A water supply network is a system of engineered hydrologic and hydraulic components, including: Water covers 70% of the Earths surface. ... Hydraulics is a branch of science and engineering concerned with the use of liquids to perform mechanical tasks. ...

1. the watershed or geographic area that collects the water, see water purification - sources of drinking water;
2. a raw (untreated) water reservoir (above or below ground) where the water gathers, such as a lake, a river, or groundwater from an underground aquifer;
3. a means for delivery from the source to a point of treatment, such as (underground) piping, uncovered ground level aqueducts and/or tunnels;
4. water purification, such as a water treatment plant;
5. transmission from treatment, through pipes to treated water storage, that may be either elevated or ground level; and
6. distribution through piping from storage to consumption (at houses, fire hydrants, industrial use points, etc).

The product, delivered to the point of consumption is fresh water or drinking water. A drainage basin is the area within the drainage basin divide (yellow outline), and drains the surface runoff and river discharge (blue lines) of a contiguous area. ... Water purification is the removal of contaminants from raw water to produce drinking water that is pure enough for human consumption. ... A lake is a body of water surrounded by land. ... The Murray River in Australia. ... Groundwater is water located beneath the ground surface in soil pore spaces and in the fractures of geologic formations. ... An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing permeable rock, or permeable mixtures of unconsolidated materials (gravel, sand, silt, or clay) (see also groundwater). ... Piping is used to convey fluids (usually liquids and gases but sometimes loose solids) from one location to another. ... This article is about the structure aqueduct, for the racecourse see Aqueduct Racetrack. ... A disused railway tunnel now converted to pedestrian and bicycle use, near Houyet, Belgium A tunnel is an underground passage. ... Water purification is the removal of contaminants from raw water to produce drinking water that is pure enough for human consumption. ... Piping is used to convey fluids (usually liquids and gases but sometimes loose solids) from one location to another. ... Piping is used to convey fluids (usually liquids and gases but sometimes loose solids) from one location to another. ... For the village on the Isle of Wight, see Freshwater, Isle of Wight. ... Drinking water Drinking water is water that is intended to be drunk by humans. ...

Virtually all large systems must treat the water; a fact that is tighly regulated by global, state and federal agencies, such as the World Health Organization (WHO) or the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Water purification usually occurs close to the final delivery points to reduce the chances of the water becoming contaminated after treatment. The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations, acting as a coordinating authority on international public health, headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. ... EPA redirects here. ...

Once treated, the water is distributed by the local supply network. Today, water supply systems are typically constructed of plastic, ferrous, or concrete circular pipe. However, other "pipe" shapes and material may be used, such as square or rectangular concrete boxes, arched brick pipe, or wood. Near the end point, the network of pipes through which the water is delivered is often referred to as the water mains. The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... A weathered brick wall. ... A tree trunk as found at the Veluwe, The Netherlands Wood derives from woody plants, notably trees but also shrubs. ...

The energy that the system needs to deliver the water is called pressure. That energy is transferred to the water, therefore becoming water pressure, in a number of ways: by a pump, by gravity feed from a water source (such as a reservoir or a water tower) at a higher elevation, or, in smaller systems, by compressed air. Pressure (symbol: p) is the force per unit area acting on a surface in a direction perpendicular to that surface. ... Pressure (symbol: p) is the force per unit area acting on a surface in a direction perpendicular to that surface. ... Manual water pump in Košice-Ťahanovce, Slovakia An electric driven pump of water works nearby the Hengstey See, Germany 19th century Dutch diesel pump in Rijswijk, Netherlands Manual pump used to obtain water in Afghanistan This article is about the mechanical device. ... The mushroom-shaped concrete water tower of Roihuvuori in Helsinki, Finland was built in the 1970s. ...

These systems are usually owned and maintained by local governments, such as cities, or other public entities, but are occasionally operated by a commercial enterprise (see water privatization). Water supply networks are part of the master planning of communities, counties, and municipalities. Their planning and design requires the expertise of city planners and civil engineers, who must consider many factors, such as location, current demand, future growth, leakage, pressure, pipe size, pressure loss, fire fighting flows, etc. Construction occurs using the expertise of builders, called contractors, with expertise in building hydraulic facilities. Local governments are administrative offices of an area smaller than a state. ... A city is an urban area, differentiated from a town, village, or hamlet by size, population density, importance, or legal status. ... Water privatization is a short-hand for the privatization of water services, althougth more rarely it refers to privatization of water resources themselves. ... Urban planners work with local governments to formulate plans for the short- and long-term growth and renewal of urban and suburban communities. ... The Falkirk Wheel in Scotland. ... Cranes are essential in large construction projects, such as this skyscraper In project architecture and civil engineering, construction is the building or assembly of any infrastructure. ...

The advent of these systems, along with comparable sewage systems, was one of the great engineering advances that made urbanization possible. Improvement in the quality of the water has been one of the great advances in public health. Sewage includes domestic, municipal, or industrial liquid waste products disposed of via a pipe or similar structure. ... Bold text Engineering is the application of scientific and technical knowledge to solve human problems. ... Public health is concerned with threats to the overall health of a community based on population health analysis. ...

Topologies

Like electric power lines, roads, and microwave radio networks, water systems may have a loop or branch network topology, or a combination of both. The piping networks are circular or rectangular. If any one section of water distribution main fails or needs repair, that section can be isolated without disrupting all users on the network. A graph with 6 vertices (nodes) and 7 edges. ...

Most systems are divided into zones. Factors determining the extent or size of a zone can include hydraulics, telemetry systems, history, and population density. Sometimes systems are designed for a specific area then are modified to accommodate development. Terrain affects hydraulics and some forms of telemetry. While each zone may operate as a stand-alone system, there is usually some arrangement to interconnect zones in order to manage equipment failures or system failures.

See also

• Aqueduct
• Hardy Cross
• Hydrology
• Plumbing
• Water supply in Hong Kong
• Water
  • Water pipes
  • Water quality
  • Water resources
  • Water supply