CHAPTER FOUR

WATER APPLICATION TECHNIQUES

1
4.1 Land levelling and field layout

2
 4.1 Land levelling and field layout

Land levelling is reshaping of the field surface to a planned grade.

Land levelling operations may be grouped into three phases:
Rough grading (mounds, dunes and rings, and filling of pits,
depressions and gullies)
Land levelling ( land grading = land forming = land shaping)
Land smoothing (levelling operations leaves irregular surfaces
due to dumping the loads)
3
 Criteria for land levelling

Land levelling is influenced by

The characteristics of the soil profile,
Prevailing land slope,
Rainfall characteristics,
Cropping pattern,
Methods of irrigation,
Other specific features of the site including the preference of the
farmer 4
 Cont.

Land clearing
¢ Remove heavy vegetative growth from the land.
≠Trees, bushes, vegetation, trash and boulders from the area specified
for land grading.
Layout of fields and irrigation and drainage systems
The land development program must be planned (filed boundaries,
irrigation water supply system, drains and the farm roads )
Levelling design 5
 4.2 Land Grading Survey and Design
With the field boundaries considered and established, the next step is to
survey the area for land levelling design.
The general practice is to establish

a grid system over the field and

set stakes at the grid points.
Spacing =25m (usually) in each direction

Figure 4.1: grid pattern used for 6

Staking a field which is to be graded

 Cont.

Conventions
The row lines are lettered and the column lines are numbered.
In locating the grid points, the usual practice is to establish two or
more base lines in each direction and then to sight in the rest of the
stakes.
Line b might first be established by measurements at a distance of
11/2 times the grid interval (37.5m), parallel to the south boundary of
the field
7
 Cont.

Levelling First read at Map or

Compute
Reduced level of
grid points
Pinpointing of

Using dumpy BM contour (like

the figure
Stake

and a level
rod above)
At known or
assumed
elev.

8
 Cont.

The contour lines clearly indicate:

 The direction and degree of slope,
 Ridges,
 Depressions and
 Other topographical features

9
 Land levelling design methods

The basic methods of land levelling design are:

1. Plane method
2. Profile method This chapter
discusses
3. Plan-inspection method and Plane Method
4. Contour adjustment method

10
 Plane Method
The plane method is the most commonly used method of land
levelling design.
The procedure for land levelling design
a. Determining the centroid of the filed
b. Determining the average elevation of the field
c. Compute the slope of the plane of best fit
d. Compute the formation levels, cuts and fills
e. Determine the cut-fill ratio

11
 A. Determining the centroid of the filed
 The centroid of a rectangular field is located at the point of intersection of its
diagonals
 The centroid of a triangular field is located at the intersection of the lines drawn from
its corners to the mid-points of the opposite sides.
 To determine the centroids of irregular field, the area is divided into rectangles and
right-angled triangles. The centroid is located by computing moments about two
reference lines at right angles to each other.
 The distance of the centroid of the field from any line of reference is equal to the sum
of the products obtained by multiplying the area of each part times the distance from
the line of reference to its centroid, divided by the area of the entire field.
 By computing the distance to the centroid from two lines of reference perpendicular
12

to each other, the exact point of the centroid can be determined.

 Cont.
Line Distance No Stakes Product
A 12.5 9 112.5
B 37.5 9 337.5
C 62.5 9 562.5
D 87.5 9 787.5
E 112.5 9 1012.5
F 137.5 7 962.5
G 162.5 6 975.0
Total 58 4750.0

distance of the centroid from the reference line

en obtained by dividing the sum of the products
he total number of stakes
13
4750
Dis tan ce of centroid from the reference line   81.896 m
58
 Cont.

Another line of reference may be assumed at 12.5m to the left of the

line 1 and the location of the centroid in the east-west direction is
computed as 105.603 m from the reference line in the same way.
With the two dimensions, the centroid point is located at (105.603,
81.896).
It may be noted that the centroid point on the x-axis is

105.603 – 87.503 = 18.103 m from point D4.

