Article published on juin 2008Water systems
Monitoring for leaks
Around one quarter of all drinking water is wasted due to faulty pipes. CEA Liten has patented a process that can detect and quantify leaks, even tiny ones.
All water leaks pose the risk of
drinking water contamination,
in addition to representing a loss
for administrators. Acoustic or
ultrasound methods are generally used to
locate big leaks, but do not detect smaller
leaks (5-10% of nominal flow) and are subject
to caution in plastic pipes, increasingly
in use. CEA Liten has developed a process
to overcome this limitation. "Our system
quantifies even small leaks by measuring
flows in situ at two points in the network,
using equipment installed in the pipes to
measure electrical conductivity", explains
Daniel Getto, who filed a patent with Patrick
Burghoffer, another Liten researcher.
"We use sodium hypochlorite (bleach),
a very good water tracer that modifies
its conductivity in propor tion to flow
and is harmless at the required doses."
The system, patented in France, will be
r elevant for new water systems and
those under maintenance that have the
possibility of installing the measurement
units (one tracer injection point and two
measurement systems), requiring roughly
2 metres of piping each.
