CHAPTER TWO
2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW
Several experimental works had been done in various institutions across the nation and the world at large which has same bearings to the design of potable water supply system for institutional settings.
The primary driving force for managing and regulating distribution systems is the need to protect the health of the consumer, which becomes more difficult as our nation’s distribution systems age and become more vulnerable to main breaks and leaks. Certainly factors that cause water of poor aesthetic quality to be delivered to the tap, or that increases the cost of delivering water, are also important; possibly because they are underground and out of sight, it is easy to delay investments in distribution systems when budgets are considered (Garg, 1994).
Rather than wait for further deterioration, however, there is an urgent need for new science that will enable cost-effective treatment for distribution, design, construction, and management of the distribution system for protection of public health and minimization of water quality degradation.
After critical looks into the needs of consumer as regards portable water supply system in the institutions as well as the society at large, this thesis is done in such a way that the laid pipe connection or conveyance system will solve problems which arises from the existing distribution system and if implemented will solve problem of availability and gives easy accessibility to potable water for both domestics and industrial usage with reasonable operation cost and low maintenance cost (Ogundeji, 2015).
The distribution system is a critical component of every drinking water utility. Its primary function is to provide the required water quantity and quality at a suitable pressure, and failure to do so is a serious system deficiency (Birdie, 1994).
The systems of pipes that transport water from the source (such as a treatment plant) to the customer are often categorized from largest to smallest as transmission or trunk mains, distribution mains, service lines, and premise plumbing(Abraham, et al. 2007).
2.1 DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM
Distribution system infrastructure is generally the major asset of a water utility. The American Water Works Association (AWWA, 1974) defines the water distribution system as “including all water utility components for the distribution of finished or portable water by means of gravity storage feed or pumps though distribution pumping networks to customers or other users, including distribution equalizing storage.†These systems must also be able to provide water for non-portable uses, such as fire suppression and irrigation of landscaping.
After complete treatment of water, it becomes necessary to distribute it to a number of houses, estates, industries and public places by means of a network of distribution system. The distribution system consists of pipes of various sizes, values, meters, pumps etc.
2.2 TYPES OF DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM:
The distribution system is a critical component of every drinking water utility. Its primary function is to provide the required water quantity and quality at a suitable pressure, and failure to do so is a serious system deficiency (Birdie, 1994). Water quality may degrade during distribution because of the way water is treated or not treated before it is distributed, chemical and biological reactions that take place in the water during distribution, reactions between the water and distribution system materials, and contamination from external sources that occurs because of main breaks, leaks coupled with hydraulic transients, and improperly maintained storage facilities, among other things (Hudson, 1990). Furthermore, special problems are posed by the utility’s need to maintain suitable water quality at the consumers tap, and the quality changes that occur in consumers plumbing, which is not owned or controlled by the utility(Birdie, 1994).
The primary driving force for managing and regulating distribution systems is the need to protect the health of the consumer, which becomes more difficult as our nation’s distribution systems age and become more vulnerable to main breaks and leaks. Certainly factors that cause water of poor aesthetic quality to be delivered to the tap, or that increases the cost of delivering water, are also important; possibly because they are underground and out of sight, it is easy to delay investments in distribution systems when budgets are considered (Garg, 1994). Rather than wait for further deterioration, however, there is an urgent need for new science that will enable cost-effective treatment for distribution, design, construction, and management of the distribution system for protection of public health and minimization of water quality degradation.
