automated microorganism control and water parameter management.
The proposal is implemented in Aragón, a region with major industrial and logistics hubs that rely heavily on cooling water. By deploying this technology, the project seeks to permanently reduce water purging, improve thermal efficiency, minimize biocide use, and prevent sanitary risks such as Legionella outbreaks. The system includes real-time monitoring, remote control, autonomous operation, and full data traceability, facilitating regulatory compliance and evidence-based decision-making.
The project follows the VWBA 2.0 framework, allowing quantification of generated Water Benefits (VWBs) under additionality, traceability, and permanence criteria. With a performance-based contractual model, the solution includes audits and technical monitoring, and aligns with multiple Sustainable Development Goals. Proven implementation in reference industrial facilities confirms its scalability, reliability, and strategic value in water-stressed contexts.
