Purpose of "seal wells" in an aqueduct?
Purpose of "seal wells" in an aqueduct?
(OP)
I recently took partial responsibility of an aging water pipeline that moves water several miles through hilly terrain. As the water moves up grade through a 36-inch pipe it has air/vacuum vents. As it crests over the top of the last hill and starts down grade to a lake. Just after this crest it enters what the older draws refer to as a "seal well" that's basically an open air trough. The water passes through this trough and enters a 48-inch pipe that gravity flows the rest of the way to the pond. My question is what is the purpose of this "seal well"? None of the older information that's available to me includes this information. It's difficult to secure maintenance money if you don't have a good description of what you're attempting to maintain!





RE: Purpose of "seal wells" in an aqueduct?
RE: Purpose of "seal wells" in an aqueduct?
RE: Purpose of "seal wells" in an aqueduct?
If you have the water moving down the hill, you may pull a vacuum on the pipe and collapse the pipe.
Sometimes it is less expensive to use thinner wall pipe than to design the piping for the maximum pressures that will occur.
RE: Purpose of "seal wells" in an aqueduct?
RE: Purpose of "seal wells" in an aqueduct?
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"Pumping systems account for nearly 20% of the world's energy used by electric motors and 25% to 50% of the total electrical energy usage in certain industrial facilities." - DOE statistic (Note: Make that 99.99% for pipeline companies) http://virtualpipeline.spaces.live.com/