Concordia tool uses sound to detect 95% of leaks in water networks

Researchers from Concordia University have developed a tool called a noise logger that detects leaks in water systems to 99.5% accuracy.

Mindful of the increasing need to find ways to conserve water, Professor Tarek Zayed of Concordia and his team went to the extremely dry client of Doha, Qatar to test their tool. The country has very low rainfall and high evaporation rates, creating serious challenges for the water supply in the best circumstances, but to make things worse the distribution network is losing 30 to 35 per cent of its water through leaks.

Zayed’s team installed noise loggers along the main water network at the Qatar University campus. They recorded the noise generated by leaks at 140 data points over two hours. By comparing the sound levels and aberrations they were able to detect aberrations that indicated leaks. The university’s facilities management team confirmed that they had pinpointed the actual leak locations to 95% accuracy.
Concordia’s civil engineering program was recently ranked as top university in Canada in terms of research. The ShanghaiRanking’s Academic Ranking of World Universities has released results for seven different engineering subjects and Concordia was placed 20th in the world for research — ahead of Stanford and Cambridge.

The ranking measures research productivity, quality and impact, international collaboration, global influence and academic awards.

For more details about the leakage tool,  click here.

For more details about the ShanghaiRanking, click here