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Accurate flow measurement is required to effectively manage water resources. California Senate Bill X7-7 (SB X7-7), legislates this need by requiring agricultural water providers serving areas greater than 25,000 acres to develop an Agricultural Water Management Plan (AWMP) and adopt pricing based at least partly on volumetric water deliveries (DWR, 2009). This study focused on two of the most common flow measurement/flow control devices used in California open channel water conveyance systems: the circular meter gate and the rectangular meter gate. Testing was conducted on three Armco-type (round gates over round discharge pipe) gates measuring 12”, 18”, and 24” and two rectangular gates (rectangular gates over round discharge pipe) measuring 18” and 24”. The three round gates used in the study were the Model 101C produced and provided by Fresno Valve and Castings Incorporated. The two rectangular meter gates were manufactured by Mechanical Associates located in Visalia, California and provided by the San Luis Canal Company located in Dos Palos, California. Testing was conducted in an outdoor laboratory setting at the Irrigation Training and Research Center’s (ITRC) Water Resources Facility at the California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California under a variety of flow conditions as experienced in the field in order to: 1) evaluate the effectiveness of these gates as flow measurement devices and determine whether they meet the volumetric accuracy requirements outlined in SB X7-7, 2) develop standards for installation and use that improve flow measurement accuracy, 3) configure more accurate gate rating tables based on updated coefficient of discharge values, and 4) determine if additional gate rating tables are needed for “high” supply channel velocities. The meter gate was set perpendicular to the supply channel. Baseline data was first collected through testing with low supply channel water velocities. Additional testing was then conducted with high supply channel water velocities to analyze the effect on the coefficient of discharge. Based on previous studies it was hypothesized that as the Froude number (FR#) in the supply channel increased (water approach velocity increased), the coefficient of discharge would decrease as a result of an increase in energy needed for the perpendicular velocity transition. Data evaluation, however, indicated no statistically significant effect of water approach velocity on the coefficient of discharge for the 12”, 18” and 24” circular gates or the 18” and 24” rectangular gates at an α-level = 0.01. When operating the gates under recommended conditions relative flow uncertainty was within +/- 5%. This meets the accuracy requirements set by SB X7-7 for turnout flow measurement devices. Based on the results of this study, Cd values do not need to be adjusted for Froude numbers up to 0.35 for any of the studied gates. It should be noted, however, that while most meter gates used will be in conditions where supply channel Froude numbers do not exceed 0.35, further research is needed to study potential effects from Froude numbers exceeding the range found in this study.

Yes / This work presents new water surface elevation data including evidence of the spatial correlation of water surface waves generated in shallow water flows over a gravel bed without appreciable bed forms. Careful laboratory experiments have shown that these water surface waves are not well-known gravity or capillary waves but are caused by a different physical phenomenon. In the flow conditions studied, the shear present in shallow flows generates flow structures, which rise and impact on the water-air interface. It is shown that the spatial correlation function observed for these water surface waves can be approximated by the following analytical expression W(rho) = e(-rho 2/2 sigma w2)COS(2 pi L-0(-1)rho). The proposed approximation depends on the spatial correlation radius, sigma(w), characteristic spatial period, L-0, and spatial lag, . This approximation holds for all the hydraulic conditions examined in this study. It is shown that L-0 relates to the depth-averaged flow velocity and carries information on the shape of the vertical velocity profile and bed roughness. It is also shown that sigma(w) is related to the hydraulic roughness and the flow Reynolds number.

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No / The development of kerosene–water up-flow in a vertical pipe of 77.8 mm inner diameter and 4500 mm, length downstream of a 90◦bend, hasbeen investigated using a Pitot tube and dual optical probe. The CFD ANSYS Fluent 12.0 is used to model the flow and the results are comparedwith experimental data. The CFD provides detailed information on flow structure which is difficult to obtain in experiments. The experimentalmeasurements of the local parameters demonstrate that the single phase and two-phase flows reached the fully developed axisymmetricalconditions at L/D = 54. These results also show the severe asymmetry distributions of the two-phase flow parameters at the entrance region(L/D = 1). The predictions from Fluent are found to be in close agreement with experimental data for L/D ≥ 16 but there is a significant discrepancyat L/D = 1.

No / The local parameters for kerosene–water upward flow are measured in a vertical pipe of 77.8 mm inner diameter at 4200 mm from the inlet(L/D = 54) using hot-film and dual optical probes. The effect of superficial water velocity and volumetric quality on radial distribution of two-phaseflow parameters is investigated. The results show the following: (i) the profiles of volume fraction and drop frequency are very similar, and increasing superficial water velocity at low volumetric qualities (<18.6%) change the profile from a convex shape with peak at the pipe centreline to uniform then to concave shape with peak near the wall; (ii) the profiles of drop cut chord change from a parabolic shape with peak at centreline for lows uperficial water velocities to a flat shape at higher superficial water velocity, and the area-averaged drop diameter decreases with higher superficial water velocities for all volumetric qualities; (iii) velocity profiles for both phases have shapes similar to single phase flow, flatter at higher values of superficial water velocity and volumetric quality and centreline peaked at low superficial water velocities and volumetric qualities; (iv) the slip velocity decreases with radial distance having a peak at centreline and zero values near the wall; (v) introducing kerosene drops into single phasewater flow results in a sharp increase in turbulent intensity, particularly at low water velocity, and the difference between the single phase and two-phase flow turbulence intensities decreases with higher superficial water velocities and (vi) the results show that interfacial area concentration increased with higher volumetric quality and higher number of bubbles thereby increases the contact area between the two phases.

