Selected Papers from the 1st International Electronic Conference on Water Science

A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2017) | Viewed by 32954

Special Issue Editors

J.W. Goethe University, Institute of Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences, Department of Environmental Analytical Chemistry, Altenhöferallee 1, 60438 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Interests: analysis of biodegradation of hydrocarbons in groundwater (natural attenuation); development of analytical methods for "emerging contaminants" ; chlorinated organophosphates (flame retardants), gemini-tensides (TMDD) and pharmaceuticals in the aquatic environment
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Sustainability Science and Engineering, Tunghai University International College, Taichung City, Taiwan
Interests: environmental protection; water pollution mitigation, prevention, and control; best environmental management practices; circular economy
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Dipartimento di Ingegneria, University of Ferrara, Via Saragat 1, 44100 Ferrara, Italy
Interests: hydrology: real time flood forecasting, flood routing, discharge measurements, rating curves, rainfall-runoff modelling and parameterization, uncertainty; hydraulic infrastructures: water distribution system management and design, water demand simulation and forecasting, leakage characterization and simulation, hybrid water supply systems
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Water Engineering Laboratory, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Perugia, I-06125 Perugia, Italy
Interests: pipe systems; pipeline outfalls; fault (leak) detection in pipe systems; transients
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Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Cordoba. Campus Rabanales, 14014 Córdoba, Spain
Interests: agricultural and resource economics; water management; water policy; multicriteria decision theory; environmental policy
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue comprises selected papers from the Proceedings of the 1st International Electronic Conference on Water Science (ECWS), held from 15–29 November 2016 on sciforum.net, an online platform for hosting scholarly e-conferences and discussion groups.

As this is the first electronic conference in water sciences (ECWS), we decided to offer a wide range of topics mostly related to the quality of water and the public supply of safe drinking water obtained from various resources. During the last few decades, great improvements have been made to provide water of high quality to the public in most parts of the world. However, the increasing use of groundwater to supply sufficient water for an increasing world population is challenging and sometimes creates new risks. The problem of arsenic in the groundwater of Bangladesh and many other countries is only one example. The overall aim of the conference is to stimulate scientific exchange and discussion on all aspects that help to supply sufficient water of high quality to consumers.

Selected papers which attracted the most interest on the web, or that provided a particularly innovative contribution, have been gathered for publication. These papers have been subjected to peer review and are published with the aim of rapid and wide dissemination of research results, developments and applications. We hope this Conference Series will grow rapidly in the future and become recognized as a new way and venue by which to (electronically) present new developments related to the field of water science.

Prof. Dr. Wilhelm Püttmann
Prof. Dr. Athanasios Loukas
Prof. Dr. Aleksandra Drizo
Prof. Dr. Jiangyong Hu
Prof. Dr. Marco Franchini
Prof. Dr. Bruno Brunone
Prof. Dr. Julio Berbel
Prof. Dr. Richard C. Smardo
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Water is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • water resources management and monitoring
  • water and wastewater pollution
  • emerging contaminants in the water cycle
  • water supply and distribution
  • water policies and planning section
  • wetlands and lakes

