2 Drip System

DRIP IRRIGATION SYSTEM
STUDY AND DESIGN

(ToT Training)
July, 2019
Contents
1 Basics on Drip Irrigation System
2 Design of Drip System
3 Installation and Testing
4 Operation and Maintenance
2
1. Basics on Drip Irrigation System
3
What is Drip Irrigation
 It is the method of watering plants

 at the plant location,
 frequently., and
 with a volume of water
approaching the consumptive
use of the crop.
4
The Drip System Concept
The plant is not a fish !!
The soil is not a camel !!
5
Principles of Operation
 Water is delivered by a pipe distribution network under low pressure.
 Water application is by small diameter plastic lateral pipes with devices
called ‘emitters’ or ‘drippers’ connected at selected spacing.
6
Benefits of the Drip System

 Partial soil wetting and good control of water
Partial Wetting and excellent control
Exact amount of water for each &every plant

7

 Agronomical and Agro-technical Advantages:
 Reduces compaction  Weed Control
 Equipment movement  less energy and operating cost
8

Fertigation and chemigation – possibility of applying fertilizer and
chemicals with water
9

 Foliage remains dry – No leaf diseases
 No wind effect
 No evaporation loss
10

 High water use efficiency/Good Water Saving
11

Flood = 40 - 50%
 High Application Efficiency Sprinklers = 75% -80%
Drip = 90 -95%
12

 Good Water Saving: a wide range of emitters available
From 16 to 2 liter/hour
and less
down to 0.2 liter/hour

of micro-drip irrigation
13

 The system can be used on any type of soil:
 Clay soil
 Marginal/infertile soil
 Stony soil
Typical moisture pattern under

different soil conditions
14
 Root zone Aeration: Creates favorable condition for plant growth:
15

Banana
 Can be used on any type of crops:
Broccoli
Mango
Onion
16

 Used almost on any topography (up to 30% slope):
17
Limitations of the Drip System
 Clogging of emitters/drippers:
18
 Salt accumulation if marginal water is used and irrigation is interrupted
19

 Planning and design requires good technical know-how:
20
 Mechanical and rodent damages of pipes

 Lack of influence on microclimate
 Initial investment
 Germination problem
 Visual control is difficult
 Plant anchorage ???
 Crop damage if irrigation is interrupted
21
Types of Drip Irrigation System
Surface drip system

Subsurface drip system
Video 1_Subsurface Drip

22
Components of Drip System
 Pump
 Control Head
 Network of Pipes
 Main pipe
 Submain pipes
 Manifolds
 Lateral pipes
 Emitters/Drippers
 Accessories and fittings
23

Key Note:
 Not all drip systems have all of the components.
 Some systems may be gravity-fed and require
no pumping.
 Simple systems like family drip systems may not
have submains and manifolds.
 Some systems may not have pressure
regulators or other types of safety valves.
 Some systems have multiple levels and others
have only minimal screening.
24
25
uPVC pipe
HDPE pipe
LDPE lateral pipe coil
Pipes used in Drip System 26


 Online Dripper - connection carried out by a teeth connector.
 Inline Dripper - solded to lateral internal wall.
Online Dripper Inline Dripper
Dripper types 27
Connectors and accessories used in drip system

28
Different PE fittings
Different PVC fittings
29
Control Head 30
Sand filter
Cyclone filter
Disc filter
Screen filter
Filter types 31

Selection criteria for filters in Drip System as per the causes of clogging
Type of Filters*
Criterion
Causes of Contamination
for
Clogging of water Cyclone Sand disc Screen
selection
Soil Particle
Low ≥0.2mm A B C
size
High <0.2mm A B C
Suspended
Low ≤50mg/l A B C
solids
High >50mg/l A B
Algae, organic
Low B A C
material
High B A C
Iron and
Low ≤0.5mg/l B A A
Manganese
High >0.5mg/l A B B
* A = the recommended alternative; B = the second choice; C = the third choice
32
Recommended type of filters as per the source of water
Source of water Contamination of water

Municipal Water System Screen Filter, Disk Filter
Shallow well Screen Filter, Disk Filter and/or media filter
River Disk Filter, Screen Filter, and/or Hydrocyclone
Pond or lake Screen Filter, Disk Filter and/or media filter
Spring or artesian well Screen Filter, Hydrocyclone Filter, or Disk Filter
Organic material in water Disk Filter, and Media Filter
Sand in water Hydrocyclone Filter, or Disk Filter
33
Fertilizer pump Fertilizer tank

Venturi pump
Fertigation Equipment
34
Different types of valves 35

Pressure gauges
Water meters
36
Video 2_Components_Principle of operation
End of Part 1
Discussion Questions
 What is the underlined concept of drip irrigation?

 Which components of the drip system can be missing in smallholding
farms?
 Which part of the area in Ethiopia do you suggest for adoption of drip
system? Why? What do you take as a criteria?
 Drip system has been used in Ethiopia in few places but with little
success. What are the major challenges to this?
38
2. Design of Drip Irrigation System
How to Design Drip System

 Objective : uniform application of water
 The design procedure and system layout of drip system is similar to that of
the sprinkler system except that
 the spacing of emitters is much less than that of sprinklers
 Not all areas are irrigated. In design, therefore, the area irrigated is
only accounted for.
 The irrigation interval is advisable to be daily as the application rate is
small.
 Emitter spacing is not a function of wind. 39
How to Design Drip System
 It is a two-stage Process:
 Preliminary Design - Determination of basic design parameters.
 Detail Design – Proper layout and engineering estimation of the
sizes of the distribution system and power requirement.
40
Preliminary Design – Collection of Basic Information
 Topographic map of the area (usually 1:1000 to 1:2500 with 1m or 0.5m

contour-line intervals)
 Climatic Data (temperature, humidity, wind speed, daily sunshine hours
and rainfall to compute ET)
 Water source (location, quantity, quality, period of availability).
 Crop Data (type, effective root zone, CU, the allowable moisture deficit)
 Soil Data (Infiltration rate and Water holding capacity)
41
42
 Percentage wetted area

