WA TE R LE AK DE TEC TIO N S YS TE MS

Water leaks can occur from many sources such as water supply and return chains, air conditioning units, cold-water chillers, clogged drains, damaged skylights or windows, or even construction errors or cracks in water tanks. WLDS are deployed in areas where mission-critical equipment is being maintained, including data rooms, data centers, clean rooms, utility corridors, laboratories, telecommunication facilities, storage areas, elevator shafts, drip pans under watercooled equipment, and many more. With water-related claims rising and water a significant cause of business costs, data centers have become one of the first to adopt leak detection technology in protecting their mission-critical equipment. Any area where condensation can happen due to water leak leads to the rise of toxic mould. This can be avoided by the use of WLDS. Insurance companies are starting to realize the benefits of having water detection systems in place and have begun to offer incentives to those businesses that install such systems. Given the large amount of waterbased claims, water leak detection systems can help insurance companies lower their risk and exposure to business interruptions and losses caused by water damage. TYPES OF WATER LEAK DETECTION SYSTEMS: They can be classified as Active TYPES OF WATER LEAK DETECTION SYSTEMS: Leak Detection and Passive Leak detection Systems. Pass iive Leak Detectiion Sys tems : They are intended to alert you of a leak. They generally Pass ve Leak Detect on Sys tems sound an audible alarm tone and some may also feature a flashing light. Passive systems are frequently battery-operated, stand-alone units. They are inexpensive and easy to install. Some simply sit on the floor while others may be wall mounted. A moisture sensor is located on the floor and activates the alarm when it becomes wet.

Passive systems only help reduce water damage if someone hears the warning tone and acts to stop the leak. Actiive Leak Detectiion Sys tems : They usually generate some type of alarm, but also perform Act ve Leak Detect on Sys tems : a function that will stop the water flow. They feature a shut-off valve and some means to determine that a leak is occurring An active leak detection system can either operate at an individual appliance or it can operate and control a whole office. CLASSIFICATION BASED ON TYPE OF SENSOR USED: CLASSIFICATION BASED ON TYPE OF SENSOR USED: Spot Detectiion Sys tem: Spot detectors sense water leaks at a single point. It typically uses a Spot Detect on Sys tem: probe to sense the presence of water. They are ideal for drip pans, floor drains, and confined areas where water converges at a single location. Each spot detector must connect to a control module. This control module is usually mounted on a wall in a high traffic area and provides visible and audible annunciation of a water leak Spot detectors are broadly used because they are the most economical and familiar;

Diisadvantages of Spot Detectors : They are most effective in an area where the liquid is D sadvantages of Spot Detectors : contained, such as small rooms, air conditioning drip pans or dams, and around floor drains. When used in an open floor area, the floor must be analyzed for low points to determine the best place(s) to put the spot detector(s). If the liquid flows one foot away and does not make contact with the probe, it won't be detected. Contiinuos run Detectiion Sys tems : These systems use cable based Intelligent Sensors. The Cont nuos run Detect on Sys tems : sensing wires in the cables are either conductive or non-conductive types. Non-conductive types are preferred because they are less prone to false alarms due to a short circuit, which occurs, when the cable comes into contact with metallic surfaces such as metal rod. In addition non-conductive sensors can detect any conductive fluid not just water. CLASSIFICATION BASED ON DETECTION OF EXACT LOCATION OF LEAK: CLASSIFICATION BASED ON DETECTION OF EXACT LOCATION OF LEAK: Conventional WLDS: With the cable sensor, businesses can easily detect single or multiple water leaks in a specific area or areas in conjunction with a zone control panel. Companies typically divide a visible area into several zones and monitor each zone using a multi-zone control panel. The sensing cable is placed on the floor or the sub-floor around the potential leak sources, with each cable monitoring one zone. This allows each zone's sensitivity to be adjusted. If water or other conductive liquids contact the cable anywhere along its length, the control panel annunciates the water leak and the zone in which the leak is located. The following figure shows a Control panel monitoring 4 Zones with 1 zone in each room.

ANALOG WLDS: For larger areas, businesses can pinpoint the exact location of the water leak using one continuous length of the sensing cable in conjunction with a "distance read" control panel. Typically, a single cable sensor can be used for up to several thousand feet and is installed throughout the floor or sub-floor around possible water sources. When a leak occurs, the control head annunciates this information and provides a distance measurement within a few feet. This information is cross-referenced with the cable route map that indicates the corresponding location of the leak. The "distance read" system is ideal for larger areas where it is not possible to view the cable, or any water that may come in contact with it, such as large raised-floor areas. The following diagram shows the implementation of a Distance Read Analog WLDS.

