Case Study: Amsterdam Water Supply achieves optimized ozone disinfection and reduced bromate formation with Comsol Multiphysics

Amsterdam Water Supply - Customer Case Study

Amsterdam Water Supply (AWS) provides potable water for roughly 800,000 people and treats about 100 million m3 per year using ozone as the primary disinfectant. Their challenge was to understand and optimize large, turbulent ozone reactors—where internal flow, mixing and residence times determine disinfection performance and the risk of bromate byproduct—despite only sparse flow‑meter and tracer measurements. To fill those gaps AWS turned to Comsol and its Comsol Multiphysics modeling environment.

Using Comsol Multiphysics (k‑ε turbulence models, parametric solvers, tracer transport and reaction modules and the “Turbulent Ozone Reactor” example), AWS matched measured velocity profiles (≈0.17 m/s) and tracer concentrations, tested retrofit ideas virtually, and optimized baffle and diffuser placement to improve flow uniformity and limit bromate formation. Comsol’s simulations cut trial‑and‑error physical retrofits, saved time and materials, supported regulatory reporting, and are being extended to 3D and two‑phase bubbly‑flow models to further enhance reactor design and operation.