 Depth of irrigation
 Emitter spacing
 Emitter discharge
 Emitter selection
 Preliminary system discharge
43
Preliminary Design – Basic Data Determination

 Percentage wetted area (Pw) –
 ratio of the width of the wetted area to the spacing between laterals.
 Pw ranges from 33% (tree crops) to 100% (close growing crops).
PW (%) 
 N P *W 
* 100
L
PW = Percentage of wetted area

Np = Number of emitters per tree
W = width of the wetted area
L = Spacing between laterals
44

 Percentage wetted area (Pw) – Alternative formula
 If discharge of emitter is known.
PW (%) 
3.14 *WD  *100
2
4( Sl * Se)
PW = Percentage of wetted area
Sl= Spacing between laterals, m
Se = Spacing between emitters, m

WD = Wetting diameter, m
45

 Depth of Irrigation (d) – Nearly the daily consumptive use of the crop
ETc  PW
ETt 
a
ETt = Gross depth of application, mm/day
ETc = Maximum daily consumption of the crop, mm/day
PW = Percentage of wetted area, %

a
= Application efficiency, % (usually 90%)
 Alternatively, if only percentage of the total area shaded by a mature crop, P is known.
ETc P
ETt  
a 85
46

 Example 1. Determine the gross depth of irrigation for drip system with the following
data:
 Location: Raya
 Water Source: Borehole (ground water)and good quality
 Crop: vegetables
 Maximum daily water requirement: 5.4mm/day
 Soil: Deep clay and moderately drained
 Application Efficiency: 90%
47

 Given:
 ETc =5.4mm/day
 Ea = 90%
 Solution:
 Since the crops are relatively close growing (vegetables), take Pw=100
ETc  PW 5.4 1
d  ETt    6mm / day
a 0.90
48

 Emitter Spacing (Se) – It depends on crop spacing, soil type and infiltration data, and
also incorporating other practical experiences.
 General Recommendation:
 Vegetable crops like onion - 30 to 40cm dripper spacing
 Wider spacing crops - Dripper spacing = Plant spacing.
 The following guide may help to decide:
Soil Type Sand Loam Clay

Emitter Distribution
Infiltration Rate (mm/hr) 19 – 32 6 – 19 4–6
Diameter of coverage (m) 0.30–0.91 0.60–1.20 1.0–1.80
Available Water (mm/m) 0.11 0.16 0.20
49

 Discharge of Emitter (q) –
ETt  ( S r  S l )
q
nc Ta
q= Discharge, lit/hr
Sr = Spacing between crops in a row, m
Sl = Spacing between rows, m
nc = Number of emitters per crop, m
Ta = Time of application, hours
50

 Example 2. Determine discharge of an emitter in a drip system with the following data:
 Irrigation Area: 30ha
 Gross depth of irrigation: 6mm/day
 Spacing between emitters: 0.5m
 Spacing between laterals: 1m
 Maximum working hours per day: 16hrs
 Area irrigated at a time: 6ha
 Time of irrigation application: 4hrs
 Number of emitters per crop: 1
51

 Solution: Click for Detail
 Since the area irrigated per shift is 6ha, the number of shifts per day is worked out to be:
Total area 30
N   5shifts
Area irrigated per shift 6
 Then, the time of irrigation application per shift is:

Max. working hours per day 16
Ta    3.2hrs
N 5
 Now, the emitter discharge can be calculated as:

ETt  ( S r  S l ) 6  (0.5  1)
q   0.94 lit / hr
nc Ta 1  3. 2
 If the commercially available q is 2lit/hr, time of application shall be adjusted accordingly.

52

 Emitter Selection – It requires a combination of objective and subjective judgment.
 It depends on the soil type, required discharge, plant spacing and other planning factors
such as the number of emitters used per crop.
 The discharge of commercially available emitters given by:
q  kh x
q = discharge of selected emitter, lit/hr
h = Operating pressure head of the emitter, m
k = Discharge coefficient, constant
x = Exponent, constant
 Commonly available commercial emitter discharges – 2, 4, 8, 16 lit/hr.
53

 Example 3. From manufacturer’s catalogue, a medium long-path emitter with k = 0.00131 and x
= 0.63 is selected. For emitter discharge of 2 lit/hr, determine the average operating pressure
head of the emitter.
 Solution:
q  kh x
Log q  Log k  xLog h
Log q  Log k Log 0.0056  Log 0.00131
Log h   1
x 0.63
h  101.0  10m
 The average operating pressure, h = 10m.

54
 Preliminary Capacity of Drip System (Q) –

2.78  ETt  A
Q
Ta
Q = System discharge, lit/sec

ETt= Gross depth of irrigation, mm
A = Irrigated area, ha
Ta = Application time, hr
55
 Example 4. Given the following information.

