Sprinkler irrigation systems and water saving : a case study from south of Iraq

الملخص EN

The irrigation systems modernization is a part of water resources management improvement process which requires a decision support system, the core of such system is an automated procedure for simulating the relevant processes governing the system.

Simulation models have been used in two phases in this research for two specified areas within Maysan and Wasit provinces in Iraq with an area of 480×250 meters for each province, which have been taken as a case study to redesign and replace the existing open channel network with the new sprinkler irrigation system.

The first phase is to find a crop water requirement and irrigation requirements for maize, wheat and barley using CROPWAT 8.0 simulation model, while the second phase includes the irrigation network design using EPANET 2.0 simulation model to perform extended period simulation of hydraulic behavior within pressurized pipe networks, in addition to, the SPAW model which have been used to evaluate soil characteristics.

This study has revealed that the designed sprinkler system capacity is 113m3/hr with 5.04 mm/hr precipitation rate.

The designed sprinkler system can be used to irrigate different crop types including maize, barley and wheat.

Since, the sprinkler system has been designed to meet the maize irrigation water requirements which is the heights requiring water consumer crop the during the summer season, then it has the ability to meet the different winter cereals irrigation requirements.

The designed system can be used in the different regions of Iraq generally and southern regions, especially because it has been designed to suit the soil that characterized by moderate, slow infiltration rates in addition to suit areas of relatively high wind speed which affecting the water distribution uniformity and slow infiltration rates of soils.