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

5886 KiB  
Article
Spatial Downscaling of Suomi NPP–VIIRS Image for Lake Mapping
by Chang Huang, Yun Chen, Shiqiang Zhang, Linyi Li, Kaifang Shi and Rui Liu
Water 2017, 9(11), 834; https://doi.org/10.3390/w9110834 - 30 Oct 2017
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4630
Abstract
Capturing the dynamics of a lake-water area using remotely sensed images has always been an essential task. Most of the fine spatial resolution data are unsuitable for this purpose because of their low temporal resolution and limited scene coverage. A Visible Infrared Imaging [...] Read more.
Capturing the dynamics of a lake-water area using remotely sensed images has always been an essential task. Most of the fine spatial resolution data are unsuitable for this purpose because of their low temporal resolution and limited scene coverage. A Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite on board the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (Suomi NPP–VIIRS) is a newly-available and appropriate sensor for monitoring large lakes due to its frequent revisits and wide swath (more than 3000 km). However, it provides visible and infrared images at relatively coarse spatial resolutions, which would sometimes hamper the accurate mapping of lake shorelines. This study, therefore, proposes a two-step downscaling method that combines spectral unmixing and subpixel mapping to produce a finer resolution lake map from NPP–VIIRS imagery, which is then applied to delineate the shorelines of five plateau lakes in Yunnan Province, as well as the shoreline dynamics of Poyang Lake at three separate times. A newly published global water dynamic dataset is employed in this study to improve the downscaling method. Results suggest that the proposed method can generate a finer resolution lake map that exhibits more details of the shoreline than hard classification. The downscaling results of the Suomi NPP–VIIRS generally achieve higher than 75% accuracy, while the downscaling results of a Landsat-simulated fraction map could have accuracy higher than 85%. This reveals that errors and uncertainties exist in both procedures, but mainly come from the spectral unmixing procedure which retrieves water fractions from NPP–VIIRS data. Full article
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5605 KiB  
Article
An Integrated Modelling System to Predict Hydrological Processes under Climate and Land-Use/Cover Change Scenarios
by Babak Farjad, Anil Gupta, Saman Razavi, Monireh Faramarzi and Danielle J. Marceau
Water 2017, 9(10), 767; https://doi.org/10.3390/w9100767 - 09 Oct 2017
Cited by 32 | Viewed by 6277
Abstract
This study proposes an integrated modeling system consisting of the physically-based MIKE SHE/MIKE 11 model, a cellular automata model, and general circulation models (GCMs) scenarios to investigate the independent and combined effects of future climate and land-use/land-cover (LULC) changes on the hydrology of [...] Read more.
This study proposes an integrated modeling system consisting of the physically-based MIKE SHE/MIKE 11 model, a cellular automata model, and general circulation models (GCMs) scenarios to investigate the independent and combined effects of future climate and land-use/land-cover (LULC) changes on the hydrology of a river system. The integrated modelling system is applied to the Elbow River watershed in southern Alberta, Canada in conjunction with extreme GCM scenarios and two LULC change scenarios in the 2020s and 2050s. Results reveal that LULC change substantially modifies the river flow regime in the east sub-catchment, where rapid urbanization is occurring. It is also shown that the change in LULC causes an increase in peak flows in both the 2020s and 2050s. The impacts of climate and LULC change on streamflow are positively correlated in winter and spring, which intensifies their influence and leads to a significant rise in streamflow, and, subsequently, increases the vulnerability of the watershed to spring floods. This study highlights the importance of using an integrated modeling approach to investigate both the independent and combined impacts of climate and LULC changes on the future of hydrology to improve our understanding of how watersheds will respond to climate and LULC changes. Full article
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1859 KiB  
Article
Legionella Survey in the Plumbing System of a Sparse Academic Campus: A Case Study at the University of Perugia
by Ermanno Federici, Silvia Meniconi, Elisa Ceci, Elisa Mazzetti, Chiara Casagrande, Elena Montalbani, Stefania Businelli, Tatiana Mariani, Paolo Mugnaioli, Giovanni Cenci and Bruno Brunone
Water 2017, 9(9), 662; https://doi.org/10.3390/w9090662 - 01 Sep 2017
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3959
Abstract
We have monitored the presence of bacteria belonging to the genus Legionella in the plumbing of buildings at the University of Perugia (Italy). More than 300 water samples were collected from 156 control-point taps in 41 buildings comprised in the eight campuses of [...] Read more.
We have monitored the presence of bacteria belonging to the genus Legionella in the plumbing of buildings at the University of Perugia (Italy). More than 300 water samples were collected from 156 control-point taps in 41 buildings comprised in the eight campuses of the University. Legionella was absent in most samples, while it was found in only 12 buildings (29% of the total). Molecular analysis indicated the presence of L. pneumophila (serogroups 1, 8 and 6–10), L. taurinensis and L. anisa. In only three cases contamination levels were above the limit at which remedial actions are required, according to international guidelines. In two buildings, where the water temperature could be raised and maintained above 60 °C, thermal disinfection was effective in eradicating Legionella. Conversely, in buildings where contaminations were caused by heat exchangers that produced hot water at a maximum temperature of 50 °C, a chemical disinfection with silver hydrogen peroxide was carried out but was effective only in the short term. In this case study, Legionella contaminations and remediation effectiveness strongly depended on the network and heating-system characteristics, indicating how a multidisciplinary approach that integrates microbiological analysis with hydraulic surveys is necessary for an effective definition of Legionella prevention and control strategies. Full article
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1045 KiB  
Article
How Efficient Are Semi-Natural Ponds in Assimilating Wastewater Effluents? Application to Fuente de Piedra Ramsar, Mediterranean Salt Lake (South of Spain)
