Water Pipeline Research Articles

Discrete air model for large scale rapid filling process contained entrapped air

In this paper, a discrete air model (DAM) is developed to capture the discontinuous characteristics of air at different locations during the rapid filling process in long-range, large-scale water pipeline. By introducing the continuity and momentum equations of air and combining them with the water control equation and the interface continuity equation, an improved model based on the uniform air is derived. The accuracy of the model is verified by comparing it with experimental data and the results of the original uniform air model (UAM). Subsequently, a long-range, large-scale pipeline was considered to investigate the dynamic properties of air in large systems, which had not been covered in previous studies. Additionally, the influence of air dynamic characteristics on initial air volume affected by different air lengths and various pipe diameters in large systems – is further studied. Results show that an increased pipe diameter expands the contact area of the air–water interface, often resulting in the UAM underestimating the maximum peak pressure. The propagation process of transient waves in air is divided into three stages: propagation stage with multiple variation, maximum value stage with interface propulsive, and stability stage with several fluctuations, which corresponds to the pressure fluctuation curve. This explains the occurrence of small fluctuations and peaks in the curve. Therefore, the peak pressure simulated by the proposed DAM offers a better understanding of wave behaviours.

Designing a Water Pipeline to Last 100 Years or More

Key TakeawaysAlthough superior materials and advanced techniques are available, designing a pipeline to supply water for 100 years or more is not necessarily the optimal choice for a utility.Numerous factors come into play when planning for pipe design, installation, monitoring, and maintenance, not the least of which is uncertainty about the future.Tools such as computational modeling, life‐cycle cost analysis, forensic analysis, and scenario planning through digital design can help a utility create a cost‐effective pipeline plan.

Understanding the Global Distribution of Groundwater Sulfate and Assessing Population at Risk.

Besides sulfate-induced diarrhea, recent studies have emphasized that groundwater sulfate drives the release of arsenic in groundwater and accelerates water pipeline corrosion. Despite its impact on public health and urban infrastructure, sulfate has been overlooked in water supply research. Here, we used a random forest model to develop a 1 km global map depicting the probability of sulfate exceeding 250 mg/L in groundwater based on the World Health Organization's guidelines. The map was further applied to estimate the exposed population and identify contributors of sulfate exceedance in global hotspot regions. The results revealed that sulfate exceedance in groundwater was widespread in 156 countries. Approximately 194 million people use water with sulfate levels exceeding 250 mg/L. Among them, around 17 million people face groundwater sulfate concentrations surpassing 500 mg/L, with 82% of these individuals residing in ten specific countries. Contributing factor analysis in these countries indicates that annual precipitation and sedimentary rocks are the primary factors contributing to sulfate concentration prediction, while other natural and anthropogenic predictors exhibit region-specific impact patterns. This study uncovered a significant prevalence of elevated sulfate levels in groundwater, highlighting the need to integrate sulfate into water safety management practices.

Mathematical Approach for Directly Solving Air–Water Interfaces in Water Emptying Processes

Emptying processes are operations frequently required in hydraulic installations by water utilities. These processes can result in drops to sub-atmospheric pressure pulses, which may lead to pipeline collapse depending on soil characteristics and the stiffness of a pipe class. One-dimensional mathematical models and 3D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations have been employed to analyse the behaviour of the air–water interface during these events. The numerical resolution of these models is challenging, as 1D models necessitate solving a system of algebraic differential equations. At the same time, 3D CFD simulations can take months to complete depending on the characteristics of the pipeline. This presents a mathematical approach for directly solving air–water interactions in emptying processes involving entrapped air, providing a predictive tool for water utilities. The proposed mathematical approach enables water utilities to predict emptying operations in water pipelines without needing 2D/3D CFD simulations or the resolution of a differential algebraic equations system (1D model). A practical application is demonstrated in a case study of a 350 m long pipe with an internal diameter of 350 mm, investigating the influence of air pocket size, friction factor, polytropic coefficient, pipe diameter, resistance coefficient, and pipe slope. The mathematical approach is validated using an experimental facility that is 7.36 m long, comparing it with 1D mathematical models and 3D CFD simulations. The results confirm that the derived mathematical expression effectively predicts emptying operations in single water installations.

