11 II February 2023

https://doi.org/10.22214/ijraset.2023.49008
 International Journal for Research in Applied Science & Engineering Technology (IJRASET)
ISSN: 2321-9653; IC Value: 45.98; SJ Impact Factor: 7.538
Volume 11 Issue II Feb 2023- Available at www.ijraset.com

Pipe Size Calculation for Water Supply

Dinesh Chauhan
Consultant Mechanical

Abstract: A pipe designer or engineer has to solve complex math equation for calculating the diameter of pipe to determine how
much water discharge it can be handled at a particular flow velocity. This article is an effort to make the calculation of water
pipe size easier. The formula and factor derived in this document can be used for pipe diameter calculation for all types of
normal water supply. Like – chilled water, raw water, soft water, cooling water, hot water and hydrant water at a particular flow
velocity.
Keywords: Handy formula for water pipe size calculation, volumetric flow rate, Pipe dia calculation, Flow velocity.

I. INTRODUCTION
Here we figure out or generate a handy formula as an easy tool for calculating the pipe size which can be used for determining the
pipe diameter for a given discharge at a particular flow velocity for steady water flow.

1) Derivation of handy (simple) formula for water pipe size calculation: We begun with some result that we shall use while
making “Handy formula for water pipe size calculation”.
Volumetric flow rate =
Where D is pipe diameter and V is the average velocity

Pipe diameter =

= × 2

Generally, in industrial application the flow rate measures in cubic meter per hour (CMH) and velocity of water supply in pipeline
in meter per second (mps).

4 × × 10
= . . . . . . . ()
3600 × × V × 10

4 × 10
= ×
3600 × × V × 10
Where,
D- Diameter of pipe in mm
Q- Volumetric flow in CMH
V- Velocity of water in pipe in mps

×
If the velocity is fixed then the value of × × ×
will be a constant “C”.

= × . . . . . . . . . . .(ii) A very handy formula.

Where, C is the constant value at a fixed velocity of water in pipe. Let’s call it DC factor for “water pipe size calculation”.
Formula (i) is a very simple form for calculating pipe sizes for a given volumetric flow and flow velocity.

©IJRASET: All Rights are Reserved | SJ Impact Factor 7.538 | ISRA Journal Impact Factor 7.894 | 262
 International Journal for Research in Applied Science & Engineering Technology (IJRASET)
ISSN: 2321-9653; IC Value: 45.98; SJ Impact Factor: 7.538
Volume 11 Issue II Feb 2023- Available at www.ijraset.com

2) DC factor for water pipe size calculation: The values of DC factor at different velocity are given in Table 1 for water pipe size
calculation.

TABLE I
DC FACTOR AT DIFFERENT VELOCITY OF WATER IN PIPE
S. Velocity of water in DC factor for water pipe S. Velocity of water in DC factor for water
No Pipe ‘V’ in mps size calculation ‘C’ No. Pipe ‘V’ in mps pipe size calculation
. ‘C’
1 1 18.81 11 3.0 10.86
2 1.2 17.17 12 3.2 10.51
3 1.4 15.89 13 3.4 10.20
4 1.6 14.87 14 3.6 9.91
5 1.8 14.02 15 3.8 9.65
6 2.0 13.30 16 4.0 9.40
7 2.2 12.68 17 4.5 8.87
8 2.4 12.14 18 5.0 8.41
9 2.6 11.66 19 5.5 8.02
10 2.8 11.24 20 6.0 7.68

3) How to use “Handy Formula” (ii):

 To calculate the pipe diameter in mm, just multiply the square root of volumetric flow Q (value in CMH) with the DC factor at
a given or selected velocity from above Table 1.
 Please note that the calculated pipe size is the inner diameter of pipe.

A. Examples - 1
Calculate the required pipe size for the 300 CMH (cubic meter per hour) volumetric flow rate at a velocity of 2 mps.by using the
volumetric flow formula.

Solution
Flow Q - 300 CMH
Velocity V - 2 mps

Volumetric flow rate =

4 × × 10
=
3600 × × V × 10

4 × 300 × 10
=
3600 × × 2 × 10

= 230.33 ( )

B. Examples - 2
Calculate the required pipe size for the 300 CMH (cubic meter per hour) volumetric flow rate at a velocity of 2 mps.by using DC
factor for water pipe size calculation.

©IJRASET: All Rights are Reserved | SJ Impact Factor 7.538 | ISRA Journal Impact Factor 7.894 | 263
 International Journal for Research in Applied Science & Engineering Technology (IJRASET)
ISSN: 2321-9653; IC Value: 45.98; SJ Impact Factor: 7.538
Volume 11 Issue II Feb 2023- Available at www.ijraset.com

Solution
Flow Q - 300 CMH
Velocity V - 2 mps
DC factor at velocity 2mps - 13.30

= × . . . . . . . . . . .(ii)

= √300 × 13.30

= 230.36 ( )

Here, we can see that the calculation of water pipe size is very simple by using the DC factor.

C. Examples - 3
What will be the pipe size for the water flow rate of 150 CMH at a velocity of 1.8 mps?

Solution
Flow Q - 150 CMH
Velocity V - 1.8 mps
DC factor at velocity 2mps - 14.02

= × . . . . . . . . . . .(ii)

= √150 × 14.02

= 171.70 ( )

II. GLOSSORY
1) CMH : Cubic meter per hour
2) mps : Meter per sec
3) DC : Dinesh Chauhan’s factor for water pipe size calculation

III. CONCLUSIONS
The DC factor is a multiplying factor at a particular velocity of water to calculate the pipe diameter by multiplying it with the square
root of volumetric flow. By using the DC factor, the calculation becomes very easy to calculate the water pipe size.

REFERENCES
[1] Dr. R.K. Bansal, Fluid mechanics and hydraulic machines, ninth edition 2010

©IJRASET: All Rights are Reserved | SJ Impact Factor 7.538 | ISRA Journal Impact Factor 7.894 | 264