On the y-axis it is 81.896 – 62.500 = 19.396m from point C5 14
 B. Determining the average elevation of the
field
This is obtained by adding the elevations of all grid points in the field and
dividing the sum by the number of points.
The total of the 58 elevations on the grid corners is 98.78m
98.78
The average elevation  1.703 m
58

Any plane passing through the centroid at this elevation will produce equal
volumes of cut and fill

15
 Cont.
Example 4.1: The topographic survey of a field gave the following elevations (m)
at grid points
1 2 3 4 5
A 10.65 10.43 10.07 9.68 9.67
B 10.47 10.42 9.95 9.84 9.75
C 10.32 10.08 9.92 9.65 9.48
D 9.89 9.48 9.67 9.41 9.13

 Calculate the elevation of the centroid of the field. Stakes are to guide the leveling
of this field into a playground.
 Calculate the cut and fill at the grid points. 16

 Compare the quantities of earthwork in cutting and filling

 Cont.

Solutions:
 Total number of stations = 4 * 5 = 20 and Total elevations of 20 stations = 197.96
sum of the elevations of the grid po int s 197.96
Elevation of centroid   9.898 m
Number of grid po int s 20
 Since the field is to be used as a playground, it is to be leveled without any slope in
any direction.
 The cuts and fills at various grid points are obtained by subtracting the elevation of
the corresponding grid point from the elevation of the centroid.
 Thus, the cut/fill at grid point A1 is 9.898 – 10.65 = -0.752m.
 The –sign indicates the cut, while +sign indicates fill.
17
 Cont.

The cuts and fills (in m) at the different grid points are computed which are tabulated
below:
1 2 3 4 5
A -0.752 -0.532 -0.172 +0.218 +0.228
B -0.572 -0.522 -0.052 +0.058 +0.148
C -0.422 -0.182 -0.022 +0.248 +0.418
D +0.008 +0.418 +0.228 +0.488 +0.768
Check:
 cut   fill  3.228 m

18
 Cont.
Example 4.2:
A topographic survey of a rectangular field was done for planning a
land leveling program. Grid points were set at intervals of 25m. The
elevation of the points is given below:
Elevation (m)
Line 1 Line 2 Line 3 Line 4 Line 5
A 8.26 8.75 9.30 9.52 10.44
B 7.94 8.12 8.90 8.80 9.62
C 7.12 7.86 8.35 8.60 8.42 19

D 6.74 7.28 7.94 8.16 7.80

 Cont.

Determine the elevation of the centroid of the field

The field is to have a downfield slope of 0.2%.
 Determine the formation levels at the grid points and also the
amount of cut or fill at each grid point.

20
 Cont.
Solution
 Total number of stations = 20,
 Sum of the elevations of the 20 stations = 167.92m
sum of the elevations of the grid po int s 167.92
Elevation of centroid   8.396 m
Number of grid po int s 20
 The formation levels at the grid points are computed at each grid point with
reference to the elevation of the centroid.
For example,
 Station A1 is 50m from the north-south line passing through the centroid.
 At 0.2% slope, the elevation of this point should be 0.1m below the centroid, or
8.296m.

` ═8.396-0.1= 8.296m Do the same for B2,C3, D4 and D5. 21

 Similarly, the formation level at each grid point is computed. The results are
 Cont.
1 2 3 4 5
A 8.2968.3468.3968.4468.496
B 8.2968.3468.3968.4468.496
C 8.2968.3468.3968.4468.496
D 8.2968.3468.3968.4468.496
 The cut/fill is computed by subtracting the original elevation of the point from the
formation level at the grid point.
 Thus, at station A1, the cut/fill is 8.296 – 8.260 = +0.036m. The results are
tabulated below:
1 2 3 4 5
A +0.036 -0.404 +0.096 -1.074 -1.944
B +0.356 +0.226 -0.504 -0.354 -1.124
C +1.176 +0.486 +0.046 -0.154 +0.076 22

 cut  D fill+1.556
 5.58 m+0.066 +0.456 +0.286 +0.696
 C. Compute the Slope of the Plane of
Best Fit
 The slope any line in the x or y direction on the plane which fits the natural ground
surface, can be determined by the least square’s method.
 The plane equation can be written as:

E X , Y AX  BY  C
Where: E = elevation of the X, Y coordinate,
A, B = regression coefficients,
C = elevation of the origin or reference point from the calculations of field topography
using the above eq.
 The slope of the best fit line through the average x-direction elevation (e j) is A and for
23
the best fit slope in the y-direction, the slope, B, are determined as follows
 Cont.