Enhancing urban infrastructure: water supply and drainage pipeline defect detection with the GLIP pre-trained model and the YOLOv5 model

ABSTRACT Urban water supply and drainage systems are a crucial component of urban infrastructure, directly affecting residents' livelihoods and industrial production. The normal operation of the water supply and the drainage pipeline is of great significance for conserving water resources and preventing water pollution. However, due to characteristics such as deep burial, diverse materials, and extensive lengths, the detection of defects becomes exceptionally complex. Traditional detection methods used in practical applications, such as ground excavation and destructive testing, typically require the shutdown of water pipelines. This process is time-consuming and labor-intensive, often resulting in significant economic losses. This paper proposes an effective technique for detecting defects in the water supply and the drainage pipeline. The method involves capturing images of the inner walls of water supply conduits and subsequently utilizing an artificial intelligence large-scale model approach (grounded language-image pre-training, GLIP) and a You Only Look Once version 5 (YOLOv5) model to detect defects within them. The experimental results show that GLIP demonstrates impressive detection performance in zero-shot scenarios, while YOLOv5 performs well on existing datasets. By combining these two models, we were able to achieve a balance between fast, flexible detection and high precision, making our approach both practical and efficient for real-world applications.

ICT Innovation to Promote Sustainable Development Goals: Implementation of Smart Water Pipeline Monitoring System Based on Narrowband Internet of Things

ICT Innovation to Promote Sustainable Development Goals: Implementation of Smart Water Pipeline Monitoring System Based on Narrowband Internet of Things

Automatic detection of water pipeline leakage via unsupervised learning applied on ground penetrating radar data

ABSTRACT Aging urban water supply pipelines are facing significant leakage issues. Ground penetrating radar (GPR) is an effective non-destructive method for leakage localization, but its image analysis mainly relies on interpreter experience, leading to uncertainty and inefficiency. To address this issue, an unsupervised learning method based on GPR data attributes is proposed for automatic leakage detection. First, velocity and energy attributes are extracted from B-Scan profiles to differentiate wet areas caused by leakage from normal areas. Then, the density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise (DBSCAN) clustering method is applied to automatically classify these two types of areas. The proposed method was evaluated on an experimental platform with constant water pressure and pre-drilled leakage points. Experiments show that the velocity and energy attributes decrease by 25.2 and 26.6% after leakage. Using velocity attributes yields better results, and suggestions for DBSCAN hyperparameters are provided. Feature importance analysis indicates that two-way-travel-time with a score of 46.1 and energy attribution index with a score of 32.7 significantly influence leakage identification. This method can also estimate affected leakage areas with an error not exceeding the spacing of three measurement lines, and is available across various underground conditions without needing well-labeled training data.

Mitigating aging infrastructure risks: An optimized epoxy resin system for water supply pipeline rehabilitation

Urban water supply networks are crucial for ensuring the delivery of safe drinking water to urban populations; however, the aging infrastructure in these systems has led to a rising incidence of leaks and frequent pipeline failures, posing serious risks. Traditional repair approaches encounter limitations in terms of efficiency, durability, and environmental safety, particularly when employed in potable water pipelines. To address these challenges, we developed a novel multi-component amine-cured epoxy resin system specifically optimized for in-situ curing under ambient conditions. This study comprehensively examines the mechanical properties, water absorption behavior, and curing kinetics of this resin system, formulated to reduce volatile organic compound emissions while enhancing durability under prolonged water exposure. Experimental findings demonstrate that the E2 formulation exhibited superior tensile strength, flexural properties, and fracture toughness relative to other formulations, with a two-stage water absorption model accurately predicting resin behavior in moisture-laden environments. Moreover, finite element modeling and laboratory testing confirmed the influence of bubble defects on mechanical performance, and a negative pressure defoaming technique effectively reduced defect volume, resulting in a 17.6% improvement in tensile strength. Collectively, this research advances the practical application of rapid-curing resins, offering a resilient, safe, and sustainable solution for the rehabilitation of aging water pipeline networks.