 Gross depth of irrigation, ETt: 6mm/day
 Time of irrigation application: 1.5hrs
a) Determine the discharge required to run the system if the area of irrigation unit is
6ha
b) What is the maximum area that can be irrigated with a system discharge of
108m3/hr?
56
 Solution:
a) From the given data, the system capacity can be calculated as:
2.78  ETt  A 2.78  6  6
Q   66.72 lit / sec
Ta 1 .5
b) Using the same equation for A with Q=108m3/hr or 30 lit/sec
Q  Ta 30  1.5
A   16ha
2.78  ETt 2.78
57
Detail Design – Important Terminologies
 Pressure: a force required to push water through a given cross-section of pipe

[bar/atm.]
 Water head: a head of 10m is equivalent to a pressure of 1 atm.or 1 bar [m]
 Discharge (flow rate): the amount of water that flows through a certain cross-section
per unit time [m3/hr or lit/sec].
 Dripper spacing: the regular spacing between the drippers along the laterals.
 Lateral spacing: the regular spacing between the laterals.
 Nominal pipe diameter: the external diameter of plastic pipes [mm].
58
Detail Design – Design Steps

 The drip system design steps are the following.
 Layout of the system
 Determination of length of pipes
 Determination of capacity of pipe lines and system capacity
 Sizing of pipes
 Determination of pump capacity
59
Detail Design – Layout of Drip System

 Layout of the drip system –
 It is the arrangement of main, submain, manifolds and lateral lines on the field.
 Layout of drip system is important to attain adequate and uniform distribution of water.
 In small landholdings, the layout is made with equal sized blocks of command area (BDU)
that can be managed by cluster of farmers.
 Layout done on a detailed map according to topographic nature of the area, and location of
water sources. But generally,
 Laterals are laid along the general contour line to minimize pressure variation.
 Manifolds are laid perpendicular to the laterals and preferably to downslope.
 Submains are laid along the contour line to supply water for irrigation blocks.
 main pipes are laid across the contour lines starting from the source.
60
Layout for individual farmer
61
Layout for individual farmer
62
Layout for cluster of farmers
63
64
Detail Design – Length of Pipes

 Length of main line, submains, manifolds and laterals
 The length of main line is decided based on the location of the water source from the
location of the first submain, and the spacings between the submains.
 Whereas, the submains, manifolds and laterals are decided based on the length and width
of BDUs.
65
Detail Design – Flow Capacity of Pipes

 Capacity of Main Line, Submain Lines, Manifolds and Laterals
 Inlet Discharge of Lateral: Number of drippers on a lateral x Dripper discharge
ql  nd  q
 Inlet Discharge of Manifold: Number of laterals on a manifold x Lateral discharge

q ma  nl  ql
 Inlet Discharge of Submain: Number of manifolds on a submain x Manifold discharge.

q sm  nma  q ma
 Inlet Discharge of Main pipe: the sum of inlet discharges of submains.

66
Detail Design – Selection of Size of Pipes
 Main Concepts of Pipe Hydraulics

 Water flowing in pipes loses energy - Friction losses.
 Major friction Losses - the friction of water with the pipe walls.
 Minor/ loca losses - the friction of the water with the pipe walls
 Major friction losses for closed/ blind pipes are estimated by

 Hazen- Williams Equation, or
 Darcy-Weisbach Equation (Best recommended to use)
67

 Hazen-Williams Equation:
1.852
hf Q
J  K  D  4.87
L / 100 C 
J = The head loss gradient, m per 100m length
 Darcy-Weisbach Equation: of pipe
L = Length of pipe, m
hf Q = Flow rate in the pipe, m3/hr
J  K 1Q 1.75 D  4.75 D = Internal diameter of pipe, mm
L / 100 K = Conversion constant = 1.131x1011
For small pipe, D≤125mm) C = Friction coeffiecient, which is a function of
pipe material characterstics
K1 = Conversion constant = 8.38x106
hf K2 = Conversion constant = 9.19x106
J  K 2 Q 1.83 D  4.83
L / 100
For large pipe, D>125mm)
68

 But, drip pipes are multi-outlet pipes (with a number of equally spaced outlets).
 As discharge decreases each time at the outlet passes, there is reduction in friction loss.
 Thus, friction losses in drip pipes is done at two stages:
 First, the head loss is calculated by assuming that the pipe is plain (without
considering the outlets) using the above equations.
 Then, it is multiplied by a factor called Christensen correction factor, F for given
number of outlets.
 Or simply, the head loss hf in a pipe with uniform spaced outlets is given by:
L
h f  JF
100
69
Number
F1 F2 F3
of outlets
5 0.469 0.337 0.410
10 0.415 0.350 0.384
12 0.406 0.352 0.381
15 0.398 0.355 0.377
20 0.389 0.357 0.373
25 0.384 0.358 0.371
30 0.381 0.359 0.370
40 0.376 0.360 0.368
50 0.374 0.361 0.367
100 0.369 0.362 0.366
F1 to be used when the distance from the lateral inlet to the first outlet is the regular outlet spacing S
meters
F2 to be used when the first outlet is just by the lateral inlet
F3 to be used when the distance from the lateral inlet to the first outlet is S/2 meters
70

Main Concepts of Pipe Hydraulics
Example 5. Compute the friction head loss in a drip lateral diameter of 16mm (Inner dia.
=12.8mm) and length of 50m using Hazen Williams equation (C=150). Drippers with discharge
of 4lit/hr are spaced at 0.50m and the first dripper is at regular spacing of drippers.
71

Solution:
 Inlet Discharge of Lateral:
L 50
Q  N q  q   4  100  4  400lit / hr or 0.4m 3 / hr
S 0.50
 The friction head loss per 100m length (J) for a blind pipe is:
1.852 1.852
hf Q  4.87  0.4 
J  K  D  1.131  10  
11
  12.8  4.87  7.84m per 100m
L / 100 C   150 
 Then, for N=100 from the table, F = 0.369. Thus, for L=50m lateral, the friction head loss
hf is:
L 50
h f  JF  7.84  0.369   1.45m
100 100
72

i) Sizing of lateral and Manifold pipes:
Design Criteria:
 Emitter flow variation of less than 10% (20% pressure variation) in a subunit (manifold and
lateral pipes together)
 In this case, 55% of the allowable head loss is allocated to the lateral and 45% to the
manifold.
73

