Impact of networks sectorization on water

pressure transient in pipelines – Case study

of Casablanca city, Morocco
Cite as: AIP Conference Proceedings 2345, 020002 (2021); https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0049443
Published Online: 26 April 2021

Fayçal Taghlabi, Laila Stour, and Ali Agoumi

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AIP Conference Proceedings 2345, 020002 (2021); https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0049443 2345, 020002

© 2021 Author(s).
 Impact of 1etworks 6ectorization on :ater 3ressure
7ransient in 3ipelines – Case Study of Casablanca &ity,
Morocco

Fayçal Taghlabi1, a) and Laila Stour 1, b) and Ali Agoumi 2, c)

1
Laboratory of Processes and Environment, Faculty of Science and Technology of Mohammedia, Hassan II
university of Casablanca, Morocco.
2
Laboratory of Civil, +ydraulic Engineering, Environment and Climate, Hassania School of Public Works,
Casablanca, Morocco.

DCorresponding author: ftaghlabi@yahoo.fr

Estourl@gmail.com
Eagoumi.ali@gmail.com

Abstract. The sectorization of Water Distribution Networks (WDN) is characterized by permanent and periodic valve
closures to control the volumes distributed and help to manage water losses. These valve maneuvers are characterized by
wave propagations of varying severity. These transient phenomena are considered as a major problem in the under-load
networks operation. These maneuvers can lead to bursting and breakage of the pipes because of water hammer. In this
research work, we are interested in evaluating the impact of valve operations on the occurrence of transient regimes in a
Discrete Hydraulic Sector (DHS) of the water distribution network of the city of Casablanca. The required hydraulic model
for a real distribution network was established using the Bentley HAMMER. Several simulations with various transient
severities of valve closures were performed and simulated in the field. Three examples have been considered: a pipe with
and without a connection, a mesh network and a pipe with opening fire hydrant. The simulations thus carried out show that
the sudden opening and closing, in the case of the valve of large diameter and pipe with a high wave propagation velocity,
the transient phenomenon results in a significant induced pressure head which could lead to (i) significant transient
severities in the pipelines, (ii) probable occurrence of leaks (iii) distribution break. The findings of this research work and
the proposed approach would promote for the utility managers a new process to follow of partitioning a WDN without
mechanical stress on the pipe components during the operation of sectorization.

1. INTRODUCTION

Drinking water distribution networks in Morocco, in urban areas, have particularly low yields. Locating and
prioritizing leaky areas is a major concern for public utilities in order to optimize the use of water resources, reduce
water losses and improve continuity of service. Various techniques for pre-locating leaks have been developed, such
as the sectorization of drinking water distribution networks.
High pressure on the drinking water system can have a devastating effect on the pipes. Once the structural state of
the network is weakened, the pressure level and its variations cause repetitive breaks, increases in leakage rates and
consequently an increase in physical losses, and a decrease in the pipes service life. (Kazeem et al., 2017).
Therefore, network managers have introduced pressure modulation as a technique essentially designed to reduce
leaks in the most degraded networks. Wherever there are large variations in pressure (between day and night)
(Fernando et al., 2019), pressure modulation would reduce the pressure on the whole network and ensure just the
minimum contract pressure required at the critical point during maximum distribution hours. Indeed, the value of the

AMT2020: The 6th International Congress on Thermal Sciences

AIP Conf. Proc. 2345, 020002-1–020002-19; https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0049443
Published by AIP Publishing. 978-0-7354-4090-6/$30.00