N  N  N 
-  j j  
X E   X j  
  E 
j  / N
  j 1   j 1  
A  2
N  N 
X    X j  / N
2
j
j 1  j 1 

N
  N  N 
 Y E
i i    i  i  / N
 Y   E
B
i 1   i 1   i 1  
2
N
 N 
 Yi    Yi  / N
2

i 1  i 1 

 Finally, the average field elevation, EF, can be found by summing either ei or ej and
dividing by the appropriate number of grid rows.
 This elevation corresponds to the elevation of the field centroid (X, Y). 24
 Cont.

C  E F  AX  BY
 The differences are the necessary cuts and or fills.
 The slope of the plane can be determined on both x and y axes, and the elevation
of any point calculated from the elevation of the centroid.

25
 Cont.

EXAMPLE 4.3:
 Determine the plane of best fit for the field shown in fig.4. 4.
 Note that each grid points at the middle figure

shows the original ground elevation, the top figure

the cut/fill and the bottom figure the formation
level.

Figure 4.4: determination of formation levels 26

cuts and fills for land levelling design

 Solution
Assuming the southern boundary of the field as the x-axis, the slope of the
best fit plane in the y-direction is determined by applying equation 4.3

LINE DISTANCE FROM BORDER, NO. OF STATIONS

D (M)
A 12.50 9
B 37.50 9
C 62.50 9
D 87.50 9
E 112.50 9
F 137.50 7 27

G 162.50 6
 Cont.
Values of E, the elevation of each station is indicated on fig. 4.4. Each
factor in equation (4.3) is computed as follows:
Y A Ei 12.5 2.22  2.02 1.93 1.80 1.73 1.59 1.47 1.33 1.28 192.125

 Y E  37.5 2.26  2.06 1.96 1.81 1.71 1.56 1.44 1.32 1.19 574.125
B i

 Y E  62.5 2.29  2.18 1.97 1.80 1.70 1.55 1.41 1.26 1.13 955.625
C i

 Y E 87.5 2.30  2.21 1.99 1.79 1.67 1.54 1.36 1.21 1.10 1327.375
D i

 Y E 112.5 2.22  2.02 1.93 1.78 1.65 1.52 1.32 1.19 1.08 1654.875
E i

 Y E 137.5 2.16  2.02 1.90 1.73 1.63 1.45 1.28 1673.375

F i

 Y E 162.5 2.08 1.97 1.88 1.70 1.61 1.42 1732.25

G i
28

 Y E  8109.75 i i
 Cont.

-  Y 12.5 9  37.5 9  62.5 9  87.5 9 112.5 9 137.5 7 162.5 6 4750

i

E i  2.22  2.02 1.93  ..... 1.61 1.42  98.68

 Y  E  4750 98.68

i i
  8081.60
N 58

 Y   4750 2 2
 22562500

 Y  i
2
22562500
  389779
N 58

 
 i (12.5) 2 9  (37.5) 2 9  (62.5) 2 9  (87.5) 2 9  (112.5) 2 9  (137.5) 2 7  (162.5) 2 6 522813
Y
2

N
  N  N 
 Yi Ei     Yi    Ei   / N
8109.75  8081.60
B
i 1   i 1   i 1     0.0002116 0.0212%
2
N
 N  522813  389779 29

 Yi    Yi  / N
2

i 1  i 1 
 Cont.
 From similar calculations and taking the western boundary of the field as the
reference line on the y-axis,
S x   0.007   0.7 %
how?
SX Is negative- Plane reaches a lower elevation as the distance from the y-axis
increases.
SY Is positive- Plane of the best fit rises towards north.
Assume that the soil is loamy, the maximum permissible land slope is 0.4%, therefore
Type of soil Longitudinal slope (%)
Sx=-0.4%.
Heavy (clay) soils 0.05 – 0.25
Table:Medium
recommended safe limits of land slope for efficient irrigation
(loamy) soils 0.20 – 0.40
30
Light (sandy) soils 0.25 – 0.65
 D. Compute the formation levels, cuts
and fills

 With the elevation of the centroid determined, the formation level of any
point may be determined, using the computed or assumed values of sx
and sy.
 For convenience in computation, a grid point close to the centroid is
selected and its elevation computed with reference to centroid elevation,
using the vales of sx and sy.

