Water leaks, pressure control, cathodic protection: what and how to do
PLANNING TO VISIT H2O? ALREADY HAVE A TICKET? AVOID THE QUEUES!
REGISTER FOR FREE HERE, USING THE CODE: HRP1DTY
Do you want to participate in the conference? Acqua 4.0 (Digital Water): the evolution of remote control for the efficiency of the integrated water cycle? CLICK HERE TO SEE THE MEETING SCHEDULE
There are some issues that are currently on the table of aqueduct managers, not only in Italy and Europe, but also on a global level: Water Leakage Management, management of network pressures and cathodic protection of pipes.
These topics concern compliance with regulations that aim to improve the "product/service" offered to them by water service managers and have direct impacts on three aspects that are vital for those who run an aqueduct: Water quality, Leak checkConsumption reductionEfficiency of the facilities to ensure service continuity Verification of delivery costs.
The World Health Organization introduced the dei model over a decade ago Water Safety Plans, PSA) as the most effective means of systematically guaranteeing the safety of a drinking water system, the quality of the water supplied and the protection of the health of consumers/users/citizens.
In 2015, the Environment Directorate of the European Commission published the document "Good practices for the management of water losses”: an up-to-date technical and regulatory reference for loss management for all European managers and regulators. So here is a brief excursus of how the technology available today with sensors, control systems, remote control, monitoring of pressure points, a careful cathodic protection of pipelines in the network, correct energy management and information systems for maintenance can represent a valid complement to meet the requirements of compliance with these regulations.
Pressure monitoring in the network and Quality.
One of the key points in the model to be adopted to ensure homogeneity in both the quality and continuity of service delivery and reduction of consumption is the correct monitoring of the pressure points in the aqueduct distribution network through a series of sensors connected to the remote control able to bring together the information on the pressures detected in the various points of the network during the provision of the service on an ongoing basis, so as to be able to build the operating model in the different time slots of the day and in the different seasons of the year, even in consideration of any variations in the population, climatic data, trends in atmospheric precipitation and water quality parameters.
Pressure sensors, data collection and transmission Sensor modules for pressure management Inventia MT723 e MT723PT, distributed and supported by ServiTecno, they are specially designed to allow timely collection of these pressure and quality measurements, they are able to transmit the data to the remote control system (SCADA) using GSM/GPRS technology available everywhere and at low cost. Especially the modules MT723PT they are equipped with an integrated pressure sensor as well as some auxiliary I/Os for further input signals coming from other probes (pressures, levels, flow rates, temperatures, PH, conductivity meters, etc.) and any outputs (to control motors, pumps, shutters, etc.)
The module MT723PT allows a data logging, can communicate with other modules on the same GSM/GPRS network and with the remote control center with periodic direct connection and upon request via APN and SMS.
It is equipped with an integrated antenna and can be connected to an antenna with a few meters of cable for possible installation in manhole covers several meters deep, while still guaranteeing regular data transmission. The compliant module bay IP 68 and ventilation with membrane technology allow installation in "difficult" environments without external power supply and with internal batteries.
Corrosion and the importance of coating underground pipes
Metal pipes, works and structures buried or immersed in water, if not adequately protected, are by their nature subject to corrosion.
Corrosion damage causes cracks and holes that lead to leaks and burst pipes. However, the damages do not consist only in the need to repair and/or replace the corroded parts, but above all, in the damages caused indirectly, such as the suspension and quality of the delivery service, the loss of production, the decrease in the efficiency of the systems etc., without then calculating the problems that may derive from explosions, fires, floods, collapses, which may be dangerous for the safety of people and have repercussions on the surrounding environment.
Corrosion normally occurs in those points of the metal pipe where the coating is damaged or absent.
For this reason, the fundamental rule to follow, in order to minimize the risks of corrosion of a metal structure, is to ensure the integrity of the external coating: the coating must be physically and chemically resistant, and prevent or minimize the establishment of currents natural corrosion, as well as the exchange of currents, present in particularly aggressive earth laying environments.
These environments are certainly influenced by power lines and railway lines even kilometers away.
Cathodic protection: passive and active
To combat corrosion, the pipes are equipped with a protection system created through a double way: passive protection and active protection.
Passive protection, as we have already said, is the set of measures designed to insulate the pipes electrically and mechanically from the environment in which they lie in order to isolate it from any other foreign structures present.
Passive protection coatings which in any case significantly reduce corrosion phenomena are often not such as to constitute an integral protection system as they are unable to avoid the corrosion phenomena which are generated both by coating failures caused during on site of the pipes, both due to the natural degradation of the coating itself accelerated by the aggressiveness of the soil, and finally due to particular electrical conditions in the area.
