Abstract
The gravitational transfer of drinking water through gravity-fed supply pipes from a departure tank
to a receiving tank often follows very complex and winding itineraries. The longitudinal profiles of these
itineraries consist of a succession of singular points (top and bottom points). A common mistake made by
inexperienced engineers is to ignore these specific features and focus only on the levels of the departure and
receiving tanks. The problem becomes even more complex when the longitudinal profile forms a siphon, where
the transferred water undergoes a significant drop to the lowest point before rising again to reach the receiving
tank. This paper focuses on the study of a practical case of a siphon in a gravity-fed water supply system
connecting two tanks over a distance of 15.25 km. By using a Geographic Information System (GIS), a Digital
Elevation Model (DEM) was generated along the pipeline itinerary to highlight the terrain's complexity and the
singular points of the pathway. A deterministic analysis was conducted to evaluate the service life of the siphonshaped gravity-fed water supply system. This analysis revealed that uncertainties in the gravity adduction,
particularly regarding the internal roughness of the pipeline, can directly impact operating pressures at singular
points and, consequently, affect the system’s lifetime. Additionally, a reliability-based analysis was performed,
accounting for the random variability of roughness. The limit state function is governed by the normal operating
conditions and failure criteria of the water supply system. The failure probabilities of the gravity adduction with
respect to these limit state functions were computed using the classical Monte Carlo simulation method and then
compared to the allowable failure probability for civil engineering structures
Keywords
Gravity-fed water supply Siphon Deterministic analysis Reliability analysis Failure probability
References
- Bouzelha, K., Hammoum, H., Rezki, M., & Belabes, H. (2025). Reliability analysis of a gravity adduction of water supply system: Case study. The Eurasia Proceedings of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (EPSTEM), 36, 28-38.
Details
| Primary Language | English |
|---|---|
| Subjects | Classical Physics (Other) |
| Journal Section | Articles |
| Authors | |
| Early Pub Date | October 31, 2025 |
| Publication Date | October 31, 2025 |
| Submission Date | June 3, 2025 |
| Acceptance Date | July 9, 2025 |
| Published in Issue | Year 2025 Volume: 36 |