31
32
Cont.
 For example, in the figure above the grid point C4 may be selected as the
reference station.
 The distance of C4 from the centroid is 18.103m in the x direction and
19.396m in the y direction.
 Since the plane of the best fit must pass through the centroid, the elevation
of any point on the x-direction should increase at the rate of sx to the left of
the centroid and reduce by an equal amount to the right of the centroid.
 But since sy is positive, the elevation of the y-direction increases at the rate
of sy from
18.the
103 0centroid
.4 towards the north while it decreases at the same rate
1.703  1.775
100
towards the south.
33

 The elevation of a point on the x-axis, 18.1m to the left of the centroid is,
 Cont.
 Similarly, the decrease in elevation of a point on the y-axis 19.396m from the centroid,
towards
19.396 the
0.02 south, is
 0.0039m
100

 Hence, the elevation of the grid point C4 = 1.775 – 0.0039 0= 1.7711m

.4 25
 0.1 m
100
 The elevations of all other points on line C can be determined by adding
to each grid points to the left of C4.
 For example, the elevation of the point C3 is 1.771 + 0.1 = 1.871 and that of C5 = 1.771
– 0.1 = 1.671 and so on.
34
 Cont.
 The elevations of the points on line 4 can be obtained by progressively adding

to the elevations of grid points in the north direction and

 Subtracting the same amount from the elevations of the preceding grid points in the
south direction from C4. Thus, the elevation of
B4 = 1.771 – 0.005 = 1.766 m, and that of
D4 = 1.771 + 0.005 = 1.776
E4 = 1.776 + 0.005 = 1.781 m and so on
 Similarly, all the design elevations are determined and are shown in figure 4.4.

35
 E. Determine the cut-fill ratio
Experience in land grading with modern earth moving equipment has
shown that the cut-fill ratio should be greater than one.
Reason for volume of cut must be greater than fill volume
 Compaction
Imperfections
Cut-fill ratio usually varies from 1.2-1.6
In rare case heavy or light textured soils and deep or shallow
excavation (1.1 & 2.0)
With the plane method of computing cuts and fills, a settlement
correction for the whole field is more convenient to apply. 36

The settlement allowance may range from 0.3 to 1cm for compact
 Cont.
 In instances where borrow is to be taken from the field for construction
works such as
Roads,
Irrigation channels and
Filling of pits, the plane surface can be lowered by the amount of
earthwork required.
Similarly, if the earth excavated from drainage channels or other sources is
to be utilized in making land levelling fills, the elevation of the plane
surface should be raised by the quantity of earth available.
These can be done by dividing the volume of the borrow or excavation by
the area of the field. 37

The adjustment of the elevation of the plane can be made at the centroid
 Cont.
The elevations of other points are then computed, and the amount of cut or fill at each point
determined.
EXAMPLE PROBLEM 4.4: The field shown in fig. 4.5 is to be levelled to a downfield gradient
of 0.4 per cent and a cross slope of 0.02 per cent. The following additional provisions may be
made while designing the land levelling work:
1. A farm road is to be constructed along the boundary ab. The dimensions of the road are:
bottom width 4.2m, top width 3.5m, and average height of embankment 30cm. The entire
earth fill for the farm road is to be taken from the field.
2. A drainage canal is to be dug outside the field along the side cd. The canal is 1.5m deep,
1m wide at the bottom and has side slopes 1.5:1. The excavation from the canal is to be
spread in the field.
3. An allowance of 1cm may be provided to account for the shrinkage of the cut and fill
areas. 38

Determine the design elevation of each grid point. Compute the cut and fill at each grid
Cont.