020002-1
minimum pressure is different around the world (Ghorbanian et al., 2015). Pressure variations linked to network
operations such as pump operation, valve openings and closures, or industrial consumption, create the transient regime
(water hammer) or Cumulative Pressure Induced Stress (CPIS) (Hossein and Stoianov, 2017). This pressure variation
stresses the pipes, joints and affects the lifetime of the pipes. Reducing water losses has become a major concern for
water distribution system managers and operators. Considering on the one hand the problem of water resource
preservation, and on the other hand rising production and operation costs. Hence, the need to search for continuous
innovation in this field to minimize these losses, especially physical losses, by using the most efficient methods and
the most adapted tools for its network (L.S. Araujo et al., 2006).
In this perspective, the operators have chosen network sectorization, not only as a fundamental method for
diagnosis, and solution for proactive leakage control, but also for managing and monitoring the network at any time
of the day. The sectorization of networks has become an effective tool to improve distribution efficiencies in WDNs
(Vasilic et al., 2020).
This sectorization into sub-networks on which the volume of water distributed is measured includes permanent
and periodic closures of the valves to isolate the sectors from each other Fig. 1, in order to achieve efficient volume
management and better control of the minimum night flow per sector (Jaber et al., 2013).
Nevertheless, these maneuvers, very often described as risky operations, that can cause ruptures in upstream
pipelines, are mainly characterized by the phenomenon of water hammer, a very violent phenomenon due to the
circulation of an overpressure or depression wave in the pipeline, after the opening and closing of a valve or the
starting/stopping of a pump (Blindu, 2004; Frelin, 2002).
Water hammer causes wave propagation and mass oscillation of the water inside the pipe (Ali, 2017). It causes
significant pressure variations which can be either higher than the nominal pressure of the pipe or lower than
atmospheric pressure. It is a phenomenon that cannot be eliminated but must be controlled (Boulos et al., 2005).
Very suddenly a valve can start, change or stop flowing. Energy conversions increase or decrease in proportion to
the rate and place of closing or opening of a valve, or the stroke (Rafiq, 2017).
Water that suddenly flows into the valve has nowhere to go. When water packs upstream of the valve into a total
vacuum, it produces a high-pressure pulse which propagates upstream, away from the valve (Rafiq, 2017).
Water initially exiting the valve cannot stop suddenly because of its inertia and because there is no flow through
the valve to substitute it, the downstream zone of the valve can "pull a vacuum," allowing a low-pressure pulse to
expand downstream (Rafiq, 2017).
The pressures generated by the transient regime can be reduced by the elasticity of the pipes (Hailiang and al.,
2016).
The wave's amplitude is proportional to the material's rigidity, and the nature of the fluid in the pipe. It is calculated
from the equation (1) below:
ͳ
‫ ܥ‬ൌ
ටߩሺ ͳ ൅ ‫ ܦ‬ሻ
‫݁ ܭ‬Ǥ ‫ܧ‬
Or :
C: Wave celeric, m/s
Ƿ: liquid density, kg/m3
D: pipe diameter internal, m
K: bulk modulus of elasticity of the liquid, Pa
E: Young’s modulus for the pipe material, Pa
E: wall thickness, m
This water hammer phenomenon can dangerously weaken the pipe until the pipe deteriorates. This mechanical
factor further weakens the old pipes (FNADE HS, 1994).
This research study was initiated to examine the operations of water system sectorization, assess the impact of
transient regimes in relation to valve operations in WDNs, and further develop good operational guidelines and
practices for its application. In this work, we have chosen an area for field trials in the city of Casablanca Fig. 1, where
pressure and flowrate are precisely monitored.

020002-2
 2. MATERIALS AND METHODS

2.1. The Study Area

The study area is located in the city of Casablanca, one of the non-modulated pressure stages. About 30,000
customers have access to water supply, and the connection density is about 76 Brt / km. The study area contains two
sectors. It has four inlets, each one has its own flow meter. The total pipe length is around 71 km. The network contains
pipes of various materials (52% plastic, 41 % Grey Cast (GC), 4% ductile cast, 3% Asbestos-Cement (AC) and 1 %
concrete pipes).
The average of Minimum Night Flow (MNF) for this area between 2018 -2019 was 35 LPS (MNF data was
reported in time band 2:00 am to 4:0). The International Water Association (IWA) recommends the use of indicators
such as: MNF, Linear Losses Index (LLI) Eq (2), for research and monitoring of physical and commercial losses. The
LLI for this study area between 2018 and 2019 was 20.5 m3/d/km, according to the IWA standard. It is a poor LLI
for a type of urban network (Renaud, 2009)
‫ ܲܮܫ‬ൌ ܲȀሺ͵͸ͷ ‫ܮ כ‬ሻ (2)
P: Volume lost in the network, it is the difference between the volume distributed and the volume consumed.

FIGURE 1. Map of the case study area (2 sectors)

2.2. METHODS

- The study area is part of a modulated pressure stage. The pressure at the entrance of the area is regulated by use
of Pressure Regulating Valves (PRV). The pressure and flow data are obtained from a Long-Term Data Base (LTDB).
The flow rate is monitored every 5 minutes for 24 hours, while the pressure is monitored every 15 min. The Figure 2
indicates the variance of MNF depending on the downstream pressure of the control valve. The MNF and pressure
value was determined between 02:00 and 04:00 local time (UTC+1).

