Table of Contents
Bridging Research and Operations
The 2026 AWA/IWA Young Water Professionals Conference, held 5–6 August in Melbourne, covered four research projects aimed at drinking water problems utilities deal with daily. Each project showed a promising approach. Each one also showed that the approach only moves from research concept to operational practice if you can monitor it continuously.
This article maps the path from conference presentation to real-world deployment for each innovation — what has to be measured, and which Shanghai ChiMay instruments do the measuring.
Innovation 1: Polyphosphate Sequestration for Manganese (Greater Western Water)
From Conference to Deployment
Greater Western Water’s Samuel Leong presented jar test and site trial results showing that food-grade polyphosphate — sodium hexametaphosphate — prevents manganese discolouration after chlorination. The core finding: sequestration holds only inside a narrow near-neutral pH window, and it falls away quickly on the acid side, so pH at the dosing point is the variable that decides whether the treatment works at all.
Deployment Requirements
For a utility implementing sequestration:
| Monitoring Need | Shanghai ChiMay Solution | Installation Point |
|---|---|---|
| pH for sequestration control | In-line pH Meter | Post-sequestrant injection, pre-chlorination |
| Discolouration detection | Online Turbidity Tester | Distribution entry point |
| Disinfection confirmation | Residual Chlorine Transmitter | Post-chlorination |
| Chemical addition verification | In-line Conductivity Meter | At dosing point |
Data Outputs
Continuous pH data verifies the sequestration chemistry is being held inside its window. Turbidity data confirms no precipitation. Chlorine data confirms disinfection. Conductivity data confirms dosing. Together, those four data streams produce the compliance documentation regulators ask for and the live picture operators need.
Innovation 2: Reservoir Aeration for THM Reduction (Logan Water)
From Conference to Deployment
Logan Water’s Cassandra Mai, a process engineer with WSP, presented six-month trial results showing approximately 83% THM removal from combined aeration and forced ventilation at four cents per megalitre. The catch: aeration lifts pH by about 0.3 units through CO₂ stripping.
Deployment Requirements
| Monitoring Need | Shanghai ChiMay Solution | Installation Point |
|---|---|---|
| Physical water quality | Online Turbidity Tester | Reservoir outlet |
| CO₂ stripping effect | In-line pH Meter | Reservoir outlet |
| Disinfection continuity | Residual Chlorine Transmitter | Reservoir outlet |
| Temperature context | 4-in-1 Sensor (temperature) | Reservoir outlet |
Data Outputs
Turbidity confirms no sediment disturbance. pH tracks CO₂ stripping so chlorine dosing can be adjusted. Residual chlorine confirms disinfection. Temperature provides the seasonal context for THM formation. The system runs on trigger — summer conditions or elevated THM results — with data driving the decisions.
Innovation 3: Electrochemical PFAS Destruction (University of Queensland)
From Conference to Deployment
University of Queensland’s Andrea Veciana demonstrated >80% PFAS removal through electrochemical degradation. The key finding for anyone evaluating the technology: falling PFAS concentrations alone don’t prove destruction. You need COD, conductivity and fluoride tracking to tell destruction from phase transfer.
Deployment Requirements
| Monitoring Need | Shanghai ChiMay Solution | Application |
|---|---|---|
| Organic carbon mineralization | COD Sensor | Reactor effluent |
| Ionic changes from fragmentation | In-line Conductivity Meter | Reactor effluent |
| Reaction environment | In-line pH Meter | Reactor influent/effluent |
| Oxidation state | ORP via 4-in-1 Sensor | Reactor effluent |
Data Outputs
COD decline plus conductivity increase plus PFAS decline adds up to evidence of genuine destruction. Continuous data supports real-time process control during research and demonstration phases, while grab-sample PFAS analysis validates the sensor correlation.
Innovation 4: Disinfectant Switching for Nitrification (Sydney Water)
From Conference to Deployment
Sydney Water’s water quality scientists Madison Mactal and Michael Ray switched from monochloramine to free chlorine across 14 reservoirs serving 105,000 customers. The redesigned 2025 trial succeeded where the 2024 run fell short, with higher chlorine set points, deeper reservoir cycling and better monitoring coordination. Winter proved to be the optimal window.