Design Steps:
1. Select a given commercially available size of lateral pipe (for LDPE class 4 pipe)
2. Assume the flow in the pipe through the entire length without dripper and determine the
friction head loss.
3. Multiply the friction head loss calculated in step 2 above by the correction factor obtained
corresponding to the number of drippers on the lateral line.
4. To step 3 above, add the elevation difference if the lateral goes uphill or subtract if it goes
downhill.
74

Design Steps:
5. Check whether the head loss computed in step 4 is within the allowable limit of 55% of the
20% of the operating head of drippers. If it is within the limit, the size of the pipe diameter
selected in step 1 above is acceptable. Otherwise, another value for the diameter of the pipe
is selected and the steps 1 through 5 are repeated. When the value of head loss as obtained
in step 4 is far less than the allowable value, then the next smaller size of pipe, from among
the commercially available sizes, is considered. Otherwise, the next larger size is adopted
and repeat the procedure until the condition is satisfied.
75

Design Steps:
6. Similarly, select a given commercially available size of manifold (for HDPE class 4 pipe)
7. Assume the flow in the pipe through the entire length without laterals and determine the
friction head loss.
8. Multiply the friction head loss calculated in step 7 above by the correction factor obtained
corresponding to the number of laterals on the manfiold.
9. To step 8 above, add the elevation difference if the manifold goes uphill or subtract if it
goes downhill
76

Design Steps:
10. Check whether the head loss computed in step 9 is within the remaining allowable head
loss from the 20% operating head of drippers (If all the 55% were consumed by the lateral,
it shall not be greater than 45%). If it is within the limit, the size of the pipe diameter
selected in step 6 above is acceptable. Otherwise, another value for the diameter of the
pipe is selected and the steps 6 through 10 are repeated. When the value of head loss as
obtained in step 9 is far less than the allowable value, then the next smaller size of pipe,
from among the commercially available sizes, is considered. Otherwise, the next larger
size is adopted and repeat the procedure until the condition is satisfied.
77
Detail Design – Commercial Sizes of LDPE pipes
Class
2.5 4 6 8 10
OD
(mm) Wall Wall Wall Wall Wall
ID ID ID ID ID
thickn thickn thickn thickn thickn
(mm) (mm) (mm) (mm) (mm)
ess ess ess ess ess
12 9.8 1.1 9.6 1.2 9.2 1.4 8.6 1.7 8.0 2.0
16 13.2 1.4 12.8 1.6 12.4 1.8 11.6 2.2 10.6 2.7
20 17.0 1.5 16.6 1.7 15.4 2.3 14.4 2.8 13.2 3.4
25 21.8 1.6 21.2 1.9 19.4 2.8 18.0 3.5 16.6 4.2
32 28.8 1.6 27.2 2.4 24.8 3.6 23.2 4.4 21.2 5.4
Note: OD=Outer Diameter; ID=Inner Diameter
78
Detail Design – Commercial Sizes of HDPE Submain pipes

Class
OD 2.5 4 6 8 10
(mm) Wall
ID Wall ID Wall ID thicknes ID Wall ID Wall
(mm) thickness (mm) thickness (mm) s (mm) thickness (mm) thickness
16 12.8 1.6
20 16.8 1.6 16.2 1.9
25 21.8 1.6 21.1 2.0 20.4 2.3
32 28.8 1.6 28.2 1.9 27.2 2.4 26.2 2.9
40 36.8 1.6 35.2 2.4 34.0 3.0 32.6 3.7
50 46.8 1.6 46.0 2.0 44.0 3.0 42.6 3.7 40.8 4.6
63 59.8 1.6 58.2 2.4 55.4 3.8 53.6 4.7 51.4 5.8
75 71.2 1.9 69.2 2.9 66.0 4.5 64.0 5.5 61.4 6.8
90 85.6 2.2 83.0 3.5 79.2 5.4 76.8 6.6 73.6 8.2
110 104.6 2.7 101.6 4.2 96.8 6.6 93.8 8.1 90.0 10.0
125 118.8 3.1 115.4 4.8 110.2 7.4 106.6 9.2 102.2 11.4
140 133.0 3.5 129.2 5.4 123.4 8.3 119.4 10.3 114.6 12.7
160 152.0 4.0 147.6 6.2 141.0 9.5 136.4 11.8 130.8 14.6
180 171.2 4.4 166.2 6.9 158.6 10.7 153.4 13.3 147.2 16.4 79
Detail Design – Commercial Sizes of PVC pipes
Class
OD 4 6 8 10
(mm) ID Wall ID Wall ID Wall ID Wall
(mm) thickness (mm) thickness (mm) thickness (mm) thickness
63 59.4 1.8 59.0 2.0 58.2 2.4 57.0 3.0
75 71.4 1.8 70.4 2.3 69.2 2.9 67.8 3.6
90 86.4 1.8 84.4 2.8 83.0 3.5 81.4 4.3
110 105.6 2.2 103.2 3.4 101.6 4.2 99.4 5.3
140 134.4 2.8 131.4 4.3 129.2 5.4 126.6 6.7
160 153.6 3.2 150.2 4.9 147.6 6.2 144.6 7.7
225 216.2 4.4 211.2 6.9 207.8 8.6 203.4 10.8
280 269.0 5.5 262.8 8.6 258.6 10.7 253.2 13.4
315 302.6 6.2 295.6 9.7 290.8 12.1 285.0 15.0
80

 The pressure head at inlet of lateral:
H L  H o  0.75h fL  0.5 H z L
 The pressure head at manifold inlet :
H ma  H L  0.75h fma  0.5 H z ma
HL, Hma = Required pressure head at inlet of lateral and manifold, respectively (m)
Ho = Operating pressure head of emitter, m
hfL, hfma = Frictional head loss in the lateral line and manifold, respectively (m)
HzL, Hzma= Elevation head difference along the lateral and manifold, respectively (use + for upslope
and – for down slope), (m) 81

