Abstract
Abstract Apparent losses are mainly due to metering errors in well-managed water supply systems. There are many types of water meters based on mechanisms to measure flow passing through. Therefore, selection of water meter type is important as meter type effects measurement accuracy. In this study, a total of 50 domestic water meters were tested under varying flow rates and different water pressures. Water consumptions of end-users show temporal changes depending on the life style of consumers. Flow rates passing through the water meter and water consumption profiles affect water meter accuracy. Water consumption of a couple of end-users was monitored and consumption patterns were extracted and obtained water consumption patterns were used to determine water meter errors. The collection method was applied for determination of water meter errors. Starting flow rates, error curves and weighted error of water meters were measured in a laboratory setup. Tested volumetric-type water meters have the lowest starting flow rate and the highest accuracy whereas single-jet water meters have the lowest accuracy and the highest starting flow rate. This study aimed to provide insights on the accuracy of water meters under varying flow rates and water pressures, and advantageous information for water meter-type selection.
Highlights
The problem of excessive water losses in urban water supply services has become more crucial
This study aims to provide an experimental evaluation of water meter accuracy under various flow rates and water pressures
Water meters work under varying flow rates due to temporal changes in water consumption depending on the life style of consumers
Summary
The problem of excessive water losses in urban water supply services has become more crucial. Apparent losses resulting from inaccuracies of water meters can be minimized by implementing a nine-step technique including water meter selection and optimal replacement period (Arregui et al ). The strategy relies on the comparison of annual readings of in-service water meters (Arregui et al ) This strategy requires a detailed billing database and, selection of water meters might be affected by data handling errors and reading errors. This study aims to provide an experimental evaluation of water meter accuracy under various flow rates and water pressures For this purpose, water consumptions of typical residential end-users were monitored to determine flow rates and water consumption patterns were extracted from obtained data. Domestic type single-jet with dry chamber, multi-jet with dry chamber and wet chamber, and volumetric water meters were tested to determine the inaccuracies of water meters at determined flow rates of typical end-users under different water pressures
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