Pump modernisation in Alexandria, Egypt
To safeguard the existing infrastructure’s long-term functionality, the waste water treatment plant Alexandria West in Egypt has been comprehensively updated. The pump manufacturer KSB supplied and installed two powerful high-efficiency Sewatec SPN pumps.
The challenge was integrating the new pumps in the existing infrastructure – with consideration of the structural conditions on site and the enormous mass of the pump sets. With each pump weighing about ten tonnes, conventional installation was not an option. Instead, the pump sets were separated into volute casing and back pull-out unit at the plant in Alexandria, where the components were installed and then reassembled.
The pumps employed are characterised by being highly energy efficient and reliable. The maximum flow rate per pump is 9000 litres per second; the head about 100 metres. Driven by specially configured electric motors, the pumps can be operated at one of two speed levels. In this way, they can be adjusted to fluctuating hydraulic conditions, which helps optimise overall efficiency. The two pumps were manufactured at the German KSB site in Halle (Saale) and supplied within nine months.
The waste water disposal of Alexandria, a city of more than 5 million, is the responsibility of the Alexandria Sanitary Drainage Company (ASDC). The Alexandria West waste water treatment plant has got a daily capacity of up to 462,000 m³. Its inlet capacity has been increased significantly after commissioning the new pumps. The large free passages of both pumps ensure a high operating reliability when handling raw waste water.