Pumping Selection and Regulation for Water-Distribution Networks

Abstract

Because of the increasing importance of on-demand irrigation systems, a support system for general use has been developed to aid in selecting and regulating pumping stations. This innovation will improve the balance between total costs (project and energy) and operation quality. The procedure first determines the maximum and minimum system head curves, followed by the evolution of demand curves to obtain the maximum discharge needed. Once this discharge is determined, it is possible to carry out the dimensioning and regulation of the pumping station. An easy tool to select the number of variable and fixed speed pumps has also been developed Excel and Visual Basic can be used. The results demonstrate the importance of selecting pumps that are best adapted to the system head curve. The minimum total cost solution has been obtained by using one variable-speed pump in conjunction with another operating at fixed speed.