We therefore intervene with active protection or cathodic protection: this type of defense has the purpose of managing the current flows present in the pipe and in the ground, so as to make the entire surface cathodic, i.e. making it more negative. The protection is complete when the potential in of the underground metal structure is in every point and in every instant equal to or lower than the electrical immunity threshold. This is obtained by placing an electric circuit between the pipes and the ground capable of investing the entire pipe with direct current, wandering in the ground and suitably dispersed so that the current itself then leaves the pipe at certain points of dispersion through one or more specially placed metal conductors.
Active cathodic protection: measurement and control to make it effective
INVENTIA, a company that designs and manufactures devices for telemetry, M2M, IIoT etc. (whose products are distributed and supported in Italy by ServiTecno), in close collaboration with the expert Cathodic Protection specialist Prof. Maciej Malicki of SPECKOR, has developed and presents the two new forms MT-652 and MT-651, specifically designed to monitor parameters and control cathodic protection installations of pipelines, tanks and other metal structures buried in land or submerged in water.
Based on many years of experience in various telemetry solutions and extensive knowledge of cathodic protection, the modules meet the needs of industry companies, municipal utilities, integrators and users of this type of installations. Both modules are packaged in a glass fiber reinforced plastic enclosure providing IP65 protection.
These modules designed for cathodic protection and with integrated telemetry functions: both the MT-652 and the MT-651 are equipped with an internal GPS receiver, which is an extremely important feature in such cases: in addition to geographic positioning, it is used for precise synchronization of the device's internal clock, on the basis of which sequential measurements are made and then marked with a timestamp.
As with all the most recent modules proposed by INVENTIA, the modules presented here are also MT-651/652 they support two SIM cards - this ensures high reliability in the implementation of the transmission of GPRS packets.
When the device is not connected to the network using the primary SIM card, it will try to switch to a backup SIM to still establish a data connection and provide business continuity with the remote Network Monitoring and Water Quality systems.
One of the key points in the model to be adopted to guarantee homogeneity both in the quality and in the continuity of service delivery lies in the monitoring of the network and therefore the adoption of a remote control system with acquisition, collection and logging of data (SCADA and Historian) for correct management of all relevant points in the aqueduct distribution network.
It is important that the remote control system is supported by one for the collection and storage of laboratory data and information that can be easily referred to the measuring points in the field.
These are features found in products like historian, in which it is possible to bring together data and information not only from sensors scattered throughout the territory, but it is also envisaged that data and information come from files generated by laboratory systems and instruments, which must refer to the various collection points and "attachments" to plant management reports.
The data on which to focus the attention of the managers of the aqueduct systems usually arrive via a series of sensors connected to the remote control capable of bringing together the information on the quality, flows and pressures detected in the various points of the network during the delivery of the service on an ongoing basis, so as to be able to build the operating model in the various time slots of the day and in the various seasons of the year, also in consideration of any variations in the population, climatic data, the trend of atmospheric precipitation and water quality parameters.
Telecontrol, SCADA, Historian and surrounding applications The solution proposed by ServiTecno is based on leading products GE Digital iFix, Historian e Historian Analysis, Besides Dream Report, Win911, IdusIS and MePISEnergy GE Digital iFix The iFix software package is probably the most widely used HMI/SCADA product in aqueduct remote control applications in Italy and internationally: it boasts thousands of installations in applications from a few dozen points monitored locally up to applications with tens/hundreds of thousands of data collected in large geographic areas.
Developed by GE Digital (industrial software division of General Electric www.ge.com/digital ) is distributed and supported in Italy by ServiTecno GE Digital Historian and Historian Analysis Historian is the powerful historicizer or data Historian that collects, archives and distributes high volumes of data, with excellent performance: it contextualizes the raw data collected and aggregates them into islands of information, allowing analyses, punctual reports and water balances.
As mentioned, Historian not only allows you to collect and historicize data that flow directly from the sensors connected to the remote control system, but it is also possible to insert data from files generated by stand-alone subsystems, laboratory instruments and systems or even entered manually.
Historian Analysis is the GE Historian Add-On that provides web technology clients, enabling analysis of Big Data, extraction of current and historical data for reports and continuous improvement of processes.
Dream Report for Water Balance
Dream Report® is the first software for industrial reporting and analysis easy to use and without programming, specifically created for control and remote control systems. It is perfectly suited for timely reporting on Water Quality and Water Balances.
Win911 Alarm Notification
WIN-911® is a real-time event and alarm notification package (also on smartphones) that works with the existing remote control system, and/or with SCADA systems (such as GEDigital iFix), with the aim of alerting the personnel in case of abnormal conditions. With WIN-911, operators can concentrate on their tasks while the computer does the monitoring.
IDUS Maintenance Information System The management of Assets, of interventions on the network and systems, of maintenance technicians and intervention teams are aspects which, if managed in a prudent and organized way, allow substantial recoveries of efficiency and savings in operating costs: IdusIS it can be installed and put into operation in a short time and has demonstrated fast returns on investment in many aqueducts.