Hydraulic Simulation of Rural Water Distribution Network Aiming at Reduced Leakage (Case Study: Ghorakhk Village, Binalood Region)

Abstract

In water distribution systems, pressure is one of the most important factors affecting leakage. Accordingly pressure management is an integral part of the leak reduction strategy. The main purpose of pressure management is to minimize network leakage by providing minimal pressure on network nodes. Using the pressure control valves (PRV) in the water networks is one of the common methods to reduce water leakage. In this study, with the aim of determining the optimal pressure in the network, the water distribution network was analyzed using WaterGEMS and ArcGIS software and based on field data. The modeling results showed that the pressure distribution in the network is uneven and some network nodes are experiencing non-optimal pressure. Therefore, based on the topography of the area, three pressure optimization scenarios were implemented in the model, which reduced the average night network pressure by 32% to 53%. The results showed that the infrastructure network leakage index (ILI) was reduced by 23.18 to 13.96, which showed a decrease of 28% to 40%. Finally, the calculations showed that by applying these scenarios, network leakage can be reduced by 24.2% to 34.5%.

Keywords

• distribution network
• hydraulic modeling
• leakage
• pressure management