Under the envisioned smart city paradigm, there is an increasing demand for the coordinated operation of our infrastructure networks. In this context, this thesis puts forth a comprehensive toolbox for the optimization of electric power and water distribution networks. On the analytical front, the toolbox consists of novel mixed-integer (non)-linear program (MINLP) formulations; convex relaxations with optimality guarantees; and the powerful technique of McCormick linearization. On the application side, the developed tools support the operation of each of the infrastructure networks independently, but also towards their joint operation. Starting with water distribution networks, the main difficulty in solving any (optimal-) water flow problem stems from a piecewise quadratic pressure drop law. To efficiently handle these constraints, we have first formulated a novel MINLP, and then proposed a relaxation of the pressure drop constraints to yield a mixed-integer second-order cone program. Further, a novel penalty term is appended to the cost that guarantees optimality and exactness under pre-defined network conditions. This contribution can be used to solve the WF problem; the OWF task of minimizing the pumping cost satisfying operational constraints; and the task of scheduling the operation of tanks to maximize the water service time in an area experiencing electric power outage. Regarding electric power systems, a novel MILP formulation for distribution restoration using binary indicator vectors on graph properties alongside exact McCormick linearization is proposed. This can be used to minimize the restoration time of an electric system under critical operational constraints, and to enable a coordinated response with the water utilities during outages. / Master of Science / The advent of smart cities has promoted research towards interdependent operation of utilities such as water and power systems. While power system analysis is significantly developed due to decades of focused research, water networks have been relying on relatively less sophisticated tools. In this context, this thesis develops Advanced efficient computational tools for the analysis and optimization for water distribution networks. Given the consumer demands, an optimal water flow (OWF) problem for minimizing the pump operation cost is formulated. Developing a rigorous analytical framework, the proposed formulation provides significant computational improvements without compromising on the accuracy. Explicit network conditions are provided that guarantee the optimality and feasibility of the obtained OWF solution. The developed formulation is next used to solve two practical problems: the water flow problem, that solves the complex physical equations yielding nodal pressures and pipeline flows given the demands/injections; and an OWF problem that finds the best operational strategy for water utilities during power outages. The latter helps the water utility to maximize their service time during power outages, and helps power utilities better plan their restoration strategy. While the increased instrumentation and automation has enabled power utilities to better manage restoration during outages, finding an optimal strategy remains a difficult problem. The operational and coordination requirements for the upcoming distributed resources and microgrids further complicate the problem. This thesis develops a computationally fast and reasonably accurate power distribution restoration scheme enabling optimal coordination of different generators with optimal islanding. Numerical tests are conducted on benchmark water and power networks to corroborate the claims of the developed formulations.

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Reliable, efficient and cost-effective energy supply is crucial for economic and social development. Mining and industrial sectors consumed close to 37% of the total energy produced in the world during 2013. The South African power network is strained by the rapid expansion of mining, industrial and public sectors. Generation, transmission and distribution of electrical energy are in progress, but supply will not meet demand in the near future. The South African electricity supplier needs capital for expansion. Electricity price increases have been significantly higher than increases in the gold price over the last few years. Mining companies are under pressure from government to improve their labour relations. They are obligated to spend money on local infrastructure development. Therefore, cost efficiency receives higher priority than ever before and requires an implementation strategy. Cooling systems on mines proved to be significant electricity consumers. These systems lack integrated management and efficient and optimised control. Electricity demand can be reduced through implementation of energy saving measures on these cooling systems. Energy saving measures reduce the operational costs of mining to ensure that mines stay globally competitive. The identification of long-term challenges for energy saving measures is crucial. Successful implementation of energy saving measures results in improved utilisation and performance of mine cooling systems. These measures must be maintained to ensure a constant positive impact on reduced electrical energy consumption. The electrical energy savings are dependent on external factors, such as ambient conditions. Improved implementation strategies of energy saving measures will prevent deterioration of utilisation and performance of the mine cooling systems. Monitoring and reporting of key performance indicators are crucial. Lack of integrated maintenance can lead to lost opportunities and the deterioration of equipment and machines. The improved implementation strategies in two separate case studies proved sustainable savings of 1.73 MW and 0.66 MW respectively. The electricity cost savings for Mine A and Mine B are R8.8 million and R2.9 million respectively. These savings have been sustained for periods of seventeen and seven months respectively, indicating the value of the study. / MIng (Mechanical Engineering), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015