MULTI-CRITERIA COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF WATER-SUPPLY AND SEWERAGE PIPES MANUFACTURED FROM DIFFERENT MATERIALS

Abstract

Recent advances in materials engineering are remarkable. New materials are emerging in the global market, and old ones are constantly being improved. No exceptions and materials for the production of pipes. Nowadays cast iron, steel, reinforced concrete, ceramic, plastic and other materials pipes are used for water supply and sewage networks installation. Construction customers and designers have to choose which materials to use for pipes that they meet the set requirements, are easy to maintain, and to have high longevity. To evaluate the effectiveness of different pipe materials (concrete, reinforced concrete (RC), steel, cast iron, ceramic, polyvinylchloride (PVC), polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), glass reinforced plastic (GRP)), the properties and cost were analyzed. Eleven criteria were selected for the evaluation: variety of diameters, mass, resistance of lifting, thermal resistance, abrasion resistance, surface roughness (hydraulic property), nominal stiffness, nominal pressure, embodied energy, CO₂ emission, and cost (product + installation). According to the results the most effective material for pipes used in water supply and sewerage systems is polyethylene PE and polyvinylchloride PVC.