Multipurpose Design of the Flow-Control System of a Steep Water Main

Abstract

This work presents the technical characteristics and the regulation system of a complex water supply system (WSS) in an Italian Alpine valley. The WSS faced multiple challenges: water supply over a large area, hydropower generation, and coordination among multiple local sources and networks. The development of an optimal feedback-control algorithm for the supervisory control system was key to guaranteeing the operation of this modern WSS. This regulation scheme and the rationale for its development are described in this paper. A customized numerical model of the WSS was developed in order to test the operating rules through suitable numerical simulations. Results show that the proposed algorithm satisfies the objectives of the WSS and respects its tight constraints. The analysis of the case study evidences the advantages of the coordination among the municipal water networks, quantifies the hydropower generation potential in the WSS, and highlights the key roles of automation and remote control in modern water systems. Finally, the case study presented here provides an efficient technical solution for the hydraulic regulation of a high-pressure water main connecting a cascade of small tanks in mountainous regions.