Rooftop Collected Rainwater Quality and Vegetation Impact: Field Work in Lagos, Nigeria, and the Related Experimental and Numerical Studies

Water scarcity is a significant issue in the underdeveloped and developing countries, and harvested rainwater has the potential of being an improved source of water for consumption. Since many residents in both rural and urban settings in Nigeria rely on harvested rainwater as a source of water for drinking and domestic use, it is imperative to investigate ways and implement measures to enhance its quality. This study used QMRA to evaluate the health risk associated with bacterial contamination of roof-harvested rainwater (RHRW). To achieve this, the impact of some improvement techniques (such as first flush, sedimentation, and Household Treatment Techniques (HHTTs)) on the quality of rainwater was investigated. The QMRA results showed that those who harvest and drink rainwater without applying any HHTTs are at a very high risk of bacterial infection. However, the results identified that two out of the three common HHTTs are effective in lowering the risk of infection. The impact of different vegetation spacing sizes on turbulent characteristics in an open channel was investigated and the results from the experimental measurements and the numerical modelling were compared. The presence of the full vegetation stems in Test 1, constrained the development of turbulent vortex, and this phenomenon is weakened in the open spaces, which led to the varying velocity in the open regions of Tests 2 and 3. The numerical modelling results agrees with experimental measurements, as the root mean square error for all the tested and validated points are within acceptable limit (i.e., less than 10%).

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

University of Bradford

Author dc:creator

• John, Chukwuemeka K.

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Pu, Jaan H.
• Guo, Yakun

• Deposition
• First flush
• Household treatment techniques (HHTTs)
• Microbiological parameters
• Physical parameters
• Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment (QMRA)
• Rainwater quality
• Sedimentation
• Simulation
• Vegetations
• Lagos, Nigeria
• Rooftop collection
• Bacterial infection

Statement dc:rights

• <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/"><img alt="Creative Commons License" style="border-width:0" src="http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by-nc-nd/3.0/88x31.png" /></a><br />The University of Bradford theses are licenced under a <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/">Creative Commons Licence</a>.

Language dc:language.iso

en

Repository record dc:identifier.uri

https://bradscholars.brad.ac.uk/handle/10454/20586

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:bradscholars.brad.ac.uk:10454/20586