Water Meters Research Articles

Digitalization in Urban Water Governance: Case Study of Bengaluru and Singapore

Urban water governance aims to ensure equitable access to adequate quality water and related services to rapidly growing urban population while protecting the environment. Rapid urbanization and changing climate are posing challenges to the formal and informal institutions responsible for governing and managing water resources. Complexities existing due to the interaction between societal and environmental subsystems of urban water cycle adds pressure on institutional capabilities to cope up with various uncertainties. Emergence of digital technologies has provided the necessary tools in urban water governance to strengthen capabilities through effective monitoring, decision making, and forecasting. The paper examines how sequencing and leveraging the synergies of different digital technologies can help mitigate various problems and challenges faced in urban water governance. The paper analyses three digital technologies, Smart Water Metering Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition and Flood Alert System (FAS) using the case studies of Bengaluru and Singapore to understand the transformative capabilities of digitalization in urban water governance. It is assumed that the learnings from this study can be generalized to a large extent. The paper indicates that to unlock the full potential and derive best returns of investment, digitalization needs to have broader objectives. Multi-purpose use of digital tools can contribute effectively to the implementation of Integrated Urban Water Management. The results highlighted that societal acceptability of digitalization depends majorly on the mode of implementation and not so much on the technology.

Analisis Jaringan Distribusi Air Bersih Menggunakan Epanet 2.0 (Studi Kasus Perumahan Telkomas Kecamatan Tamalanrea)

Telkomas Housing is one of the complexes located in Tamalanrea District, Makassar City, South Sulawesi Province, and is an area that gets clean water distribution from Makassar City PDAM, but Telkomas Housing currently has a problem regarding water pressure. This research is intended to determine the need for clean water in Telkomas housing at present and in the future and make plans for the development of clean water distribution with the development of Telkomas housing. The results of the calculation of current water needs in Telkommas housing with the number of houses that are subscribed to are 405 houses, where the average daily water requirement is 340,200 liters/day, the average daily requirement is 391,230 liters/day and the peak hour is 7,924 liters/second. Then on the calculation of future water needs which is assumed to be 10 years in the future and the number of customers is 70% or about 770 houses, 2 educational facilities, and 3 religious facilities, where the average daily water requirement is 673,080 liters/day, the maximum daily requirement is 774,042 liters /day and peak hours of 15.678 liters/second. Then after analyzing the piping network on Epanet 2.0, there are several nodes whose pressure is still below the distribution pipe criteria or about 5.16 meters of water. each reservoir so that the water pressure value obtained has met the distribution pipe criteria and has been able to meet the water needs of PDAM customers in Telkomas housing both now and in the future.

A Laboratory Set-Up for the Analysis of Intermittent Water Supply: First Results

The evaluation of the impact of intermittent water supply on water distribution systems is a complex task. Laboratory tests, in controlled conditions with virtually no constraints on instrument and device location, allow the analysis of the effects of single parameters on pressures and flows. Within the framework of a research consultancy commissioned by the World Bank, the test network at the Water Engineering Laboratory of the University of Perugia, Italy, was modified to analyse pipe filling and emptying phenomena. Herein we describe the characteristics of the set-up, the available instruments and data acquisition system, as well as the installed devices (e.g., air release and in- and off-line ball valves). The set-up was also designed to investigate the effects of the air flow on the overbilling of water meters. The results of a preliminary test allow the typical phases of the phenomenon to be analysed, including the filling of the pipe with water and the discharging of air, the arrival of the water front at the downstream end causing a pressure variation typical of water hammer, and the emptying process and the filling with air. The analysis allows the operational mechanism to be understood and remedial interventions designed and validated.

Study of domestic water consumption in intermittent supply of the Riberas de Sacramento sector in Chihuahua, Mexico

Abstract User water demand can be met in intermittent water supply systems, and normally it is met if they have sufficient capacity to store water in their homes to be used in the hours when it is not supplied from the public pipe network. The situation in many intermittent water supply systems is that they have enough water to cover the demand of the users but are supplying it intermittently, and the challenge is to achieve a transfer from intermittent to continuous supply. If the delivery of water is continuous, which supplies drinking water 24/7, it covers not only the basic needs of the user, but all the needs for water they may have. The present study was carried out using smart domestic water meters to obtain consumption information in an intermittently supplied pilot sector. The electromagnetic meters record the water flow through pulses and generate consumption information, which gives us the consumption pattern in volume of water and in the time it is used. During the study, multivariate statistical methods were applied to obtain information from the domestic meters and to identify, as realistically as possible, the consumption of drinking water and the relationship between consumption and specific characteristics of the users and thus anticipate future demand. The results showed a close relationship between consumption and the size of the residence. The most influential factors were the number of bathrooms and the number of occupants. A direct relationship between the pressure and the volume supplied was presumed at the beginning of the study but the opposite was found. Equipment was installed to measure the pressure in the network at the time of establishing the continuous supply of drinking water. The multivariate analysis provides a selection of the most important variables that influence and explain the behavior of the water use and consumption pattern, with the operation determined by the operating agency.