by Jesús De-los-Ríos-Mérida, Andreas Reul, María Muñoz, Salvador Arijo, Silvana Tapia-Paniagua, Manuel Rendón-Martos and Francisco Guerrero
Water 2017, 9(8), 600; https://doi.org/10.3390/w9080600 - 12 Aug 2017
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4273
Abstract
This work concerns the case study of a Mediterranean Ramsar salt lake (Fuente de Piedra, southern Spain) that receives the treated wastewater of the local village treatment plant. The wastewater goes through a system of canals, water dams, and three semi-natural ponds that [...] Read more.
This work concerns the case study of a Mediterranean Ramsar salt lake (Fuente de Piedra, southern Spain) that receives the treated wastewater of the local village treatment plant. The wastewater goes through a system of canals, water dams, and three semi-natural ponds that were built in 2005. This work aims to investigate the capacity of the system to assimilate the impact of wastewater effluents on Lake Fuente de Piedra. For this, four points were sampled on 27–29 April 2016, at the inlet and the outlet points of the first and the third semi-natural ponds, with three replicates each. Temperature, pH, and conductivity at the inlet were 19.62 °C, 7.99, and 3262.67 μS/cm, respectively, and increased through the pond system by 7.59%, 8.04%, and 37.34%, respectively. Phytoplankton concentration indicators decreased from the inlet point to the outlet point (chlorophyll a from >500 to <20mg/L), as did the biovolume (from >5 × 1010 to 4.3 × 109 μm3/mL). Zooplankton biovolume, in contrast, increased three orders of magnitude from the inlet (3.5 × 107 μm3/mL) to the outlet point (1.6 × 109 μm3/mL). Heterotrophic bacteria (1.29 × 105 cfu/mL) and faecal enterococci (1033 ± 351 cfu/100 mL) were high at the inlet point, but decreased at the outlet point by almost three orders of magnitude. Total phosphorous and total nitrogen decreased 40.3% and 23.1% through the pond system. The results showed an improvement in water quality in its passage through the built system. Additionally, as permanent wetlands with acceptable water quality, the water system attracts wild fauna during the dry summer, leading to the conclusion that these semi-natural or artificial wetlands should be extrapolated to other aquatic ecosystems (Mediterranean wetlands) that receive contributions of residual waters. Better functioning of the treatment plant is desirable to improve the conservation of the Ramsar and adjacent wetlands systems. Full article
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4119 KiB  
Article
A Parametric Flood Control Method for Dams with Gate-Controlled Spillways
by Alvaro Sordo-Ward, Ivan Gabriel-Martin, Paola Bianucci and Luis Garrote
Water 2017, 9(4), 237; https://doi.org/10.3390/w9040237 - 28 Mar 2017
Cited by 17 | Viewed by 5585
Abstract
The study presents a method which can be used to define real-time operation rules for gated spillways (named the K-Method). The K-Method is defined to improve the performance of the Volumetric Evaluation Method (VEM), by adapting it to the particular conditions of the [...] Read more.
The study presents a method which can be used to define real-time operation rules for gated spillways (named the K-Method). The K-Method is defined to improve the performance of the Volumetric Evaluation Method (VEM), by adapting it to the particular conditions of the basin, the reservoir, or the spillway. The VEM was proposed by the Spanish engineer Fernando Girón in 1988 and is largely used for the specification of dam management rules during floods in Spain. This method states that outflows are lower than or equal to antecedent inflows, outflows increase when inflows increase, and the higher the reservoir level, the higher the percentage of outflow increase. The K-Method was developed by modifying the VEM and by including a K parameter which affects the released flows. A Monte Carlo environment was developed to evaluate the method under a wide range of inflow conditions (100,000 hydrographs) and with return periods ranging from one to 10,000 years. The methodology was applied to the Talave reservoir, located in the South-East of Spain. The results show that K-values higher than one always reduce the maximum reservoir levels reached in the dam. For K-values ranging from one to ten, and for inflow hydrographs with return periods higher than 100 years, we found a decrease in the maximum levels and outflows, when compared to the VEM. Finally, by carrying out a dam risk analysis, a K-value of 5.25 reduced the expected annual damage by 8.4% compared to the VEM, which represents a lowering of 17.3% of the maximum possible reduction, determined by the application of an optimizer based on mixed integer linear programming (MILP method). Full article
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3646 KiB  
Article
A Short-Term Water Demand Forecasting Model Using a Moving Window on Previously Observed Data
by Elena Pacchin, Stefano Alvisi and Marco Franchini
Water 2017, 9(3), 172; https://doi.org/10.3390/w9030172 - 28 Feb 2017
Cited by 30 | Viewed by 6711
Abstract
In this article, a model for forecasting water demands over a 24-h time window using solely a pair of coefficients whose value is updated at every forecasting step is presented. The first coefficient expresses the ratio between the average water demand over the [...] Read more.
In this article, a model for forecasting water demands over a 24-h time window using solely a pair of coefficients whose value is updated at every forecasting step is presented. The first coefficient expresses the ratio between the average water demand over the 24 h that follow the time the forecast is made and the average water demand over the 24 h that precede it. The second coefficient expresses the relationship between the average water demand in a generic hour falling within the 24-h forecasting period and the average water demand over that period. These coefficients are estimated using the information available in the weeks prior to the time of forecasting and, therefore, the model does not require any actual calibration process. The length of the time series necessary to implement the model is thus just a few weeks (3–4 weeks) and the model can be parameterized and used without there being any need to collect hourly water demand data for long periods. The application of the model to a real-life case and a comparison with results provided by another model already proposed in the scientific literature show it to be effective, robust, and easy to use. Full article
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