020002-3
 FIGURE 2. Evolution of MNF and Pressure in the study area

Increases in MNF at the DHS can be explained by the occurrence of water losses (Taghlabi et al., 2020), which
involve apparent losses not due to physical leaks, but rather water fraud and real losses related to all types of leakages
(Kanakoudis and Tsitsifli, 2010). The Table 1 details the standard established by IWA with respect to loss quantities
and the nature of the leaks (Alegre et al., 2006).
TABLE 1. IWA Standard Terminologies source (Alegre et al. 2006)
Authorised Billed Revenue Billed Metered Billed Water Exported
System Consumption Authorised Water Consumption (corrected for known errors)
Input Consumption
Volume (includes Water
Exported)
Billed Metered Consumption
excluding Water Exported
Billed Unmetered Consumption
Unbilled Non Unbilled Metered Consumption
Authorised Revenue
Consumption Water
Water Apparent Unbilled Unmetered Consumption
Losses (Commercial)
Losses
Real (Physical) Unauthorised Consumption
Losses Customer Metering Errors
Errors in Estimate of Unmetered Consumption
Errors throughout the Data Acquisition Process
Leakage on Transmission and Distribution Mains
Leakage and Overflows at Utility's Storage Tanks
Leakage on Service Connections
up to point of customer metering
Based on various increases in MNF, several sectorization and leak detection operations were launched between
02:00 and 04:00 local time (UTC+1) during 2018-2019.The Table 2 shows the results of sectorization and leak
detection in this study area.
TABLE 2. The results of sectorization and leak detection on this study area.
Year Sector Burst water pipe Burst water Leaky valve
connection
2019 1 6 12 2

2 9 7 0

Total 1 15 19 2

020002-4
 2018 1 13 17 1

2 9 36 2

Total 2 22 53 3

Note that sector 1 is 41 km long, while sector 2 is almost 30.5 km long.

A correlation of the leakages was applied to different types of pipes Fig. 3. Approximately 54 % of the burst pipes are
located on grey cast iron, as listed in Table 3.
TABLE 3. Correlation between leakages and types of pipes.
Type of pipes 2019 2020 Total
Sector1 Sector 2 Sector 1 Sector 2
Grey Cast iron 5 4 7 4 20
Plastic 1 5 3 3 12

Figure 3 shows the geographical distribution of piped leaks by type of material:

FIGURE 3. Geographical distribution of leaks by type of material

An analysis of the leakage database was carried out to determine the important reasons behind the breaks recorded.
Three breaks on the pipes attracted our attention, leaks that occurred on the network a day after the sectorization
operations and that are detected after complaints of a pressure drop by customers Table 4.
One specific question was emphasized: how is the burst pipe related to the severity of the transient event linked to
valve operations?
TABLE 4. Leaks occurred on the network a day after the sectorization operations
Date of Date of leak coordinate X coordinate Y Type of Diameter
sectorization detection leakage (mm)
1 02/01/19 3/1/19 294495,734 332606,233 Pipe 110
2 16/01/19 17/1/19 294567,304 333341,474 Pipe 150
3 20/12/18 21/12/18 294902,401 332659,607 Pipe 80

020002-5
Based on the Geographic Information System (GIS) of the pipe network, the percentage of plastic pipe material (PVC)
was 52.5 % of the total length of the pipe network. Approximately 40 % of the pipe were found in Grey Cast Iron
(GCI), while less than 10 % was in Asbestos Cement pipe (AC) (3 %), Ductile Iron (DI) (4%) and concrete (1%), as
shown in Fig. 4.

FIGURE 4. Length of pipe material

The age-weighted of the DHS for sector 1 is between 15 and 83 years. Approximately 67% of the selected DHS
were between 60 and 90 years of age for gray cast iron. While plastic pipes were between 5 and 22 years old, as shown
in Fig. 5.

FIGURE 5. The age of pipe sector 1

As discussed in Introduction, sectorization process requires closing of the valves to isolate and create DHS. Such
valve maneuvers involve an increase in hydraulic head, which can lead in an increase in the number of leaks or ruptures
in the weeks following this pressure variation. This sectorization consists of the flow steps as shown in Fig. 6.