Blending Irrigation Water Sources with Different Salinities and the Economic Damage of Salinity: The Case of Israel

Israel’s water and vegetative agriculture sectors are interdependent, as the latter constitutes the solution for wastewater disposal. We employ a dynamic mathematical programming model that captures this interdependence for evaluating the economic damage of irrigation water salinity under two strategies of blending water sources with different salinities: field blending, which enables farmers to assign water with a specific salinity to each crop, and regional blending, under which all crops experience similar water salinity. Relative to field blending, the buildup rate of desalination under regional blending is slightly expedited; nevertheless, reallocations of water sources across sectors and crops increase the average irrigation water salinity, and the overall welfare decreases by USD 0.08 per cubic meter of irrigation water—about 20% of the water’s average value of marginal product. Salinity-sensitive crops will face the largest per hectare production reduction if regional blending replaces field blending; however, the combined variations in the prices of irrigation water and agricultural outputs may motivate farmers to move irrigation water to these crops. Under equilibrium conditions in the two sectors, a 1% increase in the average salinity of the irrigation water supplied to a region reduces the value of the marginal product of that water by 2.4% and 1.6% under field and regional blending, respectively.

Evaluation of the measurement performance of water meters depending on water quality

Abstract Water meters of different types and sizes are used to monitor and bill the water supply. Although the water is of drinking water quality, its chemo-physical properties often adversely affect the measuring behaviour of a meter after a while. There is thus the risk that they no longer meet legal requirements and may no longer be used. In this paper a test regime with a focus on pH, total hardness and particle load is presented which allows water meters to be tested closer to their operating conditions prior to placing them on the market. The regime goes beyond the conventional continuous durability test as described in OIML R49:2013(E) and ISO 4064:2014. The feasibility and reliability of the test regime has been demonstrated through implementation at different facilities. In the study, the measurement performance of water meters of various types and from different manufacturers was also investigated. A heterogeneous spread of measurement errors was found for both, water meters in mint conditions and those which were exposed to a defined water quality. Furthermore, compared to the conventional continuous durability test, the test regime developed in the study generally leads to stronger changes in the measurement error of the water meters.

New metrological capabilities for measurements of dynamic liquid flows

The capability to calibrate flow and volume devices dynamically has gained increasing interest over the years. Within the scope of the EMPIR project 17IND13 ‘Metrology for real-world domestic water metering’, several test rigs were developed with which dynamic flow profiles can be generated and measured that reflect characteristics of real-world drinking water consumption. The dynamic component of the test rigs is realized based on different technologies such as valves, cavitation nozzles or piston provers. For validation purposes, an intercomparison of the test rigs was carried out in the scope of an EURAMET pilot study no. 1506. Between September 2020 and February 2021, a transfer standard specially developed for the intercomparison was calibrated at eight laboratories. The measurement error was determined for three dynamic flow profiles representative of drinking water consumption in Europe. In addition to determining the measurement errors and the degree of equivalence, five additional key parameters were derived to characterize the test rig properties: (1) repeatability of the profile measurements, (2) mean value of the residuals, (3) deviation between measured total mass and total mass resulting from the given profile and (4) duration of the flow change for an increasing change (5) and duration of the flow change for a decreasing change. These key parameters comprehensively describe the quality with which the dynamic flow profiles were generated and measured on the test rigs and can be used for evaluations in future intercomparisons of this kind. A main outcome of the intercomparison is that there is no technology to be preferred in terms of technical implementation. All test rigs agree well with each other, taking into account their expanded measurement uncertainties.

Discharges of Nuclear Medicine Radioisotopes: The Impact of an Abatement System.