Example 6. LDPE lateral pipes are laid on a level ground and are connected to HDPE manifold at a
spacing of 1m. Each lateral has a discharge of 0.2m3/hr and a length of 50m. It has drippers at
spacing of 0.5m which has an operating pressure of 10m. What are the suitable sizes of the laterals
and the manifold?
Solution:
 The maximum allowable head loss = (20%)*10m = 0.20*10m = 2m
 55% of this loss (=1.10m) in the lateral and the rest 45% (=0.90m) is desired to be in the manifold.
Lateral Sizing:
 The number of drippers on the lateral is:
L 50
N   100
S 0.50
82

Solution:
 First, select the smallest commercially available diameter, i.e class 4 and 12mm (ID= 9.4mm) and
compute hf.
 Then, the head loss hf for L=50m and F=0.369 is:
hf
 K 1Q 1.75 D  4.75  8.38  10 6  0.2   9.4  4.75  11 .96m per 100m
1.75
J
L / 100
L 50
h f  JF  11.96  0.374   2.24m
100 100
 The head loss is greater than the allowable pressure head.
83
Solution:
 Thus, increase the diameter to the next available size, i.e 16mm (ID=12.8mm).
 Now hf = 0.51m
 This value is well below the allowable head loss. Thus, 16mm diameter of lateral is
selected as suitable.
 And, the remaining allowable head loss in the manifold is 1.49m (=2-0.51).
 Now, the inlet pressure head of each lateral is:
H L  H o  0.75h fL  0.5 H z L  10  0.75  0.51m  0  10.38m
84

Manifold Sizing:
L 100
N   100
 The number of laterals on the manifold is: S 1
 For N=100, the correction factor F from table is 0.369
 Discharge of manifold, Q  N  0.2  100  0.2  20m 3 / hr
 First, select the smallest commercially available diameter, i.e 50mm (ID= 45.6mm) and compute
hf.
 The head loss hf for L=100m and F=0.369 is 7.71m
 The head loss is well above the allowable head, 50mm is not suited.
 Thus, the next larger size is 63mm (ID=57.6mm) and compute hf
 The head loss hf is 2.54m
 The head loss is still above the allowable head
85

Manifold Sizing:
 Thus, the next larger size is 75mm (ID=68.6mm) and compute hf
 The head loss hf is 1.11m
 Now the head loss is below the allowable head and thus, manifold size of 75mm is
selected.
 Now, the inlet pressure head of the manifold is:
H ma  H L  0.75h fma  0.5 H z ma  10.38  0.75  1.11m  0  11 .21m
86

ii) Sizing of submain and main pipes:
Design Criteria:
 Based on velocity of flow rather than the friction loss.
 With consideration of economic size. That is, the friction loss shall not be too high to
increase the energy costs.
 The submain size is determined so that the flow in the pipe should not exceed 1.5-2m/sec.
 The velocity of flow in the main pipe is recommended to be within the range of
1.5-2.5m/sec.
 The Submain and main line can be designed to have different size of pipes.
87

 For allowable velocity, the diameter of submain/ main line is determined by:
D 2 q sm
q sm  V D
4 V
qs = discharge of submain line, m3/s
V= Allowable velocity of flow (1.5-2m/s), m/s

D= Diameter of submain line, m
88

Design Steps:
1. Select a given commercially available size for a given length of pipe (for PVC or HDPE
pipe class 6)
2. From discharge capacity of the pipe calculate the velocity using the above equation.
3. Check whether the velocity is within the allowable limit.
 If it is within the limit, the size of the pipe diameter selected in step 1 above is
acceptable.
 When the velocity as obtained in step 3 is far less than the allowable value, then the
next smaller size of pipe, from among the commercially available sizes, is
considered. Otherwise, the next larger size is adopted and repeat the procedure
89

Design Steps:
4. Calculate the frictional head loss in the pipe using friction loss equation.
5. If the frictional head loss is judged to be too high, the size selected in step 3 will be
changed to the next larger size
6. Compute the velocity for the new size of pipe. If the velocity is found too low from the
allowable lowest range, reject the size. Otherwise, accept and calculate the new friction
head loss.
90

 Then, the pressure head at inlet of submain:
H sm  H ma   h fsm  H z sm  H rsm
Hsm = inlet pressure of the submain, m
Hma = inlet pressure of the manifold, m
∑hfsm = total of the friction head loss in each segment of the submain pipe, m
Hzsm = elevation difference between the two ends of the submain (+ for upslope
and – for downslope.
Hrsm = Height of riser pipe which connects submain with manifold, m
91

 Similarly, the pressure head at inlet of main pipe is:
H m  H sm   h fm  H z m
Hm = inlet pressure of the main line, m
Hsm = inlet pressure of the submain, m
∑hfm = total of the friction head loss in each segment of the main pipe, m
Hzm = elevation difference between the two ends of the main (+ for upslope and – for
downslope.
92

Example 7. Two manifolds of 100m length are connected to a PVC submain at 102m apart.
Each manifold has an inlet discharge of 20m3/hr and inlet pressure head of 11.21m. The
submain is buried at 0.60m below the ground and connected with the manifold by a riser
pipe. What is the suitable size of the submain if the two manifolds are operating
simultaneously? What is the pressure head required at the inlet of the submain?
93

Solution:
Submain sizing:
 As per the criteria, the velocity of flow in the pipe should be b/n 1.5 to 2m/s.
 Thus, starting from the end of the pipe, for the 102m length, Q= 20m3/hr.
 If class 6 PVC pipe of 75mm (ID=70.4mm) is selected, the cross-sectional area of the pipe:
d 2   (0.0704) 2
A   0.0038m 2
4 4
Q (20 / 3600)
 Now, the velocity is: V    1.46m / sec
A 0.0038
 Since the velocity is within the desired limit, the size may be taken as suitable for
this segment of the pipe.
94

