Cluster Analysis for Water Distribution Systems Security Enhancement

Clustering has been widely studied and applied in various fields of research and the real world such as social, biological, and information networks. In this work, a clustering approach for water distribution network as a function of structural and hydraulic properties (i.e. topology and flow directions) of the network graph is developed. The network is mapped into a graph which, is assumed, to contain groups of nodes with different levels of connectivity. Based on the nodal connectivity (i.e. strongly or weakly connected nodes), the network is partitioned to its strongly and weakly connected components and the interactions between these components are established. The full presentation of the system contains all nodes and connecting links. Cluster structure presentation can be less detailed having fewer components, but containing the entire system information. The cluster network can be utilized for efficient operation and control of the system. For example, improve the water security of the system by enabling to monitor and possibly segregate a contaminant in the system. The proposed method is demonstrated using an illustrative example and tested on a medium-sized water distribution system.