Towards Regulations of Decommissioning Exhausted Water and Sewer Pipelines with Residues

The article provides a justification for the need to develop requirements for hydraulic characteristics of water and sewer pipes with internal deposits, that are absent in current regulations. The absence of such requirements leads to a change in the actual inner pipe diameter, flow rate and pressure losses, higher energy consumption of the pumping equipment.Purpose: To develop quantitative requirements for residue layer thickness on the inner surface of exhausted water and sewer pipes to substantiate their decommissioning.Methodology/approach: The quantitative method is used to assess the pipe operation efficiency according to the hydraulic criterion with the analysis of their hydraulic potential.Research findings: Quantitative values are proposed for the operational efficiency of exhausted pipelines according to which the residual pipe operation is determined to justify their decommissioning. Research findings will allow organizations to make decisions on decommission of exhausted engineering networks.Value: The developed proposals can be introduced in construction rules 31.13330.2021 and 32.13330.2018, justifying the need to decommission exhausted water and sewer pipelines with residues.

Effect of Preheating Parameters on Extrusion Welding of High-Density Polyethylene Materials.

High-density polyethylene (HDPE) has emerged as a promising alternative to fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) for small vessel manufacturing due to its durability, chemical resistance, lightweight properties, and recyclability. However, while thermoplastic polymers like HDPE have been extensively used in gas and water pipelines, their application in large, complex marine structures remains underexplored, particularly in terms of joining methods. Existing techniques, such as ultrasonic welding, laser welding, and friction stir welding, are unsuitable for large-scale HDPE components, where extrusion welding is more viable. This study focuses on evaluating the impact of key process parameters, such as the preheating temperature, hot air movement speed, and nozzle distance, on the welding performance of HDPE. By analyzing the influence of these variables on heat distribution during the extrusion welding process, we aim to conduct basic research to derive optimal conditions for achieving strong and reliable joints. The results highlight the critical importance of a uniform temperature distribution in preventing defects such as excessive melting or thermal degradation, which could compromise weld integrity. This research provides valuable insights into improving HDPE joining techniques, contributing to its broader adoption in the marine and manufacturing industries.

Buckling and Ultimate Bearing Capacity of Steel Pipes Jacked in Hard Rocks: A Case Study of a Water Pipeline Project in Zhongshan

Buckling and Ultimate Bearing Capacity of Steel Pipes Jacked in Hard Rocks: A Case Study of a Water Pipeline Project in Zhongshan

A Novel Optimized Vibration-based Energy Harvester for Leak Detection in Wall-mounted Water Pipelines

A Novel Optimized Vibration-based Energy Harvester for Leak Detection in Wall-mounted Water Pipelines

Real-Time Analysis and Digital Twin Modeling for CFD-Based Air Valve Control During Filling Procedures

Air exchange in pressurized water pipelines is an essential but complex aspect of pipeline modeling and operation. Implementing effective air management strategies can yield numerous benefits, enhancing the system’s energy efficiency, reliability, and safety. This paper comprehensively evaluates an irregular profile pipeline filling procedure involving air-release through an air valve. The analysis includes real-time data tests and numerical simulations using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). A Digital Twin model was proposed and applied to filling maneuvers in water installations. In particular, this research considers an often-overlooked aspect, such as filling a pipe with an irregular profile rather than a simple straight pipe. CFD simulations have proven to capture the main features of the transient event, which are suitable for tracking the air-water interface, the unsteady water flow, and the evolution of the trapped air pocket. Thus, they provide thorough and reliable information for real-time operational processes in the industry, focusing on the filling pressure and geometry of the air-valve hydraulic system. Additionally, this study provides details regarding the application of an efficient Digital Twin CFD approach, demonstrating its feasibility in optimizing the filling procedure in pipes with irregular profiles.