Clinical uses of radiopharmaceuticals imply the administration of radioactive substances that are mainly excreted through urine. The Nuclear Medicine Department at the Instituto Nacional de Cancerología (INC-COL) in Bogota, Colombia, administers radiopharmaceuticals for diagnostics and treatment to many patients, resulting in tens of cubic meters of radioactive waste water (WW) every day. As Colombian regulatory limits for liquid radioactive discharges to the sewer system are lower than in other countries, longer WW decay times are required, even when an in-house waste water treatment plant (WWTP) is used. To fulfill the requirements for controlled disposal of radioactive discharges, a complementary abatement system was implemented to retain WW for periods as long as 360 d, and was connected to the hospital´s WWTP. These holding times can cause major changes in the WW physicochemical parameters, reaching levels higher than acceptable. In this study, we evaluate the decontamination and decay efficiency of the retention system using water quality parameters and the amount of radioactivity in the effluents stored in the tanks and the WWTP. According to the results, to maintain the physicochemical parameters below acceptable levels, biological and chemical treatment of decayed WW is necessary before discharging it into urban waste water. Using the principles of dilution, retention, and decay, an integral radioactive WW management system was implemented favoring the quality of discharges and activity levels to the sewer system, with efficiencies close to 100% for WW from discharges in diagnostic procedures ranging from 98% (131I) to 100% (177Lu) for WW from discharges in therapeutic procedures. Activity concentration assessment in medically-derived radionuclides using an in-house waste water treatment plant (WWTP) and a complementary abatement system; an in-house WWTP could be used as an abatement system for short-lived radionuclides; and a tank-based abatement system attached to the in-house WWTP showed higher efficiencies for long-lived radionuclides and adequate physicochemical parameters for the discharge to the city sewage system.

Role of Water Policies in the Adoption of Smart Water Metering and the Future Market

Both status and progress in smart water metering (SWM) implementations in five selected countries (i.e., United States of America, United Kingdom, Australia, Israel, and South Korea) are investigated in this study. Despite the countless benefits of SWM implementation, the diffusion of the SWM technologies has been slow due to various challenges, including the absence of compulsory water policies, the lack of support from customers and expertise, and weak cost–benefit analysis. Over the past 30 years, the aforementioned countries have transitioned from a fixed charging to a volumetric charging regime composed of traditional water meters and SWM. Both the status and progress of SWM implementation are quite different among countries, although governments across the world have been applying water policies responding to water scarcity, population growth, and water demand management. However, the absence of strong water policies and political support for SWM implementation resulted in the slow and retarded spread of SWM implementation. Although several changes in water policies have occurred since 1990, there is no compulsory law for SWM implementation. Between 1995 and 2010, pilot/trial cases for SWM were dominant. After 2010, the number of SWM implementation kept increasing and all countries experienced more concentrated SWM implementation, despite the variances in both endpoints and completion of SWM implementation depending on water policies (i.e., acts and regulations) encouraging SWM implementations. The global market for SWM has consistently grown to USD 5.92 billion in 2020. Finally, the application of favourable water policies to optimize the use of water resources and to promote sustainable development is expected to drive the SWM market further.

Proposal for a solution supporting a rational water use in multi-family residential buildings – implementation in property management

Motives: Creating a functionality of a software system for managing multi-family residential buildings which could support property managers and encourage households to reduce their water consumption. Aim: Developing a proposal for a solution supporting a more rational use of water and billing individual households in multi-family buildings for water they use.Results: The created methodology includes automatic collection and recording of data from water meters in a property management software system, creation of algorithms describing relationships in water meter data, creation of algorithms supporting optimal water use in a property and incorporating the developed solution into the software system. The created algorithms were based on the method of moving average of three consecutive readings which is clear for all users. This enables automatic verification of water use and its visualisation using graphs. The created solution was incorporated into one of the property management software systems used in Poland (IAN24), tested and implemented. The created functionality allows property managers e.g. to estimate future water use, which is important for calculating advance payments towards water bills. It also allows managers to automatically detect various types of anomalies, such as meter failures. In addition, a dynamic method of billing according to the proposed methodology may encourage households to reduce their water consumption and thus reduce the impact for the environment.

Adoption of modern irrigation technologies in the presence of water theft and corruption: evidence from public irrigated areas in Medjez-el-Bab

Abstract Water theft carried out by manipulating water meters constrains the implementation of water-saving technologies, which themselves affect the incentives for theft. Using a theoretical model of centralized management, we show that theft is more likely when water prices and monitoring costs are high and punishment levels are weak. Adoption of water-saving technologies is more likely when monitoring costs are low and water prices are high, though only within the range of low to medium prices. The basic analysis is extended to allow for collusion between cheating farmers and the monitor. In the model, we show that collusion is more likely when punishments are weak. We test the model predictions, using data from Tunisia for the years 2012–18, relying on instruments that proxy for unobservable monitoring costs. We use the inverse probability weighting (IPW) method to correct for the potential bias arising from non-random sample selection. Although the econometric evidence supports the majority of the theoretical findings, various economic, socioeconomic, physical, and geographical factors can counteract or supplement these effects.