Solution:
Submain sizing:
 The next segment of the submain carries the discharge required by both the manifolds. Thus, its
discharge is 40m3/hr. The length of this part of the submain is 100m.
 Now, select class 6 PVC pipe of 90mm (ID=84.4mm). Thus, A = 0.0056m2 , V=
1.98m/sec
 Now, the velocity is within the allowable range. Thus, 90mm is a suitable size for the
second segment.
 To find the inlet pressure of the submain, the head losses in the two segments of the submain
have to be worked out. Thus, for 102m segment, Q = 20m3/hr and D=70.4mm.
L 102
hf  J  2.66   2.71m
100 100 95

Solution:
Submain sizing:
 Similarly, for 100m segment with Q = 40m3/hr and D=84.4mm, hf = 3.77m
 Thus, the total friction head loss in the submain is 2.71+3.77 = 6.48m
 Thus, the inlet pressure head of the submain considering the riser height which connects the
submain with the manifolds, and assuming that it is laid on level ground is:
H sm  H ma   h fsm  H z sm  H rsm  11 .21  6.48  0.0  0.60m  18.29m
96

Example 7. Two submains of each carrying a discharge of 40m3/hr and inlet pressure of
18.29m are connected to a main line at 205m apart. The water source from the inlet point
of the first submain is 200m. What are the suitable size and inlet pressure head of the main
line if the two submains work simultaneously?
97

Solution:
Main pipe sizing:
 As per the criteria, the velocity of flow in the pipe should be b/n 1.5 to 2.5m/s.
 Thus, starting from the end of the pipe, for the 205m length, the discharge of the pipe is 40m3/hr.
 If class 6 PVC pipe of 90mm (ID=84.4mm) is selected, A = 0.0056m2 , V = 1.98m/sec
 The velocity is within the allowable range. Thus, 90mm is a suitable size.
 For the next 200m length, the discharge of the pipe is 80m3/hr.
 If class 6 PVC pipe of 110mm (ID=103.2mm) is selected, A = 0.0084m2, V = 2.66m/sec
 This velocity is greater than the allowable range.
 Now select the next bigger size, 140mm (ID=131.4). Thus, V = 1.64m/sec
 The velocity is within the allowable range. Thus, 140mm is a suitable size.
98
Solution:
Main pipe sizing:
 To find the inlet pressure of the main line, the head losses in the two segments of the submain
have to be worked out.
 For the first 205m segment with Q = 40m3/hr and D=84.4mm, hf = 7.73m.
 For the next 200m segment with Q = 80m3/hr and D=131.4mm, hf = 3.30m.
 Thus, the total friction head loss in the main is 7.73+3.3 = 11.03m
 Thus, the inlet pressure head of the main assuming that it is laid on level ground is:
H m  H sm   h fm  H z m  18.29  11 .03  0.0  29.32m
99
Detail Design – Determination of Pump Capacity

 Drip system requires energy to move water through the pipe distribution network.
 To create this energy, a pump is needed unless the system works by gravity
 If the source of water is surface water or shallow well, a centrifugal pump is used.
 The capacity of the pump that would be enough to deliver the required discharge of water:
Q H
HP 
75  E P  E m
HP = the required pump capacity, hp

Q = discharge required for the system, lit/s
H = Total pumping head = Hm+Hs+hfs+hl+hc, in which Hma is inlet pressure of main line; Hs
is total static head; hfs is friction head loss in suction pipe; hl is friction head loss in pipe
fittings; and hc is local head losses in control head.
Ep = efficiency of the pump, usually 75%
Em = efficiency of the motor driving the pump, usually 80%
100
101

Example 8. Determine the pump capacity for drip system with the following information.
• The water source: Ground water well
• Discharge, Q : 80m3/hror 22.22 lit/sec
• Total Static Head, Hs: 10m
• Inlet pressure of main pipe, Hma: 29.32m
• Head loss in control unit, hc: 5m
• Take 2% of the operating pressure head of emitter for local losses in fittings
Solution:
From the given data, the pumping head is calculated as:
H  H m  H s  hc  hl  29.32  10  5  0.02  10  44.52m
Now, the pump capacity :

Q H 22.22  44.52
HP    26.92hp, say 27 hp
75  E P  E m 75  0.70  0.70
102
Click for Detail
End of Part 2
3. Installation and Testing of Drip System
Video 3_Installation
 The purpose of a drip system is to distribute water uniformly.
 Right after installation and successful testing of pipes and fittings, the uniformity of the
emitter discharges in the system shall be tested.
 Mostly non-uniformity in drip irrigation systems is caused by:

1. emitter plugging, wear, and manufacturing variations; and,
2. non-uniform pressure distribution in pipes and hoses.
 In practice, the degree of uniformity of emitters discharges can be computed from field
observations of the depths of water collected in open cans placed at sampled emitters
in a subunit.
 The operating time used for testing is for at least 30minutes.
104
105
 The common index for indication of application uniformity in drip irrigation is distribution
uniformity, DU which is given by:
Q25%
DU   100
Qn
DU = coefficient of uniformity
Q25% = the average flow rate of 25% of the emitters with the lowest
flow rate
Qn = the average flow rate of all the sampled emitters.
 To calculate DU, the flow rate of a representative sample (40 to 100 emitters in the
subunit) is measured.
 DU values above 90% is a very good uniformity; 75 to 90% is good uniformity and
below 75% is unacceptable.
106
4. Operation & Maintenance of Drip System
 Appropriate operation and maintenance of drip system components is as important as

proper design.
 The success or failure of any properly designed and installed system are determined by
the way both the irrigation system as a whole and its component parts are operated and
maintained.
 Technical guidelines and manual on the requirements of operation and maintenance of

equipment and systems will be provided by the manufacturers and/or equipment
suppliers.
107
 The general instruction for the farmers, and system operators with regard to the
operation and maintenance (O&M)of a drip irrigation system are:
Operation:
 When and How Long to Irrigate
 Strictly follow the main elements of irrigation programming, such as discharge,
operating hours and irrigation frequency for equity of water allocation as well as to
achieve high water use efficiency.
 Starting and Stopping the System

