Experimental study of water losses through a circular leakage hole in PVC pipes

The water loss is a phenomenon which attends the water supply system on its operating lifetime and it represents the difference between the water volume measured at the input of a water distribution network and the water volume billed to the end-users. The water loss reduction is an important topic for the water supplying companies and the knowledge of the real water volumes lost from a supply system is an essential element in water balance. The water losses may be classified in "real losses" and "apparent losses": the apparent losses cannot be quantified, but the real losses can be estimated by calculus. The complexity of this phenomenon lies in the fact that this water losses can't be calculated with a single equation, generally valid for each real situation. The equations mentioned in the technical literature can be applied to a specific situation. This paper presents an experimental study of the variation of the hydraulic parameters in a PVC water flow pipe in two cases: 1. normal operation and 2. leak simulation, when a circular hole is drilled into a PVC pipe. Furthermore, the results of this study are discussed and analysed in order to calculate the value of the leakage exponent N₁.