measurIT technologies

Flow control

When it rains...
A large number of sewage systems have udløb
inadequate capacity to transport those
amounts of water which prolonged rain
produces. When the water level in the pipes
rises above a certain level, basements and
other low placed localities are flooded. The
result is - as most will know about - damages,
mess and pollution. Please see figs. 1 and 2. Fig. 1: Flooding
Many waste water treatment plants are
overloaded, the clarifiers do not have sufficient
capacity to cope, and additional amounts of
pollution seep out into streams and lakes.
During and after rain many overflow structures
also surcharge large amounts of diluted waste
water into streams and lakes.
If an oil trap is overloaded, the contents are
whirled about and flow directly out into streams
and lakes where they cause pollution.

Control the problem

Intense showers are often short and local,and
they only cause full-flowing pipes in some
places. And for a short time. The solution is
therefore retaining the excess water in other
places of the system during the relevant time
interval. That is - where there is room for it -
utilising those places for storage.
The solution functions in far most precipitation
situations and it does not require any
investmants in larger pipes or in basins, it only
requires flow control with suitable flow
controllers.
By effective flow control we mean a discharge
which quickly reaches the maximum flow and
stays at or below this value. This is the flow
which there is room for without any problems
after the flow controller, further down in the
system.

MeasurIT Technologies Ltd.

Craan, Craanford, email: info@measurIT.com Phone: +353 (0) 53 942 8962
Gorey, Co. Wexford, Ireland www.measurIT.com Fax: +353 (0) 53 942 8963
 measurIT technologies

Generally speaking, the purpose of a flow

controller is protecting the low-lying parts of the
sewage system (downstream) against
overloading and flooding. A specific quality at
the flow controller is that it allows liquid to pass
further down in the sewage system at a
predetermined maximum amount per time unit.
Regardsless the variation in feed flow and
regardless the water level immediately before
the controller. See figure 3.
To avoid the risk of blockage and to minimise
the need for service and maintenance, the
controller should be without moving parts.
Furthermore, its passageway should be as large
as possible in order for it to yield as little
resistance as possible in normal, daily runoff
situations, and to avoid blockages.

Many options
It may prove necessary to build a storage basin
if there is insufficient storage before the
controller. This can be done by either
expanding the pipe dimension over a short
lenght or by building a basin.
The basin-solution ensures that damages will
not happen after (downstream) the basin.
Please see figure 4.
When a controller is mounted in a structure it is
guaranteed that only that amount of water which
the sewage system downstream of it is able to
transport without flooding, will actually be
transported further down. The rest will be
discharged into a lake or stream.
A controller enables a property to respect the
legislation on limited discharge during rain. F.ex.
from large parking lots or from large roof areas.
Similarly, a controller can assist in preventing
overloading of a treatment plant, an oil/grease
trap, a pumping station etc.

MeasurIT Technologies Ltd.

Craan, Craanford, email: info@measurIT.com Phone: +353 (0) 53 942 8962
Gorey, Co. Wexford, Ireland www.measurIT.com Fax: +353 (0) 53 942 8963