As public awareness of water conservation grows, the use of water-efficient appliances is becoming increasingly common in premise plumbing systems. However, previous studies conducted at retrofitted water and energy-efficient single-family residential building (ReNEWW; http://www.renewwhouse.com/), suggest that the increased stagnation (due to low flow) can deteriorate the water quality. Also, there were significant spatiotemporal changes in water quality. 

In this study, we aimed to develop a new premise plumbing model by integrating hydraulics and various water quality species under the framework of EPANET 2.2 and EPANET-MSX. Our calibrated premise plumbing models are being developed for the extensively monitored ReNEWW house. The models can predict disinfectant residual, heavy metal, as well as microbial content at each fixture when plumbing use, operational characteristics, and design layouts are known. The parameters considered include temperature, free chlorine, pH, DOC, HPC, TTHM, Legionella, and the heavy metals. Currently, we are performing calibrations for various species for different seasons. After the calibration process, we will assess the role of changes to water quality at service lines, available water pressure, demand patterns, pipe size, etc. on the water quality’s spatiotemporal changes within the house. The model output will be time-series based water quality data allowing for the prediction of water quality at each fixture level. Our results will be utilized for human health risk assessment study as well as the development of big-data based decision support tool.

New Developments in Premise Plumbing: Integrated Hydraulic and Water Quality Modeling

Created in 1999, the Environmental & Water Resources Institute (EWRI) is the recognized leader within ASCE for the integration of technical expertise and public policy in the planning, design, construction, and operation of environmentally sound and sustainable infrastructure impacting air, land and water resources.

[Paper Proceedings](https://doi.org/10.1061/9780784483466)

Conference DOI: https://doi.org/10.26226/m.6329c39b68fb0e00131f77d2