Should we include a wet well and the distribution pump control setting for the wet well, in order to determine
I recently worked on a model project for a City for a future scenario for a larger population.
As usual for what I have seen set up for a City with a Water Treatment Plant (WTP), the water distribution system (WDS) model had a reservoir and pumps, which represented a WTP. For the future maximum day and hour demands, the pumps were supplying enough water to provide sufficient fire flow and pressure. However, because the reservoir can supply unlimited amount of water, I had to analyze the model results separately using a spreadsheet.
Then, I wondered when a model is used for the above purposes, if we should include a wet well in a WDS model. If we include a wet well in a model, we can see when the distribution pumps (high service pumps) start and stop with higher demand and how the water levels in the tanks fluctuate.
I'd appreciate sharing your expertise and comments on this.
Thank you.
Yoko
Hello Yoko,
I'm not quite sure I fully understand your question, but it sounds like your pumps can exceed the capacity of the treatment plant.
In general, it is typically always best to "model what you've got". Adding the tank to represent the treatment plant could help if it is important to see its effect on the system.
If you want to stay with the reservoir approach, you can use a Flow Control Valve (FCV) to control the flow rate if needed. For water quality, the reservoir would represent the chlorine contact tank and you would typically know the chlorine concentration leaving that tank.
Here is some wiki articles that you may also find useful:
Modeling Fixed Inflow from a Marginal Source
Problems when using a flow control valve (FCV) downstream of a pump
Regards,
Jesse DringoliTechnical Support Manager, OpenFlowsBentley Communities Site AdministratorBentley Systems, Inc.
Answer Verified By: Yoko