SENSORS USED FOR WATER LEAK DETECTION: SENSORS USED FOR WATER LEAK DETECTION:

Using Tape or Cable Sensors: The detection of water leak by these sensors might give rise to corresponding change in resistance or capacitance values. The leak detection module to which the tape sensors are connected detects these changes. This causes a relay to be activated in the module. Varying sensitivity levels can be set by adjusting potentiometers or other presets. The water in these sensors automatically dries up once the source of water leak is removed. The tape sensor will produce an Alarm State till all the water present on it dries up. The cable sensors usually have a part or component called as Leader Cable. These leader cables are placed in areas where there is no chance of water leakage occurring. The sensing area of the cable is placed where there is a possibility of a water leak.

Leader Cable

End termination Sensor Cable

The sensors usually have a facility to trigger a trouble output (relay based) whenever the tape is broken, cut or unplugged.

Using Pressure Sensors: The pressure sensor will give an analog output of voltage or current depending on the pressure level of a water tank. Generally 1 bar of pressure measurement will correspond to 10 meters of water present in a tank. If we use a 1 bar pressure sensor, which gives a 0-10V output, then a 10 V output will correspond to a pressure of 1 bar. 10 metres of water = 10 Volt output from sensor = 1 bar 5 Meters of water = 5 Volts of output and = 0.5 bar and so on. Through software linked to the BMS system, we can write a program or strategy, which will rise an alarm when the pressure in the tank is reducing at an alarming rate due to a water leak. The pressure sensor is connected to a Controller which can take a Analog Voltage/Current as input. The following diagram shows a Sontay PL-DNX 10-pressure sensor, which will give an analog current output ranging from 4-20 milli amps.

But we do not know if the reduction in level of water is due to normal usage or a Water leak. To detect this we can place flow sensors in the normal /regular water flow paths. If there is reduction in pressure when there is no water flow in these regular paths then we can indicate a water leak. Hence the algorithm used in software should be able to differentiate between a Water leak and an ordinary full-fledged usage.

Passive Acoustic Sensing: Acoustic sensing Technology is based on the principle that the liquid escaping through a hole or fissure in a tank produces a sound that is detectable. The sensors or transducers used in acoustic testing convert the energy from a sound wave into an electrical signal. Typically, arrays of acoustic sensors are either suspended from tank roof or at evenly spaced intervals around the external circumference of the tank. The sensors monitor the tank acoustic levels/locations. A background level of noise is documented by continuos tank monitoring. This background noise is used to create an acoustic map of the tank. A persistent anomalous or out of character acoustic signal in a consistent location within a tank may indicate a leak.

PERFORMANCE ISSUES OF WLDS: PERFORMANCE ISSUES OF WLDS: WLDS performance is defined in terms of the probability of detection, or Pd, which is the likelihood that a real leak is detected, P fa which is the probability of false alarm, or Pmd which is the probability of missed detection. While installing WLDS in existing tanks, the previous history of leaks need to be considered. Proper identification of previous leaks, their locations and approximate quantity of water that escaped will help minimize possible sources of error after selection and installation of an LDS. Elimination or minimization of false alarms is the primary goal in leak detection technology. Frequent false alarms erode the credibility of LDS and can lead to an unnecessary and expensive, time and labor intensive effort to drain, clean and inspect the tank. A combination of pressure (which can detect large volume leaks) and acoustic analysis (which can detect small leaks very rapidly) would offer a combination of sensitivity, speed, and a leak location ability that might eliminate a false alarm.

WLDS IMPLEMENTED BY DATS: WLDS IMPLEMENTED BY DATS: We have implemented Conventional WLDS. We have used a Sontay Tape Sensor, Sontay Module and a Verifier panel for implementing WLDS. WD TS Tape Sensors: These tape sensors are used for detection of water leaks. These tape sensors are connected to the WD-AM Sontay Module. The tape can be covered with Plastic netting to prevent short circuits when used in metal trays or conduits. The tape can be folded at right angles to allow easy routing.

The detection wires/tapes are fixed tight to a wall with plastic brackets and across floors using saddle clips. The method of fixing is dependent upon your application. WD-AM Single Zone Water Leak Detection Module: This module has to be given a 24 V DC or AC power supply. 230 V Ac versions are also available. The response time is < 1 sec after the cable connected to the module is exposed to water. A relay output provides an alarm signal for connection to one of the Zone input of the Verifier Panel.

The following diagram shows the possible arrangement of the Tape sensors covering 2 zones. Each area corresponds to one zone. Each zone usually monitors 200 meters of tape.

An audible alarm option is also available with the WD-AM1A and WD-AM2A models. The alarm output will have a value of 85 dB at 2.3 kHz and 10 cms. Alarm indications can be generated on the BMS software screen by feeding the output of either the monitor module or Verifier output to the BMS controller.

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