020002-6
 FIGURE 6. The stages of leaks sectorization (Taghlabi et al., 2020)

Figure 6 shows two main steps of the methodology, sectorization and leak detection. To illustrate the different
steps of the proposed methodology, the WDN of sector 1 is used, the partitioning of the WDN into subsectors consists
of three different phases:
(1) Design of the DHS.
(2) Test pressure drop-tightness (Ensure that each valve is drop-tight).
(3) Leakage measurement by Step-testing.
Phase 1 (design of the DHS): This is the important and most time-consuming step in the network sectoring process.
Sector determination includes, on the one hand, a certain distance from the network to provide an objective approach
that incorporates all the study criteria and, on the other, an immersion in the details of the network's characteristics
and operation. The following criteria should be considered for the delimitation of the sectors:
(1) The existing structure of the network and distribution (including reservoir influences zones, total number of
connections in the network, feeder diameters, pressure stages, number of boundary valves, etc.)
(2) The number of metering points (entry & exit) per sector should be limited to three, to allow further suitable
measurements. Therefore, the number of boundary valves should also be reduced in order to minimize the sector's
isolation period and improve sector control.
(3) When the zone is definitively located, length between 100 and 120 km, the Measurement Points (MP) are
marked on the map by numbering them in ascending order (e.g. PM1, PM2...) as well as the selected boundary valves
(e.g. VZ1, VZ2...).
(4) The zone will also have to be sectorized into sectors (< 50 km). Their number will depend on the length of
the network within the sector.
(5) This sectorization requires WDN's Calibrated hydraulic model which contains all necessary data (topology,
hydraulic structures, pattern data...) to prove the hydraulic validity of the sectorization solution associated with each
valve closing operation.
Phase 2 (pressure drop-tightness): At this phase the valves of the zones and sectors should be checked for drop-
tightness to conduct the operation of the pressure drop test for verification of the water tightness. This field intervention
is probably the most critical action. The objective is to close all the sector's boundary valves until a perfect and durable
water tightness (Milašinović et al., 2018).

020002-7
 The pressure drop-tightness is carried out at night to avoid the interruption of the alimentation supply at peak
hours. It is advisable to do it between 10 p.m and 5 a.m.
Phase 3 (leakage measurement): The approach is to isolate the steps (step by step) by closing all boundary valves
starting from the farthest from the flow meter installed at the entrance of sectors. Each isolated step must keep long
enough minimum 20 min to notice a flow rate drop impact at the flowmeter Fig. 7. The objective of this step is to
measure the leakage in each tight Steps (Boulos et al., 2008).

FIGURE 7. Schematic of a sample steps area of sector 1

The Step- testing sequence is followed until the flow meter is reached (when the flow rate becomes null). A significant decrease
in flow between two isolated steps is a strong indication of leakage in the last one. At the end of Step-Testing, the valves should be
opened in the reverse order (The opening and closing of valves should be done slowly to avoid breaks) (WHO, 2001).

3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

In order to understand the impact of opening and closing valve on different types of pipes (HDPE, PVC, GCI, AC
and DI) and the probable appearance of leaks after a sectorization operation, a simulation study was conducted for the
field trials. In this part, real four simulation scenarios were chosen to study the magnitude of the pressure variation,
(i) case of a section of pipe without connection and without leak, (ii) case of a section of pipe without connection with
leak, (iii) case of a section of pipe with connection without leak (iiii) case of a section of pipe with connection with
leak Fig. 8. The artificial leak discharge was created by opening and closing the hydrant. Figure 8 shows a skeletonized
representation of the network.

