Redrawing pump characteristic curves under real operating conditions in water supply networks

ABSTRACT Pumping stations in water supply systems account for more than 50% of their total operational expenditures, predominantly due to high energy demands. These costs are driven by regional topography, hydraulic head requirements, pump configurations, and long-term performance degradation. To address these inefficiencies, a novel approach has been developed to optimize the operational efficiency of pumping stations integrating existing SCADA systems and frequency inverters to enable real-time acquisition of key hydraulic and electrical parameters. The main goal is the determination of the Best Electricity Use Point (BEUP), which extends beyond the traditional Best Efficiency Point (BEP) by incorporating total energy input, including all end-to-end losses. A standardized in field experiment protocol facilitates the empirical derivation of pump performance curves under varying rotational speeds and operating conditions. Applied in Kos Island's (Greece) water supply system, the methodology resulted in significant energy use reduction, enhanced mechanical reliability, and mitigation of hydraulic transients.