Need for Upgradation of Technologies in Water Supply Projects in India

Abstract: India, water supply services in urban and rural areas in India are provided mainly by public authorities. These authorities are mostly involved in operation and maintenance of the water supply schemes. When any additional fund becomes available, expansion of pipe network, additional house connections and repair works are taken up. But, there is an urgent need for upgradation of technologies in the water supply schemes. At present, there is not much effort for upgradation of technologies for treatment of water, measurement and control of system, increase in efficiency of pumping stations and water distribution network, etc. The author highlights some of the feasible technologies, which may be evaluated and adopted by water authorities. For technology upgradation, enormous works are needed in India, which in turn will necessitate research and generate employment and business opportunities to Industries. Keywords: Upgradation of Technology, Water Treatment, Water Quality Assessment, Smart Water Meters, Water Quality Sensor, Smart Water Grid.

Factors constraining household willingness to pay for piped water tariffs: the case of Ekiti State, Nigeria

Abstract One of the major problems confronting public water utilities in Nigeria is how to realise effective piped water tariff revenues collection. This study was therefore conducted to identify the major factors constraining household willingness to pay for piped water tariffs in Nigeria, using Ekiti State as a case study, and possible interventions which might help to improve the situation from the perspective of piped water customers. A tested survey has been used through a representative sampling process. The research findings were checked with additional data from relevant literature and legal documents. Findings revealed that political promise, availability of other water sources, lack of recognition of drinking water as a human right, inadequate method of collecting tariff revenues, and poor response to complaints were the major factors constraining household willingness to pay for piped water tariffs in the studied case in Nigeria. The suggested major possible interventions which might help to improve the situation include the installation of water meters, instituting a customer consultative forum, as well as putting in place improved customer relations. To be effective, it is crucial that public water utilities in Nigeria incorporate these factors into piped water supply decision-making and policy measures.

Public Perceptions of Household IoT Smart Water “Event” Meters in the UK—Implications for Urban Water Governance

Cities around the world are facing water availability challenges, intensified by increasing populations and climate change. Technology, such as household smart meters measuring domestic water consumption, can play a role in demand management, yet a deeper understanding of public expectations and the practicalities of city-wide implementation is required. This article explores public perceptions of smart water meters that use Internet of Things (IoT) technology and machine learning to profile household water use “events” and anomalies. By leveraging insights from an online survey implemented in the UK (n = 558), this article explores factors influencing the likelihood of citizens choosing to have this type of meter installed along with potential societal barriers and opportunities. Nearly half of the participants said they would choose to have such a meter installed and logistic regression showed predictive variables were younger ages, being male, those with existing water meters and those with other smart devices. The likelihood of choosing this type of water meter was also associated with preferences to have control over data privacy, whether the meter would reduce water bills and whether it was provided free of charge. We locate these results within other contemporary experiences of smart meters and water grids in urban contexts to discuss practical challenges of using real-time environmental data for urban water governance. Policymakers and water resources planners should continue to monitor public perceptions, implement urban experiments and cost-benefit analyses to better interpret the wider benefits of such technology for behavioral and educational interventions within a more digitized and increasingly data-centric water grid.

ResOpsUS, a dataset of historical reservoir operations in the contiguous United States

There are over 52,000 dams in the contiguous US ranging from 0.5 to 243 meters high that collectively hold 600,000 million cubic meters of water. These structures have dramatically affected the river dynamics of every major watershed in the country. While there are national datasets that document dam attributes, there is no national dataset of reservoir operations. Here we present a dataset of historical reservoir inflows, outflows and changes in storage for 679 major reservoirs across the US, called ResOpsUS. All of the data are provided at a daily temporal resolution. Temporal coverage varies by reservoir depending on construction date and digital data availability. Overall, the data spans from 1930 to 2020, although the best coverage is for the most recent years, particularly 1980 to 2020. The reservoirs included in our dataset cover more than half of the total storage of large reservoirs in the US (defined as reservoirs with storage greater 0.1 km3). We document the assembly process of this dataset as well as its contents. Historical operations are also compared to static reservoir attribute datasets for validation.

