Water utilities can achieve significant savings in operating costs by optimising pump scheduling to improve efficiency and shift electricity consumption to low-tariff periods. Due to the complexity of the optimal scheduling problem, heuristic methods that cannot guarantee global optimality are often applied. This paper investigates formulations of the pump scheduling problem solved using a branch and bound method. Piecewise linear component approximations outperform non-linear approximations within application driven accuracy bounds and demand uncertainties. It is shown that the reduction of symmetry through the grouping of pumps significantly reduces the computational effort, whereas loops in the network have the opposite effect. The computational effort of including convex, non-linear pump operating, and maintenance cost functions is investigated. Using case studies, it is shown that linear and fixed-cost functions can be used to find schedules which, when simulated in a full hydraulic simulation, have performances that are within the solver optimality gap and the uncertainty of demand forecasts.@en

Significant changes in the power generation mix are posing new challenges for the balancing systems of the grid. Many of these challenges are in the secondary electricity grid regulation services and could be met through demand response (DR) services. We explore the opportunities for a water distribution system (WDS) to provide balancing services with demand response through pump scheduling and evaluate the associated benefits. Using a benchmark network and demand response mechanisms available in the UK, these benefits are assessed in terms of reduced green house gas (GHG) emissions from the grid due to the displacement of more polluting power sources and additional revenues for water utilities. The optimal pump scheduling problem is formulated as a mixed-integer optimisation problem and solved using a branch and bound algorithm. This new formulation finds the optimal level of power capacity to commit to the provision of demand response for a range of reserve energy provision and frequency response schemes offered in the UK. For the first time we show that DR from WDS can offer financial benefits to WDS operators while providing response energy to the grid with less greenhouse gas emissions than competing reserve energy technologies. Using a Monte Carlo simulation based on data from 2014, we demonstrate that the cost of providing the storage energy is less than the financial compensation available for the equivalent energy supply. The GHG emissions from the demand response provision from a WDS are also shown to be smaller than those of contemporary competing technologies such as open cycle gas turbines. The demand response services considered vary in their response time and duration as well as commitment requirements. The financial viability of a demand response service committed continuously is shown to be strongly dependent on the utilisation of the pumps and the electricity tariffs used by water utilities. Through the analysis of range of water demand scenarios and financial incentives using real market data, we demonstrate how a WDS can participate in a demand response scheme and generate financial gains and environmental benefits.@en

The operation of water distribution networks (WDN) with a dynamic topology is a recently pioneered approach for the advanced management of District Metered Areas (DMAs) that integrates novel developments in hydraulic modeling, monitoring, optimization, and control. A common practice for leakage management is the sectorization of WDNs into small zones, called DMAs, by permanently closing isolation valves. This facilitates water companies to identify bursts and estimate leakage levels by measuring the inlet flow for each DMA. However, by permanently closing valves, a number of problems have been created including reduced resilience to failure and suboptimal pressure management. By introducing a dynamic topology to these zones, these disadvantages can be eliminated while still retaining the DMA structure for leakage monitoring. In this paper, a novel optimization method based on sequential convex programming (SCP) is outlined for the control of a dynamic topology with the objective of reducing average zone pressure (AZP). A key attribute for control optimization is reliable convergence. To achieve this, the SCP method we propose guarantees that each optimization step is strictly feasible, resulting in improved convergence properties. By using a null space algorithm for hydraulic analyses, the computations required are also significantly reduced. The optimized control is actuated on a real WDN operated with a dynamic topology. This unique experimental program incorporates a number of technologies set up with the objective of investigating pioneering developments in WDN management. Preliminary results indicate AZP reductions for a dynamic topology of up to 6.5% over optimally controlled fixed topology DMAs.@en

A dynamic topology aggregates zones in water distribution networks (WDNs) for improved pressure management and resilience to failure. Based on a sequential convex programming (SCP) approach, we propose an optimization method for the control of pressure reducing valves (PRV) in WDNs with dynamic topology. By restricting the SCP iterations to the feasible search space, we show that reliable convergence of the method is achieved. Using an experimental study in a large operational network, the optimization of PRV settings with a dynamic topology is shown to result in pressure reductions of 3.7% compared to optimized PRVs in a closed DMA structure.@en

A dynamic topology aggregates zones in water distribution networks (WDNs) for improved pressure management and resilience to failure. Based on a sequential convex programming (SCP) approach, we propose an optimization method for the control of pressure reducing valves (PRV) in WDNs with dynamic topology. By restricting the SCP iterations to the feasible search space, we show that reliable convergence of the method is achieved. Using an experimental study in a large operational network, the optimization of PRV settings with a dynamic topology is shown to result in pressure reductions of 3.7% compared to optimized PRVs in a closed DMA structure.@en

A dynamic topology aggregates zones in water distribution networks (WDNs) for improved pressure management and resilience to failure. Based on a sequential convex programming (SCP) approach, we propose an optimization method for the control of pressure reducing valves (PRV) in WDNs with dynamic topology. By restricting the SCP iterations to the feasible search space, we show that reliable convergence of the method is achieved. Using an experimental study in a large operational network, the optimization of PRV settings with a dynamic topology is shown to result in pressure reductions of 3.7% compared to optimized PRVs in a closed DMA structure.@en

The operation of pump systems in water distribution systems (WDS) is commonly the most expensive task for utilities with up to 70% of the operating cost of a pump system attributed to electricity consumption. Optimisation of pump scheduling could save 10-20% by improving efficiency or shifting consumption to periods with low tariffs. Due to the complexity of the optimal control problem, heuristic methods which cannot guarantee optimality are often applied. To facilitate the use of mathematical optimisation this paper investigates formulations of WDS components. We show that linear approximations outperform non-linear approximations, while maintaining comparable levels of accuracy.@en

Changes in power generation and supply and changes in water distribution systems are creating new opportunities for water utilities to enhance operational efficiency and income through the use of advanced control and optimisation. First, the increase in renewables penetration into the grid is causing a growth in energy storage schemes. Second, variable speed pumps are now fitted to most new systems and many existing water distribution systems are being retrofitted with variable speed pumps to improve the efficiency of the operation. We study how these trends can be jointly exploited to provide energy storage from a water distribution system. We investigate how variable speed drive pumps can enhance the ability of a water distribution network to provide demand response energy to the grid. We show that demand response provision from water distribution systems can be improved through the use of variable speed pumps. We also demonstrate that a network equipped with variable speed pumps can provide demand response profitably across a wider range of operating scenarios compared to a network equipped with only fixed-speed pumps. The results highlight another potential benefit of variable speed pumps in water distribution systems.@en