Evaluation of Treated Wastewater Reuse Alternatives Using Fuzzy-Multi Criteria Decision Making Techniques

Abstract

India is second country after China in which untreated wastewater is largely used to fulfil various water demands. Such practice results in ecological deterioration. This study initiates encouragement of treated wastewater reuse in Aurangabad city by giving best possible reuse alternatives using fuzzy logic. It can help to reduce pollutant loading into nearby streams, widen the range of water availability and accessibility. The ambiguity related to the reuse patterns is defined by Triangular Fuzzy Numbers (TFN). The alternatives Urban reuse, Industrial reuse and Environmental and Recreational reuse are evaluated on the basis of 6 criterions; namely as Quality of reclaimed i.e. treated wastewater, Production /treatment Cost, Demand, Water tariff, Social acceptance and Reliable source. The alternatives assessment is performed with the help of Multi Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) techniques i.e. Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (F-AHP) for estimation of weights and Fuzzy Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Situation (F-TOPSIS) for aggregation outcome. The F-AHP gave the results by pair wise comparison and the F-TOPSIS results were computed to give the order of preference of the best alternative.