A framework for real-time disinfection plan assembling for a contamination event in water distribution systems

Area of Science:

• Environmental Engineering
• Public Health
• Water Resource Management

Background:

• Water distribution systems (WDS) are vulnerable to intentional, negligent, or accidental contamination events.
• Contamination poses significant risks to public health.
• Effective strategic planning for decontamination of WDS infrastructure is limited.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose a novel framework for real-time disinfection planning in WDS.
• To address the gap in research regarding strategic decontamination planning for WDS.

Main Methods:

• Partitioning the WDS into District Metered Areas (DMAs).
• Generating a solution region for each DMA.
• Assembling an effective decontamination plan using the generated solution regions.

Main Results:

• The proposed framework was applied to three contamination events.
• Demonstrated significant reduction in response time during decontamination planning.
• Showcased improvement in the quality of decontamination plans.
• Provided a model for optimizing resource allocation during WDS decontamination.

Conclusions:

• The framework enables real-time, effective decontamination planning for WDS.
• Optimizes response strategies and resource allocation for contamination events.
• Enhances public health protection through improved WDS management.