Effective-Power-Ranking Algorithm for Energy and Greenhouse Gas Reduction in Water Distribution Systems through Pipe Enhancement

Abstract

Many global municipal water distribution systems (WDS) are in need of repair. To save energy and greenhouse gas emissions due to pumping, pipes that need to be replaced can be enhanced by being enlarged and made of a smoother material. To choose which pipes to thus enhance first given a limited budget, an algorithm is introduced based on enhancing the pipe that requires the most effective power, which is defined as the product of discharge, specific weight, and headloss. The algorithm was verified with complete enumeration, life-cycle, and environmental-impact modeling on seven realistic WDSs. It was found that the additional cost and greenhouse gasses (GHG) emitted from purchasing and manufacturing a larger pipe are quickly recovered by the reduced cost and GHG emissions due to less pumping being required. The proposed pipe enhancement should be verified with modeling, however, since increased payback periods for both costs and GHG emissions can result if an increase in pipe size causes water to travel a longer path.