This project covers the development of a power optimal control strategy for a water distribu- tion network.
It is proposed to replace the pressure reduc- ing valves commonly used to regulate pressure, with pumps, throughout the network.
By exploiting the additional freedom for con- trol, obtained by having an over-actuated sys- tem, it is possible to reduce the power con- sumption.
The power optimal controller finds the optimal distribution of pressure boost from the pumps, by means of gradient descent, while still main- taining output pressure.
Furthermore the controller developed only re- quires knowledge of the distribution networks topology given by a graphical description. It is also designed to use a minimum of commu- nication between the individual pumps within the network.
The results shows that the power optimal con- troller slowly reduces the power consumption of the distribution network once the system pressure has reached steady-state, thus fulfill- ing the criteria of the controller.