Ground failure and soil erosion caused by bursting of buried water pipeline: experimental and numerical investigations

Pressurized water pipelines buried in an urban environment are prone to bursting failures, threatening public safety and traffic convenience. The limited studies in literature just focused on soil fluidization while few studies considered ground failure, shear strain, soil erosion and the influence of leakage locations during pipe bursts. In this study, extensive experimental tests along with a finite difference method – discrete element method (FDM-DEM) solid–fluid coupling analysis were conducted to investigate these issues. It was disclosed that the failure development during pipe bursts can be divided into three stages, i.e., seepage diffusion, erosion cavity expansion, and soil fluidization. By digital image correlation (DIC) analysis of the experimental results, a wedge-shaped displacement zone in ground was identified, with peak shear strain near its boundaries. Moreover, it was revealed that leakage locations affected the expansion origin of erosion cavity; as the burial depths increased, the ground heave range increased linearly; the maximum water outflow distance was closely related to the internal pressures of buried pipeline, which could be modeled by a square root formula based on turbulent jet theory. Mesoscopic analyses revealed that finer particles were more susceptible to erosion during pipe bursts because of the low possibility of forming strong connections with surrounding particles. The findings yielded from this study can enhance the understanding of pipe bursts and help professionals mitigate potential damage.

Evaluation of Cumulative Damage and Safety of Large-Diameter Pipelines under Ultra-Small Clear Distance Multiple Blasting Using Non-Electric and Electronic Detonators

The safety assessment and control of large-diameter pipelines under tunnel blasting at ultrasmall clear distances is a significant problem faced in construction. However, there has been no reference case for the quantitative comparison of the disturbance degree of surrounding rock by using two blasting schemes of non-electric detonator design and electronic detonator design under a similar total blasting charge consumption. In this study, the blasting test was carried out based on the engineering background of drilling and blasting methods to excavate the tunnel under the water pipeline at a close distance. The peak particle velocity (PPV), stress, and deformation responses of the pipeline under the two construction methods of non-electric and electronic detonators were comparatively analyzed. The PPV can be remarkably reduced by 64.2% using the hole-by-hole initiation of the electronic detonators. For the large-diameter pipeline, the PPV on the blasting side was much larger than that on the opposite side because the blasting seismic wave propagated a longer distance and attenuated more rapidly, owing to its greater cavity vibration reduction effect. The PPV of the electronic detonators decayed more slowly than that of the non-electric detonators. The cumulative damage caused by consecutive hole-by-hole blasting using electronic detonators was less than that caused by simultaneous multi-hole initiation using non-electric detonators, with a reduction of about 50.5%. When the nearest peripheral holes away from the pipeline are detonated, the cumulative damage variable D and damage range increase rapidly. The PPV, dynamic tensile strength, and cumulative damage variables were used to evaluate the safety of the pipelines.

CFD Analysis of Flow Characteristics and Diagnostics of Leaks in Water Pipelines

CFD Analysis of Flow Characteristics and Diagnostics of Leaks in Water Pipelines

Insight into didecyl dimethyl ammonium bromide toxicity following acute exposure in pullets (Gallus gallusdomesticus).

Didecyl dimethyl ammonium bromide (DDAB) is a quaternary ammonium compound used for the sanitation of drinking water of poultry and water pipelines in farms. There is scarcity of information on the toxicology of DDAB in poultry. This study set out to profile the acute toxicity of DDAB in poultry. Issa brown pullets (n = 34) as experimental birds were orally administered varying doses of DDAB, using a syringe, after 12h fasting, and observed for toxicity over 14 days. Control birds (n = 10) were similarly given normal saline orally. Toxic signs in the experimental birds were depression, anorexia, adipsia, vocalization with foamy salivation, later emaciation and death. The LD50 was calculated as 458.00mg/kg. Birds given 2151mg/kg DDAB died within 24h, while those treated with 516mg/kg succumbed on Day 14. At necropsy, grossly, there were necrosis and sloughing of the oesophagus and intestines, pale and friable liver, congested and necrotic lungs, friable popped out kidneys and emaciated carcasses. Microscopically, desquamation and necrosis of the oesophagus, crop, proventriculus and intestines and disruption of the koilin membrane of the gizzard were observed. The lungs, liver and kidneys were congested with mononuclear cellular infiltration plus loss of architecture in the lungs and liver. In conclusion, at high doses, DDAB caused significant toxicity in chickens and these findings provide new information which could serve as a guide in the diagnosis of quaternary ammonium toxicity in chicken. The results could be extrapolated to other quaternary ammonium toxicities in related avian species.

