Abstract
ABSTRACT Using rainwater harvesting (RWH) system is influenced by socioeconomic, environmental and technical factors. This work presents as analysis of the influence of the rainfall time series characteristics and design criteria on RWH performance of five Brazilian capitals with different climatic characteristic: Goiânia, João Pessoa, Manaus, Porto Alegre and São Paulo. The analysis combined different rooftop areas, storage volumes and the indoor and outdoor demands. Rainfall temporal discretization and the types of demands were the most important characteristics when assessing RWH reliability. Daily rainfall data were suitable for sizing the RWH, the time series length influenced the sizing of larger storage volumes, and the RWH efficiency was not significantly affected by the first-flush. Toilet flushing and the irrigation demands had the greatest impact on RWH performance. The greatest potentials for the implementation of RWH were observed for Porto Alegre, because of well distributed rainfall throughout the year, and for Manaus owing to higher annual volumes of precipitation. These results highlight relevant aspects that must be observed during the conception and design of RWH, complementing the guidelines provided in the Brazilian technical standards.
Highlights
The growing urban development generates greater pressure on water resources and the consequent concern with their management (Hoff, 2010; Arfanuzzaman & Rahman, 2017; Connor et al, 2019; An et al, 2021)
Long-term rainfall data are recommended for assessing rainwater harvesting (RWH), and a 30-year time series is commonly considered as representative (World Meteorological Organization, 1989) for this analysis
Overall, when considering the same city, the same rooftop area and demand, by increasing the rainfall temporal discretization, there is a reduction in demand-supply failures for the same storage tank volume
Summary
The growing urban development generates greater pressure on water resources and the consequent concern with their management (Hoff, 2010; Arfanuzzaman & Rahman, 2017; Connor et al, 2019; An et al, 2021). The rainwater is an alternative source of water, and its usage allows to increase water supply without the need of new sources of water and contributes to the reduction of water scarcity situations (Elliott & Trowsdale, 2007; Palla et al, 2011; Kim & Furumai, 2012; Rahman et al, 2012; Campisano et al, 2017; van Dijk et al, 2020; Semaan et al, 2020; Kahinda et al, 2010; Notaro et al, 2016), being a technique recently incorporated into the Marco Legal do Saneamento Básico Brasileiro (Brazilian Basic Sanitation Legal Framework), according to the Bill 3189/19 (Brasil, 2020) This strategy can assist Brazil to achieve the goal No 6 of sustainable development (SDG-6), established by the United Nations, which deals with water and sanitation (Cardoso et al, 2020). The rainwater usage reduces the property’s water bills and, some studies suggest that the rainwater harvesting (RWH) may provide a local stormwater attenuation feature (Elliott & Trowsdale, 2007; Memon et al, 2009; Sample & Liu, 2014)
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