Application of digital twins for remote operation of membrane capacitive deionization (mCDI) systems

Digital Twins (DTs) have been developed for several pilot-scale membrane capacitive deionization (mCDI) units that are located in remote communities in China and Australia for desalination of brackish water and treated domestic wastewater. These pilot-scale mCDI units have a production capacity ranging from 5 to 50 m3/day and a water recovery rate of up to 85%. The mCDI DTs use Head-mounted Displays (HMDs) to facilitate the visualisation of transient real-time data and historical data from various sensors in the physical plants. The DTs contain device tag and sensor data display functions which greatly enhance the model functionality and user experience. By combining the DTs with Mixed Reality (MR) technology that blends elements of both Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR), it was possible to use the DTs for remote control and remote operator training in an immersive environment. Our results suggest that more facile remote control and improved training outcomes could be achieved by use of DTs by the water industry compared to those achieved by conventional control and training methods.