Search Results (7)

Water distribution networks (WDNs) are critical infrastructures that directly impact urban development and citizens’ quality of life. Due to digitalization technologies, modern networks have evolved towards cyber-physical systems, allowing real-time management and monitoring of network components. However, the increasing volume of data from monitoring poses significant challenges to accurately estimate the hydraulic status of the system, mainly when anomalous events or unreliable readings occur. This paper presents a novel methodology for state estimation (SE) in WDNs by integrating convolutional graph networks (GCNs) with long short-term memory (LSTM) networks. The methodology is validated on two WDNs of different scales and complexities, evaluating the SE of the sensors. The capability of the GCN-LSTM model was assessed during the last two months of the time series by simulating failures to analyze its impact on sensor readings and estimation accuracy. The smaller network showed higher sensitivity of the sensors to detect failures, while the larger one evidenced more challenges in SE due to the sensor dispersion. Overall, the model achieved low prediction errors and high coefficient of determination values between the actual and simulated values, showing good performance. Likewise, the simulated failures showed that replacing the missing data with the hourly mean of the last week significantly improved the accuracy of the predictions, guaranteeing a robust SE in the event of sensor failures. This methodology provides a reliable tool for addressing various network configurations’ operational challenges. Full article

This paper promotes water distribution networks’ (WDNs) sustainability and efficiency by integrating intelligent data analysis with ground-penetrating radar (GPR) to better interpret GPR images for detecting water leaks, favouring their asset assessment. This work uses GPR data from a laboratory setting to investigates the effects of various parameters on image interpretability across pipes. This methodology aims to advance the automation of leak and pipe identification, improving data interpretation and reducing dependency on human experts for leakage detection purposes. The findings suggest the possibility of uncovering new features enhancing GPR image interpretability, presented in 3D models. Full article

Skeletonization involves simplifying dense large-scale water distribution network (WDN) models by preserving key components that significantly impact network behavior. This study explores five WDNs and implements various skeletonization techniques to help identify a universal criterion for the optimal level of simplification. Results suggest that diverse skeletonization methods affect network topology and hydraulic accuracy. Single-method techniques tend to preserve hydraulic accuracy better but remove fewer pipes, while hybrid methods sacrifice accuracy for simplified topologies and computational time. In addition, a comparative analysis of SkelEpanet and WNTR software shows comparable performance. Ultimately, this work contributes to addressing uncertainties in transferability to real-world networks. Full article

This work explores the various relationships between several parameters in an incident hub of a small real WDN. To facilitate analysis, incident data were previously categorised depending on the nature of the cause of the incident. The data are analysed through spatial analysis, based on the transmission of information from the surrounding areas, and are also incorporated to add certain uncertainty to the information. The results of this characterisation are presented and analysed in this contribution. The results are promising in providing water distribution networks with key parameters that promote prediction and classification processes from the lessons learned. Full article

Digitalization in water networks is essential for the future planning of urban development processes in cities and is one of the great challenges faced by small cities regarding water management and the advancement of their infrastructures towards sustainable systems. The main objective of this study is to propose a methodology that allows water utilities with limited budgets to start the path toward the digitalization and construction of the hydraulic model of their water distribution networks. The small city of Pamplona in Colombia was used as a case study. The work explains in detail the challenges faced and the solutions proposed during the digitalization process. The methodology is developed in six phases: an analysis of the cadastre and existing information, the creation and conceptualization of the base hydraulic model, the development of the topography using drones with a limited budget, an analysis of water demand, the development of a digital hydraulic model, and a hydraulic analysis of the system. The product generated is a tool to assess the overall performance of the network and contributes to the advancement of SDG-6, SDG-9, and SDG-11. Finally, this document can be replicated by other cities and companies with similar characteristics (e.g., limited size and budget) and offers an intermediate position on the road to digitalization and the first steps towards the implementation of a digital twin. Full article

From tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) farming, the by-products have been identified as a source of collagen that could be used for the development of dermocosmetics or pharmaceutical products. However, the characteristics of collagen related to a specific strain or culture must be well defined prior to its application. Collagen was extracted from the skin of three strains of tilapia: red YY males (YY: two Y-type sex chromosomes), XX gray females, and the F1: offspring of crossing red YY males with XX gray females; at different ages in the adult phase, using acetic acid and pepsin enzyme. The characteristics of acid-soluble collagen (ASC) and pepsin-soluble collagen (PSC) were shown by SDS-PAGE band profiles to be similar to bovine collagen type I (SIGMA), the PSC of gray tilapia being more fragile to temperature changes, consistent with the results of fractional viscosity. The characteristics of the F1 progeny were prioritized for being a commercially productive and sustainable source for the extraction of collagen, and the ASC form, being the one with the greatest stability and advantage over PSC, of importance to our investigations, leads to a controlled digestion as in the case of peptide induction, and also in the development of natural products in the pharmaceutical and/or dermocosmetic industry. Evaluations of the triple helix structure by FT-IR, X-ray diffraction and UV–visible spectroscopy give similar results between the strains: red, gray, and F1, and between ages in the adult form F1 (15, 24, and 36 months of age). Consequently, the skin of tilapia in adult form is recommended sustainably for up to 24 months of age where the collagen is obtained with the use of acetic acid without enzymatic treatment. Full article

This paper addresses the problem of leakage in water distribution systems through the use of ground penetrating radar (GPR) as a nondestructive method. Laboratory tests are performed to extract features of water leakage from the obtained GPR images. Moreover, a test in a real-world urban system under real conditions is performed. Feature extraction is performed by interpreting GPR images with the support of a pre-processing methodology based on an appropriate combination of statistical methods and multi-agent systems. The results of these tests are presented, interpreted, analyzed and discussed in this paper. Full article