A novel device for pressure-based leakage characterisation in water distribution pipes

ABSTRACT

A pipe condition assessment device (PCAD) was developed to detect, characterise leakage and assess the condition of water distribution networks (WDN). In this study, the reliability and repeatability of the device results were established by first characterising known leak types on pipe sections using a standardised method. Then, three manufactured leak types were tested, with each leak tested ten times. These tests were then repeated using the PCAD and showed that the PCAD could produce results comparable to laboratory-acquired results within a 95% confidence interval. Field tests conducted in a real network revealed that the PCAD could detect and identify leakage characteristics in water networks.

KEYWORDS:

• Leakage
• pipe condition assessment device
• water distribution network

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to acknowledge the South African Water Research Commission (WRC) for funding the project and Ms Laura Lunita Lopez-Vega for the PCAD technical support.

D ata a vailability s tatements

Some or all data, models, or code that support this study’s findings are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. (Available data relates to the pressure and flow rate measurements and statistical analysis)

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notations

The following symbols are used in this paper:

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