Site suitability analysis of water tank in Athivilai village of India using an analytical hierarchy process and a geographical information system

In uneven terrain regions, the water tank location plays a significant role in pressure distribution and economical pipe sizes in the water distribution system. This study aimed to determine suitable tank locations by the analytical hierarchy process (AHP) and geographical information system (GIS). Factors such as elevation, slope, population, land use land cover, and distance to the road are considered for this analysis. Thematic maps are created in ArcGIS and weights are determined using the AHP method. From the weighted overlay analysis, the result shows that 15.59, 52.36, 31.31, and 0.63% of the areas are suitable, moderately suitable, least suitable, and unsuitable, respectively. Since the area has an elevation range of 27–87 m, it is divided into three zones. An unsuitable location falls only under one zone; therefore, the results are tested in EPANET by locating the tanks in suitable and least suitable locations. Locating the tanks in suitable locations reduces the size of pipes economically and maintains the pressure successfully while locating the tanks in the least suitable locations creates a negative pressure and increases the pipe size. This study helps the designers to obtain an effective design of a water distribution network by evaluating suitable tank locations. HIGHLIGHTS Water tank location plays an effective role in reducing the size of pipes.; Effective design of the WDN can be achieved by locating water tanks in suitable locations.; Integration of AHP and GIS to determine the suitable location of a water tank.