Water Distribution Systems Analysis

A generalized method is presented for solving nonlinear networks and studying their sensitivity under steady-state flow conditions. The network may contain elements other than pipes, such as pumps and valves, and unknowns may be combinations of heads, consumptions or element resistances. Conditions for convergence of the Newton-Raphson iterative scheme and the possibility of insolvable problems are discussed. The method's flexibility for handling changes in input data is used in a time-sharing environment as an on-line tool to assist engineering design and decision making. For effective use, large capacity, high-speed computers are necessary. Traditional cut and try procedures for studying water distribution systems may be greatly improved by effective utilization of on-line data storage and interaction of computer programs to perform analysis, synthesis and information retrieval. Available commercial systems provide this capability.