 Starting and shutting down the system needs to be done very carefully in order to
prevent surges and water hammer and to avoid air pockets in the pipelines.
 The opening and closing of the valves at the head of the system, the main and
sub-main pipelines, should always be done slowly.
 Farmers shall strictly follow the pumping operation schedules.
 To operate the pump, the supplier’s instructions should be followed.
108
Click for further Reading
Problem Solution
Valve does not open Check rubber o-rings and replace as needed. Re-tighten connections by
or close hand only.
Uneven or no flow Check all filters and clean as needed.
at drippers; clogged Check for adequate water flow and water pressure
drippers Clean or replace pressure regulator if needed. Clean/replace dripper
Drippers or fittings Check water pressure past pressure regulator
popping out of Check for and remove any clogs in drippers or fittings. Remove dripper
tubing if necessary, then reinstall dripper into a cleanly punched hole
Leaks along tubing; Cut out leaking or damaged section and reattach sections of tubing with
damaged tubing a coupler.
Fitting separating Push tubing further into or onto compression or barbed fitting. Ensure
from tubing; fittings other types of fittings are properly attached and secured. Ensure
do not fit tubing diameter of tubing size is compatible with fitting size.
Plants appear Check water flow at drippers near plants. Clean, repair or replace all
stressed associated components, including tubing and connectors as needed.
Adjust dripper flow rates and add more drippers if needed. Adjust
watering schedule as needed.
109
Video 4_ A to Z
THANK YOU
My contact:
e-mail: [email protected]
Mobile#: 0966932919
Detail Design – Layout of Drip System

 Layout of the drip system for smallholders –
 Layout the arrangement of the field and the pipe lines on the map depending upon the
topography and the location of water source (See the layout on the map).
 The smallest irrigation unit of the system which is the manageable size of pressurized
irrigation system by each farmer is fixed to be 0.5ha (100m x 50m)
 BDU= 2ha. (with a sub unit of 0.5 ha, four operations selected for the system application.
i.e Four farmers are clustered in a BDU but they can manage their own plots.
 The direction of the laterals are laid along the contour and the direction of the manifolds
are orthogonal to the laterals and are laid downslope to minimize pressure variation.
 Five submains, each supplying to 3BDUS (3X4 subunits) are connected to the main line.
This is to suit the irrigation supply to a subunit per shift by each submain.
111
112
Detail Design – Sizing of pipe lines

 Each lateral discharge = Number of dripper per lateral* emitter discharge
= (Length of lateral/spacing between emitters)* dripper discharge
= (50/0.5)*2=0.2m3/hr
 Each manifold discharge = Number of laterals*each lateral discharge
= (Length of manifold/spacing between laterals)*lateral discharge
=(100/1)*2=20m3/hr.
 If one subunit is irrigated by each submain, the total area irrigated at a time is: 5*0.5ha=2.5ha
 Thus the number of shifts required to irrigate 30ha = 30/2.5= 12shifts.
 Adjusted time of irrigation= 1.5hrs*12shifts = 18hrs.
 Therefore, 20m3/hr discharge of the manifold is also the discharge carried by each submain.
113

Selection of Lateral size:
 As per the criteria for design, pressure variations within a subunit (100m x 50m),
 (20%)*10m = 2m (a maximum of 55% of this variation between emitters in a lateral and
the rest 45% in the lateral in a manifold).
 If the smallest commercially available diameter chosen, i.e 12mm (ID= 9.4mm),
 the head loss hf for L=50m and F=0.369 is 2.21m (greater than 55%, the size not Ok!)
 Increase the diameter to the next available size, i.e 16mm (ID=12.8mm). Now, hf = 0.51m.
 The lateral is going 0.5m upslope. Adding this value to head loss, it becomes 1.01m. This value
is below the allowable head loss. Thus, 16mm diameter of lateral is selected as suitable.
 Now, the inlet pressure head of each lateral is:
H L  H o  0.75h fL  0.5 H z L  10  0.75  0.51m  0.5  0.5  10.63m
114

Selection of Manifold size:
 There are two manifolds used in the layout - short (100m) and long (200m)
 The number of laterals on the manifold is 100 and for N=100, F from table 1.5 is 0.369
Discharge of manifold, Q  N  0.2  100  0.2  20m / hr
3

 For shorter manifold (L= 100m),
 If 50mm (ID= 45.6mm) HDPE/4 is selected, hf is 7.71m
 The shorter manifold has an average elevation advantage of 2.5m. Therefore, the net head
loss is 7.71m-2.5m = 5.21m.
 The net head loss is much greater than the allowable head loss. Thus, try with the next
bigger size,
 The next bigger size is 63mm (ID= 57.6mm) and now hf is 2.54m.
115

 Now, the net head loss is: 2.54m-2.5m = 0.04m.
 Now, the head loss is less than the remaining allowable head (i.e = 2-1.01= 0.99m). Thus,
a manifold size of 63mm is selected for shorter manifold.
 For longer manifold, L=200m
 If the size is 63mm, hf in the first 100m blind pipe is 6.89m and the next 100m is 2.54m.
Thus, the total friction loss is 9.43. Since the manifold has an elevation (downslope)
advantage of 4m, which results in the net head loss of 5.43. It is well above the allowable
head.
 The next bigger size is 75mm (ID= 68.6mm) and total hf =3+1.11= 4.11m and the net head
loss is 0.11m. This is below the allowable head loss in the manifold. Therefore, 75mm is
selected for longer manifold. 116