Southern Bug River: water security and climate changes perspectives for post-war city of Mykolaiv, Ukraine

This article focuses on water security in Mykolaiv, a city of 0.5 million inhabitants in southern Ukraine, in the situation of scarcity of usable water resources caused by climate change and military operations. This problem arose after the Dnipro-Mykolaiv water pipeline was destroyed in April 2022 as a result of military operations and the supply of drinking water to the city was cut off. To ensure that the city’s population has constant access to sufficient water of acceptable quality, a search for alternative water sources and a climate risk assessment were carried out for the new municipal water supply system from the Southern Bug River. The possible change in flow and its intra-annual distribution under the influence of climate change was modeled using the WaterGAP2 hydrological model and climate projections under the SSP1-2.6 and SSP5-P8.5 scenarios. It was found that under the SSP1-2.6 scenario, the reduction in river flow will be insignificant (up to a maximum of 14% in the far future) and there will be no restrictions on the city’s water supply from this section of the river in the near (2021-2050) and far (2051-2080) period. The maximum water withdrawal for municipal water supply and the minimum environmental flow will reach their maximum value only in August (56% of the projected flow), which is not critical. Under the SSP5-8.5 scenario, in the long-term perspective of 2051-2080, the largest decrease in runoff will occur from May to October, and the water withdrawal will increase to 40-79% of the projected flow. The use of the research results not only in water management, but also in municipal administration, and their dissemination in territorial communities will contribute to the successful adaptation of socio-economic and environmental processes in the region and can bring successful benefits not only to the economy, but also to communities.

Investigation of an annular photonic crystal sensor for real-time monitoring of calcium carbonate scales in water distribution systems

This research exhibits a new configuration of photonic crystals known as annular photonic crystals (APCs) for real-time detection of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) scale in the water pipeline. The proposed sensor features a circular arrangement of porous silicon materials with varying levels of porosity. A central defect layer is incorporated into the design to capture the target analyte, allowing it to detect changes in the refractive index caused by scale formation. To analyze the reflectance spectrum of this structure, a modified transfer matrix method is utilized. An extensive optimization process is conducted based on the characteristics of the defect mode, focusing on various geometric parameters, including layer thickness, porosity levels, core circle radius, and structural periodicity, to achieve optimal sensor performance. The simulation outcomes revealed that at the optimized structure parameters, the sensor offers a remarkable QF, sensitivity, and FoM of 1215, 176.85 nm/RIU, and 350.5 1/RIU, respectively. Moreover, the proposed structure is simple, cost-effective, and compact, which makes it an ideal candidate for the detection of calcium carbonate scales formed in pipes and devices in water supply networks.

Leak detection in water supply pipeline with small-size leakage using deep learning networks

Pipeline transportation technology has witnessed remarkable development in recent years, while the issue of leakage poses a serious limitation to this technology’s progress, especially for the small-scale leakage in water pipelines that exhibits weaker leakage signals. To address those challenges, this study investigates leak detection in water supply pipeline with an inner pipe diameter of 100 mm in the operating range of volume flow Q = 40–80 m3/h, leakage flow Ql = 0.65–1.33 m3/h and pressure p = 130–220 kPa. The characteristics and propagation of leakage pressure signals are analyzed. An adaptive improved variational mode decomposition (VMD) based on the white shark optimizer (WSO) algorithm is proposed, utilizing sample entropy as the fitness function. Additionally, tent chaotic mapping is employed for parameter initialization, mean normalization is used to minimize the influence of the DC component, and signal relative energy serves as a boundary condition. The processed data is utilized to establish leakage detection models using long short-term memory network (LSTM), gated recurrent unit (GRU), convolutional neural network (CNN) and SqueezeNet framework. The performance of leakage detection models is evaluated and compared using 962 sets’ data using evaluation indicators and confusion matrix. The results indicate that SqueezeNet-GRU demonstrates superior performance in pipeline leak detection and localization applications, achieving 97.40 % accuracy for the total dataset.