Thesis (MScEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2012. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The expected peak water demand in a water distribution system (WDS) is an important consideration for WDS design purposes. In South Africa the most common method of estimating peak demand is by multiplying the average demand by a dimensionless peak factor. A peak factor is the ratio between the maximum flow rate (which refers to the largest volume of flow to be received during a relatively short time period, say , expressed as the average volume per unit time), and the average flow rate over an extended time period. The magnitude of the peak factor will vary, for a given daily water demand pattern, depending on the chosen value of . The design guidelines available give no clear indication of the time intervals most appropriate for different peak factor applications. It is therefore important to gain a better understanding regarding the effect of on the derived peak factor. A probability based end-use model was constructed as part of this study to derive diurnal residential indoor water demand patterns on a temporal scale of one second. These stochastically derived water demand patterns were subsequently used to calculate peak factors for different values of , varying from one second to one hour. The end-use model derived the water demand patterns by aggregating the synthesised end-use events of six residential indoor end-uses of water in terms of the water volume required, duration and the time of occurrence of each event. The probability distributions describing the end-use model parameters were derived from actual end-use measurements that had previously been collected in a noteworthy North-American end-use project (Mayer et al., 1999). The original comprehensive database, which included water measurements from both indoor and outdoor end-uses, was purchased for use in this project. A single execution of the end-use model resulted in the synthesised diurnal water demand pattern for a single household. The estimated water demand pattern for simultaneous water demand by groups of households was obtained by adding individual iterations of the end-use model, considering group sizes of between one and 2 000 households in the process. A total of 99 500 model executions were performed, which were statistically aggregated by applying the Monte Carlo method and forming 4 950 unique water demand scenarios representing 29 different household group sizes. For each of the 4 950 water demand scenarios, a set of peak factors was derived for eight selected values. The end-use model presented in this study yielded realistic indoor water demand estimations when compared to publications from literature. In agreement with existing knowledge, as expected, an inverse relationship was evident between the magnitude of the peak factors and . The peak factors across all time intervals were also found to be inversely related to the number of households, which agreed with other publications from literature. As the number of households increased, the degree to which the peak factor was affected by the time intervals decreased. This study explicitly demonstrated the effect of time intervals on peak factors. The results of this study could act as the basis for the derivation of a practical design guideline for estimating peak indoor flows in a WDS, and the work could be extended in future to include outdoor water demand and sensitivity to WDS pressure. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die verwagte water spitsaanvraag is ‘n belangrike oorweging in die ontwerp van ‘n waterverspreidingsnetwerk. Die mees algemene metode in Suid Afrika om spitsaanvraag te bereken is deur die gemiddelde wateraanvraag te vermeningvuldig met ‘n dimensielose spitsfaktor. ‘n Spitsfaktor is die verhouding tussen die maksimum watervloei tempo (wat verwys na die grootste volume water wat ontvang sal word tydens ‘n relatiewe kort tydsinterval, , uitgedruk as die gemiddelde volume per tyd eenheid), en die gemiddelde watervloei tempo gedurende ‘n verlengde tydsinterval. Die grootte van die spitsfaktor sal varieer vir ‘n gegewe daaglikse vloeipatroon, afhangende van die verkose waarde. Die beskikbare ontwerpsriglyne is onduidelik oor watter tydsintervalle meer geskik is vir die verskillende spitsfaktor toepassings. Daarom is dit belangrik om ‘n beter begrip te verkry ten opsigte van die effek van op die verkrygde spitsfaktor. ‘n Waarskynliksheidsgebaseerde eindverbruik model is opgestel om deel te vorm van hierdie studie, om daaglikse residensiële binnenshuise wateraanvraag patrone af te lei op ‘n temporale skaal van een sekonde. Die stogasties afgeleide wateraanvraag patrone is daarna gebruik om die verskeie spitsfaktore te bereken vir verskillende waardes van , wat varieer vanaf een sekonde tot een uur. Die eindverbruik model stel die daaglikse vloeipatroon van een huis saam deur die eindeverbruik gebeure van ses residensiële binnenshuise eindverbruike saam te voeg in terme van the vereiste water volume en die tyd van voorkoms van elke gebeurtenis. Die waarskynliksheids distribusie wat die eindverbruik model parameters omskryf is verkry van werklike gemete eindverbruik waardes, wat voorheen in ‘n beduidende Noord-Amerikaanse eindverbruik projek (Mayer et al. 1999) versamel is. Die oorspronklike en omvattende databasis, wat gemete waardes van binnenshuis en buite water verbruik ingesluit het, is aangekoop vir gebruik gedurende hierdie projek. ‘n Enkele uitvoering van die eindverbruik model stel gevolglik ‘n daaglikse wateraanvraag patroon saam vir ‘n elkele huishouding. Die wateraanvraag patroon vir gelyktydige water verbruik deur groepe huishoudings is verkry deur individuele iterasies van die eindverbruik model statisties bymekaar te tel met die Monte Carlo metode, terwyl groep groottes van tussen een en 2 000 huishoudings in die proses oorweeg is. ‘n Totaal van 99 500 model uitvoerings is gedoen, wat saamgevoeg is om 4 950 unieke watervraag scenarios voor te stel, wat verteenwoordigend is van 29 verskillende huishouding groep groottes. Vir elkeen van die 4 950 watervraag senarios, is ‘n stel spitsfaktore afgelei vir agt verkose waardes. Die eindverbruik model aangebied in hierdie studie lewer ‘n realistiese binnenshuise wateraanvraag skatting, wanneer dit vergelyk word met verslae in die literatuur. Ooreenkomstig met bestaande kennis is ‘n sterk inverse verhouding sigbaar tussen die grootte van die spitsfaktore en . Dit is ook gevind dat die spitsfaktore oor al die tydsintervalle ‘n inverse verband toon tot die aantal huishoudings, wat ooreenstemmend is met ander publikasies in die literatuur. Soos die aantal huishoudings toeneem, het die mate waartoe die spitsfaktor geaffekteer is deur die tydsintervalle afgeneem. Hierdie studie toon duidelik die effek van tydsintervalle op spitsfaktore. Die resultaat van hierdie studie kan dien as basis om praktiese ontwerpsriglyne te verkry in die skatting van binnenshuise spitsvloei in ‘n waterverspreidingsnetwerk, gegewe dat die werk in die toekoms uitgebrei kan word om ook buitenshuise waterverbruik in te sluit, asook sensitiwiteit tot druk in die waterverspreidingsnetwerk.