SDG6
Turning Wastewater into High-Tech Water: NCKU and Tainan City Advance Sustainable Resources
The Department of Environmental Engineering at National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), Tainan City Government, ASUS Group, Dual Arm Intelligence Corporation, and other industry-academia-research teams have jointly launched the "5G Smart Management Demonstration and Verification Project for Yongkang Water Resource Recovery Center." This initiative recycles and reprocesses wastewater into high-tech industrial water, enhancing the water supply stability for advanced industries and showcasing the significant achievements of NCKU's industry-government-academia collaboration.
Associate Professor Zhi-Hua Zhang, co-leader of the "5G Smart Management Demonstration and Verification Project for Tainan Minsheng Wastewater Treatment Plant" and a faculty member of NCKU's Department of Environmental Engineering, emphasized in an interview that sustainable smart water resources have long been a goal for the department. This project represents not only a cross-disciplinary collaboration among industry, government, and academia but also another example of NCKU's commitment to social responsibility. By integrating AIoT, 5G, blockchain, and generative AI technologies, the project successfully developed Taiwan’s leading smart water management system.
Traditional wastewater treatment plants typically treat wastewater and then discharge it. However, given the challenges of extreme weather and water shortages, reusing reclaimed water has become a critical issue. This project aims to recycle wastewater daily, using smart sentinel systems for water quality monitoring, combined with AI technology for data integration, to create a more accurate water quality monitoring system.
"Transforming wastewater into water suitable for high-tech use is an extremely challenging task," explained Associate Professor Chang. The quality of wastewater varies daily, requiring comprehensive system evaluation and monitoring. The research team conducted further water quality assessments at the Yongkang Water Resource Recovery Center and used AIoT smart sentinel systems to extract information and build a water condition database for quality alerts. Dual Arm Intelligence’s AI anomaly detection technology, acting as a "super brain," enhances the system’s analytical and adaptive capabilities.
NCKU was responsible for all software components of the project. Mo Chen, CEO of Dual Arm Intelligence and a Ph.D. candidate at NCKU’s Institute of Industrial Management, noted that Dual Arm Intelligence, a startup incubated by NCKU, demonstrated the practical application of AI innovation through this project. By coordinating and integrating data from various fields, the company developed a smart water system platform that provides intuitive data visualization, enabling operators to monitor water quality changes and system status more effectively. Chen expressed hope for further collaborations to continue advancing smart industry development.
Tainan Deputy Mayor Chao Ching-Hui remarked that the smart upgrade of the Yongkang Water Resource Recovery Center represents an important milestone in Tainan’s smart water development. She hopes this solution can be expanded to other water resource recovery centers across the city, creating a comprehensive smart water network. The successful implementation of this project demonstrates the power of cross-sector collaboration and marks a critical step in Tainan's development as a smart city, building a more sustainable living and economic environment for its residents and industries.
ASUS Taiwan Cloud, the main technical integrator for the project, was responsible for project quality planning and control. By employing its proprietary T Proof blockchain technology, ASUS ensured the transparency and immutability of all hydrological monitoring data. The entire system was deployed on the national cloud service platform TWCC, ensuring strict compliance with security and regulatory requirements, providing robust support for the operation of the Yongkang Water Resource Recovery Center.
Associate Professor Zhi-Hua Zhang, co-leader of the "5G Smart Management Demonstration and Verification Project for Tainan Minsheng Wastewater Treatment Plant" and a faculty member of NCKU's Department of Environmental Engineering, emphasized in an interview that sustainable smart water resources have long been a goal for the department. This project represents not only a cross-disciplinary collaboration among industry, government, and academia but also another example of NCKU's commitment to social responsibility. By integrating AIoT, 5G, blockchain, and generative AI technologies, the project successfully developed Taiwan’s leading smart water management system.
Traditional wastewater treatment plants typically treat wastewater and then discharge it. However, given the challenges of extreme weather and water shortages, reusing reclaimed water has become a critical issue. This project aims to recycle wastewater daily, using smart sentinel systems for water quality monitoring, combined with AI technology for data integration, to create a more accurate water quality monitoring system.
"Transforming wastewater into water suitable for high-tech use is an extremely challenging task," explained Associate Professor Chang. The quality of wastewater varies daily, requiring comprehensive system evaluation and monitoring. The research team conducted further water quality assessments at the Yongkang Water Resource Recovery Center and used AIoT smart sentinel systems to extract information and build a water condition database for quality alerts. Dual Arm Intelligence’s AI anomaly detection technology, acting as a "super brain," enhances the system’s analytical and adaptive capabilities.
NCKU was responsible for all software components of the project. Mo Chen, CEO of Dual Arm Intelligence and a Ph.D. candidate at NCKU’s Institute of Industrial Management, noted that Dual Arm Intelligence, a startup incubated by NCKU, demonstrated the practical application of AI innovation through this project. By coordinating and integrating data from various fields, the company developed a smart water system platform that provides intuitive data visualization, enabling operators to monitor water quality changes and system status more effectively. Chen expressed hope for further collaborations to continue advancing smart industry development.
Tainan Deputy Mayor Chao Ching-Hui remarked that the smart upgrade of the Yongkang Water Resource Recovery Center represents an important milestone in Tainan’s smart water development. She hopes this solution can be expanded to other water resource recovery centers across the city, creating a comprehensive smart water network. The successful implementation of this project demonstrates the power of cross-sector collaboration and marks a critical step in Tainan's development as a smart city, building a more sustainable living and economic environment for its residents and industries.
ASUS Taiwan Cloud, the main technical integrator for the project, was responsible for project quality planning and control. By employing its proprietary T Proof blockchain technology, ASUS ensured the transparency and immutability of all hydrological monitoring data. The entire system was deployed on the national cloud service platform TWCC, ensuring strict compliance with security and regulatory requirements, providing robust support for the operation of the Yongkang Water Resource Recovery Center.
The Department of Environmental Engineering at National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), in collaboration with the Tainan City Government, ASUS Group, Dual Arm Intelligence Corporation, and other industry-academia-research teams, is jointly promoting the "5G Smart Management Demonstration and Verification Project for Yongkang Water Resource Recovery Center."
Associate Professor Zhi-Hua Zhang from the Department of Environmental Engineering at National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) explained the operational model of the project.
The research team, through system evaluation and monitoring planning, transforms the wastewater from the Yongkang Water Resource Recovery Center into high-tech industrial water.
The "5G Smart Management Demonstration and Verification Project for Yongkang Water Resource Recovery Center" focuses on recycling and reprocessing wastewater into high-tech industrial water.