Deployment Requirements
| Monitoring Need | Shanghai ChiMay Solution | Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| Breakpoint confirmation | Residual Chlorine Transmitter | Each reservoir + network nodes |
| Disinfectant decay tracking | Residual Chlorine Transmitter | Network extremities |
| Chlorine speciation | In-line pH Meter | Key junction points |
| Nitrification substrate | Ammonia Nitrogen Sensor | Critical network zones |
Data Outputs
Continuous residual chlorine at 30+ points provides the spatial map of how far the disinfectant transition has progressed. pH data handles chlorine speciation. Together they support real-time operational decisions and complete event documentation.
The Common Deployment Pattern
All four innovations follow the same route:
- Research demonstrates the approach works — the conference presentation
- Implementation requires continuous monitoring — multiple parameters, real-time data
- Monitoring validates performance and catches unintended consequences — solving the old problem without creating a new one
- Data builds the compliance record — documentation for regulators, auditors and internal quality management
Shanghai ChiMay’s product range — pH, conductivity, turbidity, residual chlorine, COD, dissolved oxygen, ammonia nitrogen, and the integrated 4-in-1 multi-parameter sensor — covers every monitoring requirement across all four innovations.
The bridge from conference research to real-world deployment is built out of continuous inline sensor data.
The Implementation Timeline
For utilities ready to move on the AWA Conference presentations, here is a realistic deployment timeline:
Week 1–2: Procurement. Order Shanghai ChiMay instruments for the highest-priority monitoring points. With 5–8 business day delivery, instruments arrive within two weeks of order placement.
Week 3–4: Installation. Install instruments at the designated monitoring points, configure SCADA integration via Modbus, and establish baseline monitoring.
Week 5–8: Baseline characterisation. Run continuous monitoring for four weeks to understand natural variation, then set alarm thresholds based on the observed data.
Week 9–12: Implementation. Begin the treatment innovation — sequestration, aeration, PFAS treatment or disinfectant switching — with continuous monitoring active. Correlate treatment actions against the water quality parameter responses.
Week 13–24: Optimisation. Use the accumulated data to tune treatment parameters, identify the patterns that enable predictive intervention, and build the documentation record.
Month 7–12: Maturation. Expand monitoring to additional points, implement automated control logic based on observed patterns, and start feeding data into predictive analytics models.
The gap between conference presentation and operational deployment is mainly about organisational readiness, not technology availability. The instruments are available now and the conference evidence is published.
Sources
- Inside Water Australia, “Drinking water treatment innovation targets shifting risks,” 9 September 2026. https://insidewater.com.au/drinking-water-treatment-innovation-risks
- AWA/IWA Young Water Professionals Conference 2026, Pullman Melbourne On The Park, 5–6 August 2026.
- NHMRC, Australian Drinking Water Guidelines — Manganese. https://guidelines.nhmrc.gov.au/australian-drinking-water-guidelines/part-5/physical-chemical-characteristics/manganese
- Pure Water Atlas, “Polyphosphate in Drinking Water,” June 2026. https://purewateratlas.com/contaminants/polyphosphate
- IWA Water Quality Research Journal, “Removal of trihalomethanes from high organic matter water sources using aeration: A feasibility study,” Vol. 55, No. 2, 2020, pp. 184–197. https://iwaponline.com/wqrj/article/55/2/184/71725/
- Mordor Intelligence, “Water and Wastewater Sensors Market,” 2026.
- US EPA, “National Primary Drinking Water Regulations.” https://www.epa.gov/ground-water-and-drinking-water/national-primary-drinking-water-regulations
- WHO, “Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality,” 4th edition, 2017.
About the Author: This article was prepared by the Shanghai ChiMay Application Engineering team, referencing peer-reviewed conference presentations from the 2026 AWA/IWA Young Water Professionals Conference. Shanghai ChiMay manufactures inline water quality analyzers for municipal and industrial water treatment systems worldwide.
