This paper looks at water hammer with an emphasis on the number of branches. The mathematics of water hammer are described in a transient condition. This includes the momentum and continuity equations for conduits. A numerical solution for this equation is provided via the method of characteristics. The boundary conditions at a common junction are manipulated in abid to establish the relationship between the number of branches and the magnitude of pressure developed. The relationship developed is found to reflect closely to the maximum output pressure head obtained with respect to the number of branches in a system through a case study.

water hammer, method of characteristics, number of branches, pressure magnitude, momentum equation, equation of continuity, finite differences.