Evaluation of Pressure Reducing Valves performance using Statistical Approach in Water Distribution System : Case Study

Abstract

It has been widely accepted that the pressure management of water distribution systems using pressure reducing valves(PRVs) would be an effective method for controlling leakages. A pressure reducing valve (PRV) regulates outlet pressure regardless of fluctuating flow and varying inlet pressure, thereby reducing leakage and mitigating the stress on the water distribution system. However, the operation of a PRV is vulnerable to its mechanical condition and hydraulic operability. In this research, the effect of PRVs installed in water distribution system are evaluated in terms of hydraulic pressure reduction and mechanical performance by analyzing measured pressure data with statistical approach. A statistical approach using the moving average filter and frequency analysis based on fourier transform is presented to detect abnormally operated PRVs that have been densely installed in water distribution system. The result shows that the proposed approach can be a good performance evaluation method by simply measuring pressures for the PRVs.