Influence of rainfall and design criteria on performance of rainwater harvesting systems placed in different Brazilian climatological conditions

Abstract

Using rainwater harvesting (RWH) system is influenced by socioeconomic, environmental and technical factors. This work presents as analysis of the influence of the rainfall time series characteristics and design criteria on RWH performance of five Brazilian capitals with different climatic characteristic: Goiânia, João Pessoa, Manaus, Porto Alegre and São Paulo. The analysis combined different rooftop areas, storage volumes and the indoor and outdoor demands. Rainfall temporal discretization and the types of demands were the most important characteristics when assessing RWH reliability. Daily rainfall data were suitable for sizing the RWH, the time series length influenced the sizing of larger storage volumes, and the RWH efficiency was not significantly affected by the first-flush. Toilet flushing and the irrigation demands had the greatest impact on RWH performance. The greatest potentials for the implementation of RWH were observed for Porto Alegre, because of well distributed rainfall throughout the year, and for Manaus owing to higher annual volumes of precipitation. These results highlight relevant aspects that must be observed during the conception and design of RWH, complementing the guidelines provided in the Brazilian technical standards.