Impact of active night population and leakage exponent on leakage estimation in developing countries

Methods for network leakage estimation include water balance, component analysis and minimum night flow (MNF) methods the latter of which involves subtracting the customer night use (QCNU) from night leakage and multiplying by the hour day factor (HDF). QCNU and HDF respectively depend on Active Night Population (ANP) and leakage exponent (N1). In most developing countries, these parameters are assumed in the MNF method thus introducing errors which makes setting realistic leakage reduction targets and key performance indicators (KPI) problematic. In this study, QCNU and HDF were evaluated by determining the relative error associated with ANP and N1 to establish localized rates for accurately estimating leakage in water networks. Between 7 and 11% relative error was associated with every 1% higher or lower ANP while up to 4% relative error was observed for every step considered. A linear relationship exists between the relative error associated with both and ANP although that of ANP is twice as high as This has technical implications on setting water loss reduction targets and investing in the water infrastructure. It is recommended that water utilities must establish localized ANP and values for accurate leakage estimation in water networks.

A Study on a Modified Model for the Hold Time of a Clean Extinguishing Agent

When estimating the theoretical hold time of a Clean Extinguishing Agent (CEA), the hold time is predicted using a leakage exponent and leakage characteristics that are measured through an Enclosure Integrity Test (EIT). In particular, the leakage exponent n is conventionally applied as 0.5, but recently, a variable exponent has been applied through measurement (approximately 0.48 to 0.85). When variable n is applied, the hold time varies greatly depending on the size of n. Therefore, in this study, a modified theoretical model for the hold time of a CEA is proposed to improve the accuracy of the hold time depending on the leakage exponent n. The modified theoretical model applies a different analysis of the inflow and outflow volumetric flow, and the results enable a more accurate hold time prediction. The modified theoretical equation shows an improvement of up to 8.6% for outflow volumetric flow V˙o and a maximum improvement of approximately 10.7% for hold time th.

Numerical investigation of leakage behaviour in long radius elbows

This paper focuses on the relationship between leakage opening areas and pressure heads for 90° long radius elbows under elastic limits using finite element analysis (SAP 2000). The results indicate that leakage opening areas grow linearly as the system pressure increases and the relation is described by the pressure–area slope (M). A sensitivity study was performed to show the effect of various parameters on M, as well as the leakage exponent (N). It was found that elbow internal diameter has the largest influence on the pressure–area slope, followed by the modulus of elasticity and finally elbow wall thickness. The longitudinal stress and Poisson’s ratio have a negligible effect on M. Furthermore, leak quantity is related to the pressure raised to a power ranging from 0.495 to 0.592. Regression analysis was used to derive an empirical equation to predict the pressure–area slope of round holes within elbows with different properties.