The effect of number of tanks on water quality in rainwater harvesting systems under sudden contaminant input

Rainwater harvesting (RWH) is a sustainable solution for curbing existing urban water crises. Many countries have implemented various design guidelines for RWH systems, but water quality issues persist, especially with respect to particulate matter and soluble contaminants entering the RWH system af...

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Main Authors: Dissanayake, J., Han, M.
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Elsevier 2021
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/115730
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author Dissanayake, J.
Han, M.
author_browse Dissanayake, J.
Han, M.
author_facet Dissanayake, J.
Han, M.
author_sort Dissanayake, J.
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Rainwater harvesting (RWH) is a sustainable solution for curbing existing urban water crises. Many countries have implemented various design guidelines for RWH systems, but water quality issues persist, especially with respect to particulate matter and soluble contaminants entering the RWH system after a prolonged dry period. A first-flush unit in an RWH system can partially manage this sudden influx of pollutants, provided that rainfall conditions are favorable for its optimal operation. Therefore, a significant proportion of these pollutants reach the storage tank. The most common single storage tank RWH systems accumulate particulate matter, and allow soluble and particulate contaminants to reach the outlet quickly at undesirably high concentrations. To overcome these issues pertaining to single tank systems, multiple tank systems with similar volumes have been implemented globally. However, limited research has been conducted to assess the effect of the number of tanks on harvested water quality under a sudden pollutant input. Hence, the authors have investigated the effect of the number of tanks on particulate matter distribution in multi-tank systems, and observed that more than 60% of the particle mass input was retained in the first tank. By increasing the number of tanks, the particle mass reaching the final tank becomes constant despite changes in the flowrate and influx particle mass. Furthermore, a soluble contaminant entering a multi-tank system was observed to reside within the system for a prolonged time by approximately a factor of two, which is favorable for developing a response strategy. It is recommended by the authors that at least three tanks should be used to gain the benefits of a multiple-tank RWH system.
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spelling CGSpace1157302024-06-26T10:18:09Z The effect of number of tanks on water quality in rainwater harvesting systems under sudden contaminant input Dissanayake, J. Han, M. rainwater harvesting water quality storage tanks pollutants particulate matter experimentation drinking water developing countries Rainwater harvesting (RWH) is a sustainable solution for curbing existing urban water crises. Many countries have implemented various design guidelines for RWH systems, but water quality issues persist, especially with respect to particulate matter and soluble contaminants entering the RWH system after a prolonged dry period. A first-flush unit in an RWH system can partially manage this sudden influx of pollutants, provided that rainfall conditions are favorable for its optimal operation. Therefore, a significant proportion of these pollutants reach the storage tank. The most common single storage tank RWH systems accumulate particulate matter, and allow soluble and particulate contaminants to reach the outlet quickly at undesirably high concentrations. To overcome these issues pertaining to single tank systems, multiple tank systems with similar volumes have been implemented globally. However, limited research has been conducted to assess the effect of the number of tanks on harvested water quality under a sudden pollutant input. Hence, the authors have investigated the effect of the number of tanks on particulate matter distribution in multi-tank systems, and observed that more than 60% of the particle mass input was retained in the first tank. By increasing the number of tanks, the particle mass reaching the final tank becomes constant despite changes in the flowrate and influx particle mass. Furthermore, a soluble contaminant entering a multi-tank system was observed to reside within the system for a prolonged time by approximately a factor of two, which is favorable for developing a response strategy. It is recommended by the authors that at least three tanks should be used to gain the benefits of a multiple-tank RWH system. 2021-05 2021-10-29T04:08:51Z 2021-10-29T04:08:51Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/115730 en Open Access Elsevier Dissanayake, J.; Han, M. 2021. The effect of number of tanks on water quality in rainwater harvesting systems under sudden contaminant input. Science of the Total Environment, 769:144553. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.144553]
spellingShingle rainwater harvesting
water quality
storage tanks
pollutants
particulate matter
experimentation
drinking water
developing countries
Dissanayake, J.
Han, M.
The effect of number of tanks on water quality in rainwater harvesting systems under sudden contaminant input
title The effect of number of tanks on water quality in rainwater harvesting systems under sudden contaminant input
title_full The effect of number of tanks on water quality in rainwater harvesting systems under sudden contaminant input
title_fullStr The effect of number of tanks on water quality in rainwater harvesting systems under sudden contaminant input
title_full_unstemmed The effect of number of tanks on water quality in rainwater harvesting systems under sudden contaminant input
title_short The effect of number of tanks on water quality in rainwater harvesting systems under sudden contaminant input
title_sort effect of number of tanks on water quality in rainwater harvesting systems under sudden contaminant input
topic rainwater harvesting
water quality
storage tanks
pollutants
particulate matter
experimentation
drinking water
developing countries
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/115730
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