A Strategy to Assess Water Meter Performance

Apparent water losses can be problematic to water companies’ revenues. This type of loss is very difficult to detect and quantify and is often associated with water meter anomalies. This study was motivated by a water company’s challenge that links a decrease in water consumption to water meters’ malfunction. The aim is to develop a strategy to detect decreasing water usage patterns, contributing to meter performance assessment. The basis of the approach is a combination of statistical methods. First, the time series of billed water consumption is decomposed using Seasonal-Trend decomposition based on Loess. Next, breakpoint analysis is performed on the seasonally adjusted time series. After that, the Mann–Kendall test and Sen’s slope estimator are used to analyze periods of progressive decrease changes in water consumption, defined by breakpoints. A quantitative indicator of this change is proposed. The strategy was successfully applied to eight-time series of water consumption from the Algarve, Portugal.

Insights into Efficient Irrigation of Urban Landscapes: Analysis Using Remote Sensing, Parcel Data, Water Use, and Tiered Rates

To understand how landscape irrigation can be better managed, we selected two urban irrigation systems in northern Utah, USA, and performed a statistical analysis of relationships among water use, irrigated area, plant health (based on the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index), and water rate structures across thousands of parcels. Our approach combined remote sensing with 4-band imagery and on-site measurements from water meters. We present five key findings that can lead to more efficient irrigation practices. First, tiered water rates result in less water use when compared to flat water rates for comparable plant health. Second, plant health does not strictly increase with water application but has an optimum point beyond which further watering is not beneficial. Third, many water users irrigate beyond this optimum point, suggesting that there is water conservation potential without loss of aesthetics. Fourth, irrigation is not the only contributor to plant health, and other factors need more attention in research and in water conservation programs. Fifth, smaller irrigated areas correlate with higher water application rates, an observation that may inform future land use decisions. These findings are especially pertinent in responding to the current drought in the western United States.

Development of a high-precision and wide-range ultrasonic water meter

Ultrasonic water meters offer a number of advantages such as non-intrusiveness, low pressure loss, high accuracy, low power consumption and long service life, which make them a viable option for the next generation of smart water meters. However, the existing ultrasonic water meters have difficulties in balancing the range and accuracy. Therefore, in order to address this issue, this study proposes a novel ultrasonic water meter featured with high-precision and wide-range. First of all, the flow measurement principle of the ultrasonic time difference method is investigated, and a flow measurement model that includes the parameter of radial transit time (TD) is developed. The ultrasonic water meter is designed based on comprehensive consideration of the three aspects of hardware, software and algorithms, and a series of experiments are conducted to verify the performance of the water meter. Eighteen verification test points with the flow range of 0.015–4.509 m3/h are carried out, the results of which suggest that the accuracy level of the ultrasonic water meter reaches 0.5, with the repeatability of 0.09%, and the range ratio of 300:1, indicating the achievement of the design goal of high-precision and wide-range.

HAWKERS’ SATISFACTION WITH A LOCAL AUTHORITY WATER METER READING MANAGEMENT

This paper aims to identify hawkers’ satisfaction with a local authority water meter reading management. Three years ago, the licensing and business development department installed meter readers at the hawker centres. Currently, water meter readers are no longer available, causing the department substantial losses. There are complaints on the use of bulk meters that the amount charged each month is indifferent. Several water meters in the hawker centres are not working correctly, resulting in difficulties by the authority to process the correct amount of water bills. The hawkers need to travel to the headquarters to make payment, making it more difficult. Hawkers are not happy because they have to pay the same amount though they might have consumed less than others. A total of 176 questionnaires was distributed to 500 hawkers in Kuala Lumpur City Hall (KLCH). Data were analysed using SPSS. The results showed that only one variable, water meter management, has a significant and weak relationship, influencing hawkers’ satisfaction. This finding will give an excellent insight to the local authority in better control of water meter reading at hawker centres.

Application of Multiparameter Kalman Filter in Ultrasonic Water Meter

With the gradual development of the superior performance of the ultrasonic water meter, the use of the water meter gradually occupies most of the market due to its unique advantages. Through the analysis of the influencing factors of the ultrasonic water meter, the Kalman filter is used to analyze the influencing factors, and the differences are obtained. In this paper, combined with the application scope of the Kalman filter, it is introduced. Combined with the method of data fusion, the influencing factors of the ultrasonic water meter are analyzed. They are the flow rate, temperature, speed of sound, time difference, etc. The appropriate sensor is selected through the sensor selection method, and the corresponding data is obtained by the method of the corresponding sensor. We combine the data fusion method and use Kalman’s method to filter the data. By comparing the data before and after the processing, it is found that the data before and after the filtering of different influencing factors are small. Among them, the flow speed factor has the greatest impact on the accuracy of the ultrasonic water meter; temperature and sound velocity have little effect on the performance of the ultrasonic water meter. When designing an ultrasonic water meter, it is mainly necessary to consider the impact of flow rate and time difference on the performance of the ultrasonic water meter.