Abstract
Water system integration can minimize both fresh water consumption and wastewater discharge from the paper mills. In the
present study, Pinch Technology was used to analyze and optimize the water network of an integrated paper mill. A system was
developed and a limiting constraint (COD concentration) was identified based on investigations for water quality, and then
minimum fresh water and wastewater targets were determined without considering water losses. The analysis was extended by
estimating the additional input of fresh water required to balance the actual water losses. A nearest neighbor algorithm (NNA)
was used to distribute the fresh and recycled water in the plant operations. Results showed that the flow rates of fresh water could be decreased up to 20.83 %.