Detection of an Existing Local Loss in a Water Distribution System

Water distribution system is one of the most critical facilities in cities, and is more fragile compared with other structures. Losses in a water distribution system are often existed before health monitoring is implemented. This paper proposes to detect an existing local loss in a water distribution system on the basis of optimal monitoring of water pressure. The local loss is assumed at different positions with different extents, and pressures at monitoring stations is calculated, and the loss is then detected by minimizing the difference between the calculated and monitoring pressures at the monitoring stations. The efficiency is validated by example analysis. It is shown that an existing local loss is more reliably detected in a water distribution system with optimal monitoring.