FIGURE 8. Skeleton representation of the network

020002-8
 The date of 12/20/2019 was selected to carry out real field simulations. In order to study the relationship between
the impact of valve operations and the transient in the network, we selected a part of the network from Step 3, whose
grey cast iron is in majority, in order to practice and develop an understanding of transient response in case of valve
closure and opening, with and without leakage. Thus, leakage rate was applied to understand the induced transient
event resulting from 16 L/s discharge at the hydrant. The scenario for closing and opening the valves is presented in
the following Table 5.
TABLE 5. Field experiment for closing and opening valves
Number of Scenario Leakage Operations Start End
Simulation rate time time
1 case of a section _ V.1 DN Closing 00h28
of pipe without 150
connection and V.2 DN Closing 00h34
without leak 80
V.3 DN blocked valve Df
100
V.4 DN Closing 00h40
100
V.5 DN Closing 00h47
Date 300
20/12/2019 2 case of a section 1000 Fire opening 1h20
(night) of pipe without L/min hydrant
connection with
leak
3 case of a section V.2 DN Opening 2h02
of pipe with 80
connection V.4 DN Opening 2h11
without leak 100
4 case of a section 1000 Fire Opening 2h20
of pipe with L/min hydrant
connection with
leak
5 Case of V.5 DN Opening 3h00
reopening of 300
valves V.1 DN Opening 3H10
150
Note that the valves were open at the beginning of the simulations.
Figure 9 summarizes the system response for opening and closing times of valves, as shown in the above table.
Thus, we simulated in scenario 2 and 4, for leakage rate at hydrant of about 16 l/s. Obviously, if the valve diameter is
large and for the larger flowrate, the system leads to a higher-pressure fluctuation, and thus to more stress on the
system. Six instantaneous events were recorded during this field experiment.

FIGURE 9. Transient due to valves opening and closing with leakage rate of 16 l/s at hydrant

020002-9
 The above curve reveals how the operations of closures and openings valves affects the pressure response. The
curve shows 4 events of various severity of a transient were generated during the field experiments. The Table 6 shows
the results of severity of a transient recorded at the pressure sensor after all these operations (valve opening and
closing/ leak discharge rates at the hydrant).
TABLE 6. List of discovered network events
N° Scenario Asset Start End Duration Severity Min Mean Max
(mH2O) (mH2O (mH2O) (mH2
) O)
1 case of a 2019.12.20 2019.12.2 00 :00:23 5 41.0 43.7 46.5
section of pipe 00 :47 :06 0
without 00 :47:29
connection and
without leak
2 case of a Senso 2019.12.20 2019.12.2 00 :01 :45 16 31.2 36.1 46.9
section of pipe r 01 :20 :55 0
without 01:22:40
connection with 2019.12.20 2019.12.2 00:00:26 13 35.9 45.9 48.7
leak 01:51:38 0
01:52:04
3 case of a 2019.12.20 2019.12.2 00:00:19 9 30.6 33.7 40.1
section of pipe 02:22:32 0
with connection 02:22:51
with leak 2019.12.20 2019.12.2 00:01:44 11 30.9 39.6 41.5
02:52:26 0
02:54:10
4 reopening of 2019.12.20 2019.12.2 00:02:45 7 34.2 36.3 41.2
valves 03:00:00 0
03:02:45

The findings in Fig. 9 and Table 6 demonstrate how the closing and opening operations of the valves generate a
high transient severity. The transient severity is influenced, by the leak discharge rates at the hydrant and the duration
of the valve cycle time for opening and closing valves. The high severity recorded in scenarios 1 and 4 is largely
related to the maneuver of valve 5 (V5), the valve with the largest diameter in the field experiment with diameter equal
to 300.
According to (Karney et al., 2009) as the cycle time decreases, the transient becomes more severe and its effect at
the pipes networks becomes represented by a history of pressure with wider variations and more extreme values. To
understand and evaluate the magnitude of a transient 's severity, we simulated different scenarios on a software that
allows the simulation of transient regimes in hydraulic networks under head, especially on Bently hammer (Fadel,
2009) to understand the relationship between valve cycle time duration and severity on the network. The network
layout is shown in Fig. 10.

FIGURE 10. Network layout on bently Hammer

020002-10
 Result of Scenario 1:
As shown in Fig. 11(a) and (b), the closure of V1 at the start of simulation increased the severity of transient of
about 72 mCe (+40 mce in comparison to the mean pressure) during the first 4 seconds. The Fig. 11(a) and (b)
represents the severity of transient and velocity variation at the upstream and downstream of the valve V5 respectively
at P12-J8 and P19-J13. According to (Sirvole, 2007), instantly closing the valve induces speed cancellation, pressure
increase, a radial and longitudinal deformation of the pipe and an increase in liquid density. The simulation indicates
that the maximum and minimum pressures are approximately about 190 m and -10 m respectively on downstream of
V5 during the first 2 seconds and on upstream of V5 in the first 5 seconds.
The result indicates a maximum speed of 5 m/s. This high speed generates only hydraulic perturbations due to the
sudden closure of the V1. In practice, a velocity value between 0.4 m / s and 2 m / s is adopted in the under-load
networks.

