Smarter Water Is Flowing Out of Oak Ridge

ORNL's real-time digital twin slashes water treatment energy costs without compromising quality, and it's built to scale nationwide

6 May 2026

Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), working with the University of California Irvine and Orange County Water District, have deployed a digital twin, a live virtual replica of a physical system, at a working water purification facility in California. The system automatically adjusts plant operations at least every hour, drawing on live electricity pricing to cut energy costs while keeping water quality within regulatory limits.

The tool is built on lean, data-driven algorithms rather than the heavy computing models that most existing digital twins require. That design choice matters: conventional systems demand specialist infrastructure and lengthy set-up periods, placing them out of reach for many smaller utilities. ORNL's version runs on a smaller set of inputs and can be deployed without those technical barriers.

"The paired setup allows physical and virtual systems to provide constant feedback to each other, supporting smarter, faster decisions for operators across utility networks." Subrata Mukherjee, project lead, Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

The pilot plant, hosted by Orange County Water District and developed by UC Irvine, is a scaled-down but fully operational water reuse facility. Early results show the system shifts energy-intensive processes to lower-cost electricity windows without violating compliance standards, addressing a persistent objection to digital adoption in the sector.

Funding comes from the US Department of Energy's National Alliance for Water Innovation and California state agencies. The methodology is designed to transfer across desalination, wastewater, and conventional drinking water systems, broadening its potential reach. The global market for internet-connected water management tools was valued at $13.45bn in 2026 and is growing at 14.2% a year, according to industry estimates. The American Water Works Association has identified digital twins as a defining trend in reservoir and distribution management.

US utilities face compounding pressure from volatile energy prices, ageing infrastructure, and tighter federal standards. Whether ORNL's model can be adopted widely, and at what cost, remains an open question, as does the regulatory framework governing automated decision-making in public water systems.