 Now, the inlet pressure head of the shorter manifold is:
H ma  H L  0.75h fma  0.5 H z ma  10.63  0.75  2.54m  0.50  2.5  11 .29m
 Now, the inlet pressure head of the longer manifold is:
H ma  H L  0.75h fma  0.5 H z ma  10.63  0.75  (4.11)  0.50  4  11 .71m
 Thus, the inlet pressure is governed by the longer manifold. Flow or pressure regulation is
required for shorter manifold, if need be.
117

Selection of Submain size:
 The criteria is the flow in the pipe not to exceed 1.5-2m/sec.
 The five submains is carrying the same discharge 20m3/hr,
 If class 6 PVC pipe of 75mm (ID=70.4mm) is selected, V=1.43m/sec
 This velocity is a bit smaller than the recommended lower range but it is better to keep this size
to avoid high head loss by using smaller size. Thus, 75mm is selected for size of submain.
118

 The inet pressure of each submain at block 3 and 5:
 To find the inlet pressure of the submain, the head losses in the submain for the farthest
manifold connection shall be worked out.. For Q = 20m3/hr and D=70.4mm and
L = 263m (250m+6m access road along mainline+2x2m access road b/n BDU +
3x1m
access road b/n subunits),
hf = 6.98m
 Since the submain is to be installed at 0.60m below the ground, a riser pipe is required to
connect the submain with the manifold. Thus, the inlet pressure head of the submain
 H ma   hthis
H sm considering head is:
fsm  H zs m  Length of riser pipe  11 .71  6.98  1.5m  0.6m  20.79m
119

 The inet pressure of submain at block 1:
 For Q = 20m3/hr and D=70.4mm and L = L=384m (263+121), hf = 10.20m
H sm  H ma   h fsm  H zs m  Length of riser pipe  11 .71  10.20  4.5m  0.6m  27.01m
120

Sizing of Main pipe:
 For the first 206m, Q= 2*20 = 40m3/hr:
 If class 6 PVC pipe of 90mm (ID=84.4mm) is selected, V=1.99m/s
 Since the velocity is within the recommended limit, 90mm is selected as suitable.
 Friction head loss in this segment (Q=40m3/hr, D=84.4 and L=206m) is: 7.77m
 Inlet pressure at this pipe (which is also the inlet pressure at submains for block 2 and 4)
is:
H m1  H sm   h fm  H z m  20.79  7.77  4.5m  24.06m
 This pressure is the governing pressure. Thus, it is the inlet pressure of submains
supplying for block 2 and 4.
121

 For the next segment (L=85m), Q= 80m3/hr,
 Since the velocity is a bit above the recommended limit, it may be taken as a suitable size.
 Friction head loss in this segment is 4.15m
 Inlet pressure at this pipe is:
H m 2  H m1   h fm  H z m  24.06  4.15  1.5m  26.71m
 This segment has common inlet point with the submain supplying to block1.
 As the inlet pressure of this segment is a bit less than but practically the same as the inlet
pressure at inlet of submain to block1 (=27.01m), no adjustment on the size of the pipes on
the segment is needed. Thus, the head at inlet of submain 1 will be taken as the governing
pressure for both the pipes. 122

 For the last segment (L=83m), Q= 100m3/hr:
 Since the velocity is now within the recommended limit,140mm is a suitable size for this
segment.
 Friction head loss in this segment is: 2.04m
 Inlet pressure at this pipe is:
H m 3  H m 2   h fm  H z m  27.01  2.04  0m  29.05m
 Note: the last segment is laid on zero slope.
123

Pump capcity:
 If the head loss in the control head is assumed to be 5m, the suction head of the pump is 20m,
and the local losses in fittings to be 2% of the operating pressure head of the emitters, the
opertating pressure head of the pump is:
H  H m 3  H su  hc  hl  29.01  20  5  0.02 *10  54.21m
QH 27.78  54.21
HP    33.5hp
75 m p 75 * 0.75 * 0.8
124
Detail Design – Design Calculator in Excel Go back
125
THANK YOU

2 Drip System

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

2 Drip System

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

2 Drip System

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

DRIP IRRIGATION SYSTEM

STUDY AND DESIGN

2 Design of Drip System

3 Installation and Testing

4 Operation and Maintenance

What is Drip Irrigation

 It is the method of watering plants

The Drip System Concept

The plant is not a fish !!

The soil is not a camel !!

Benefits of the Drip System

Partial Wetting and excellent control

Exact amount of water for each &every plant

Benefits of the Drip System

Benefits of the Drip System

Benefits of the Drip System

Benefits of the Drip System

Benefits of the Drip System

Benefits of the Drip System

down to 0.2 liter/hour

Benefits of the Drip System

Typical moisture pattern under

Benefits of the Drip System

 Root zone Aeration: Creates favorable condition for plant growth:

Benefits of the Drip System

Benefits of the Drip System

Limitations of the Drip System

Limitations of the Drip System

 Salt accumulation if marginal water is used and irrigation is interrupted

Limitations of the Drip System

Limitations of the Drip System

 Mechanical and rodent damages of pipes

Types of Drip Irrigation System

Surface drip system

Video 1_Subsurface Drip

Components of Drip System

Components of Drip System

Components of Drip System

Components of Drip System

LDPE lateral pipe coil

Pipes used in Drip System 26

Components of Drip System

Online Dripper Inline Dripper

Components of Drip System

Connectors and accessories used in drip system

Components of Drip System

Different PVC fittings

Components of Drip System

Components of Drip System

Components of Drip System

Components of Drip System

Recommended type of filters as per the source of water

Source of water Contamination of water

Components of Drip System

Fertilizer pump Fertilizer tank

Components of Drip System

Different types of valves 35

Components of Drip System

 What is the underlined concept of drip irrigation?