FIGURE 11(a). Transient Pressure and velocity at P12-J8 the upstream of V5, using closing rate valves

020002-11
 FIGURE 11(b). Transient Pressure and velocity at P19-J13 the downstream of V5, using closing rate valves
The figures show that the closing of valves V2 and V4 generates a lower transient pressure head, compared to the variation
recorded after the closing of V5. According to (Mehmet and Aram, 2019), Many variables like the pipe material affect the value of
the transient pressure in the pipeline.
Figure 12 summarizes the system response for Scenario 1 tested in the field for sudden valves closures. When the valve of the
largest diameter is suddenly closed, the pressure at the P12-J8 at the upstream of V1 increases instantly, leading to a high severity
of transient pressure head (red line), and thus a risk of a significant breakdown of water supply in case of a leakage.

FIGURE 12. Maximum and Minimum severity due to Opening /closing valves and hydrant opening for 16 /s Discharge

020002-12
 In the scenario shown in Fig. 13, we have simulated an earlier closing of valve V5, just after the closure of valve
V4. The result shows how an earlier sudden closure of V5 at 750 s induces a maximum transient of pressure
approximately about 120 m.

FIGURE 13. Severe transient at P12-J8 the upstream of V5 caused by closing rate valves at 750s

As discussed above, the closure of V2 and V4 does not generate a significant transient severity compared to the
closure of V5. Both valves are installed on PVC pipes. According to (Walski et al., 2003), plastic pipes have a low
elasticity and a low speed of wave propagation and wave celerity, which reduces the induced transient pressure head
Table 7. The wave celeric is proportional to the rigidity of the material and the nature of the fluid transited, if the fluid
is more compressible, the wave will travel less quickly (Thorley, 2004). The V5 valve is therefore installed on a ductile
cast iron pipe, a pipe with high elasticity and thus high wave propagation speed. In this case, the ductile cast iron pipe
generates higher transient pressure than the pressure generated using plastic pipe which leads to lower transient head
pressure. As shown in Fig. 14.

FIGURE 14. Result of using PVC and Ductil Iron Pipes on the pressure head variations with closing valve

Several variables, including the pipe material, influence the value of the peak transient pressure in the pipeline.
Two kinds of pipes, namely PVC and ductile iron pipe, were used in this investigation. Under the same order, the

020002-13
maximum transient pressure head recorded in the PVC pipe was 105.17 m for hydraulic conditions, while it was 64.08
m for the PVC pipe.

TABLE 7. Celeric values in pipes (Thorley, 2004)

Pipe material Celeric (m/s) Extreme values
HDPE 300 230-430
BDPE 150 115-180
PVC 400 300-500
asbestos cement 1000 900-1200
Steel 1100 1000-1250
Gray iron 1150 900-1300
Ductile iron 1200 1000-1350

Result of Scenario 2:
Figure 15 indicates the variation of pressure head for an induced transient event resulting from 16 L/s discharge at
the hydrant for a 20-second valve cycle time. The leakage rate affects the pressure response by creating a low transient
regime of about + 5mCe.

FIGURE 15. Transient (Pressure) and hydrant flow rate for a 20 second valve cycle time
In the following Figure, we have reduced the simulation time to visualize the pressure variations and its
amplitudes.

020002-14
 FIGURE 16. Pressure and hydrant flow rate for 180 second of simulation

Figure 16 shows a low transient event resulting from a real simulation of a 16 L/s leak rate at the hydrant during a
20 secomnd cycle. The maximum of transient pressure head does not exceed +5 mCe.
Figure 17 shows a comparison of the transient pressure behavior responses and leakage size at pipe P12:J8. We
simulated three discharge rates of leaks in the transient regime (20, 25 and 30 l/s). The results summarize the system
response for a 20 s (10 s each) opening / closing of the hydrant. Obviously, as the leak size increases, the range of
pressure variation becomes larger and then leads to higher mechanical stress on the distribution system. The graph
shows that for a leak discharge rate of 30 l/s, the maximum severity reaches about 16 mCe. Smaller leaks show tighter
variations in pressure and narrower differentials than larger leaks (Hunaidi and Brothers, 2007).

FIGURE 17. Transient simulation Pressure and hydrant flow rate (20 l/s, 25 l/s et 30 l/s)

020002-15
 Result of scenario n°3:
Figure 18 shows the transient result for the opening of the two valves v2 and v4. The opening operation of these
two valves lead to a low maximum/minimum severity.

FIGURE 18. Pressure transient in case of sudden opening of valves V2 and V4

The figure indicates that the closure of V2 and V4 in the plastic pipeline leads to a lower maximum and minimum
transient pressure head, which was discussed above.
Result of scenario n°4:
In this scenario, we simulated a leak discharge rate of 16 l/s at the hydrant, while keeping both valves V2 and V4
open. The result was not different from the one shown in Fig.17. The maximum of transient pressure head does not
exceed +5 mCe.
Result of scenario n°5:
Figure 19 illustrates a greater transient pressure event at the pipe P12: J8 of about 30 mCe, due to instantaneous
V5 opening. The timestep of this simulation was reduced to see clearly the magnitude reported.

FIGURE 19. Transient pressure head in case of sudden opening of V5

020002-16
 4. CONCLUSIONS AND PERSPECTIVES
In order to achieve effective capacity management and better control of the minimum night flow per sector, the
sectorization into sub-networks on which the volume of water distributed is measured requires permanent and periodic
valve closures to isolate the sectors. Thus, these maneuvers may introduce significant pressure forces and rapid
accelerations of the fluid into a pipe system.

Despite its advantages, WDN-partition size has limits. The limitation is that water pressure management has not yet
been developed. There is no guarantee that the instantaneous closure valves are the optimal one and does not pose a
risk to customer supply.

(1) The following findings and recommendations can be summarized from the results of the previous case in the
following points: Sector configuration: this step consists in establishing the design criteria for the sector
delimitation. The validation of the sectors should not stop at the level of hydraulic simulation on Epanet or
equivalent software. Hydraulic modeling generally aims at validating the sectors and their boundaries via
valve closures before an acceptable network performance solution is obtained.
(2) Instantaneous valve closure in case of sectorization of the WDN, is the key for the behavior of the transient
pressure head: hydraulic simulations on Epanet are carried out on a steady state basis. It is therefore
impossible to show the variations in pressure waves after a sudden valve closure.
(3) Modern applications such as Hammer allows studying transient behavior easier. The output result from the
software is confirmed to have high accuracy, thus, it is recommended to use for solving transient problems.
A simulation on Hammer could modify the boundaries already validated on Epanet, if the simulated sudden
or instantaneous closure of valve generates an important event of transient pressure head. This step aims at
evaluating and/or modifying the initial sectors.
(4) The present research encourages the slow closure of smaller diameter pipe in plastic to the detriment of large-
diameter pipes, which generate the highest transient severities.
(5) In the case where the simulation on Hammer indicates a strong transient regime, several closing and opening
durations must be stimulated until the suitable closing duration is found without high pressure transient
phenomena. These durations must also respect the conditions of realization on the site. The closing duration
of the valves must be low than the opening,
(6) Configuration of the final sectors: Taking into consideration the results on Hammer, the configuration of the
sectors is modified, adding entry points to the sectors (e.g. a flowmeter) until a low-pressure severity is
obtained.
(7) Alternatively, pressure loggers involved in recording the severity of transient signals are the most
recommended to be deployed permanently or temporarily to monitor the impact of closing and opening valves
during sectorization interventions in the DHS.
(8) Once the implementation of the sensors is completed, the last step consists in progressively maneuvering the
boundary valves between the sectors according to the criteria and the results of the simulation on Hammer.
(9) In the case of opening the fire hydrant, it is necessary to avoid working with high flows of the fire hydrant,
because they generate a great transient pressure in the network.
Modern studies on the sectorization of drinking water networks require additional reflection over the appearance of
transient regimes in the pipes linked to valve operations. Transient pressure effects can be avoided or reduced
depending on the simulation results on Hammer by taking all of the precautions noted above.
In future work, we aim to repeat the experiment by other means, in particular to discuss the effect of renewal (cast

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iron by plastic) on the decrease in transient pressure head.

Declaration of competing interest: The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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