39
 Cont.
SOLUTION

1. Weighted average elevation of the grid points

E
 (2.50  2.48...  1.43) / 28 1.973m.
N
2. The location of the centroid is determined by taking moments about the
reference lines ox and oy.
(Note that the reference line ox is drawn parallel to the field boundary ab and is
spaced 15 m away from the field boundary line ab. The line ox is laid at right
angles to oy and is 15m from the field boundary line ae. It is usually advantageous
to locate the reference lines outside the field boundary, and space at least one of it
at half grid spacing from one of the field boundaries lines. This is especially
important in the land grading design of fields with irregular boundaries). 40

Referring to fig.4.5, the location of the centroid on the plane on the x-axis is
 Cont.
6 30  6 60  6 90  6 12 0  4 150  85.71 m
28
From the line ox or 85.71- 15= 70.71m from line ab
4 30  5 60  65 90  5 12 0  45 150  4 180 105 m
28

From the line oy or 105.0- 15= 90m from line ae.

41
 Cont.
3. The slopes of the best fit planes on the x and y-axis are
( X E )  X E / N
j j j j
(a) A 
determined X   X  / N
j
2
j
2
Yi Ei  15 2.50  2.30  ...  1.80 45 2.48  2.21  ...  1.71
 ...  135 1.97  1.85  ...  1.51 3754.350
 X j E j  15 2.50  2.48  ...  2.09 45 2.30  2.21  ...  1.97 
4663.050
Yi 6 5  6 45  ...  4 135 1980

X j 4 15  5 45  5 75  ...  4 165 2520.00

1980 55.25
Yi Ei / N  3906.964
28
X E / N 2520 55.25
j j 4972.500
28
Yi  6 152  6 452..  4 1352 186300
2

X j  4 152  5 452  ...  4 1652 294300.000

2

Yi  / N 
2 
1980
2
140014.286
28
Dx 2 / n 2520
2
226800.00
28
3754.350  3906.961  152.614
B   0.003297  0.3297 %
4663.050  4972.500  309.450 186300  140014.286 46285.714
 A   0.00458  0.458 %
294300  226800 67500
Since slope in X direction is greater than in Y
42
direction, the downfield slope is taken in the x-
Yi Ei  Yi Ei / N direction and the cross slope in the y-direction.
b) B 
Yi   Y i  / N
2 2
 Cont.
4. Net area of the field which is to be graded is determined
a. Gross area of field
130 152 152  123 85 13959  1168.5 25646.5m 2
 99 
2 2
b. Area of the drainage canal = top width * length = 5.5 * 90 = 495 m2
c. Area of farm road = bottom width * length = 4.2 * 184 = 772.8 m2
d. Net area of the field to be graded = gross area – (area of canal +area of road)

= 25646.5 – (495.00+772.8) = 24378.7m2

5. Earthwork for road fill and for the excavation of the canal are
determined as follows:
4.2  3.5
e. Volume
 of
0earth
.30 184 required
212.52m 3 for road fill = Cross-sectional area of road fill x length of
2
road 43

volume of earthwork 212.52

  m 0.0087 m
Net area of field 24378.7
 Cont.
Volume of excavated earth from drainage canal = cross- sectional area x
length 
5.5  1 1.5 90 438.75m 2
2

Height of earth fills resulting from the spreading of the excavated earth in
Volume of excavation 438.75
the net area
 of offield
Net area field

24378.7
 0.018 m

6. Design elevation of centroid

= Average elevation of field – depth of shrinkage – depth of borrow + height
of excavated earth
44
= 1.973-0.010-0.0087+0.018 = 1.972M
 Cont.
7.With the design elevation of the centroid, the elevation of the grid
points and computed so as to obtain a downfield gradient of 0.4 percent and
cross slope of 0.02of percent.
Elevation B3 1.972 
0.4105  90  0.0285.71  60 

100 100

0.4 15 0.02 25.71

1.972  
100 100

1.972  0.060  0.005 2.037 m

45
 Cont.
The elevation of all grid points on line B, to the left of B3 is obtained by
progressively adding to each succeeding point. Thus, the design elevation
of
B2 = 2.037+0.12=2.157 and of B1=2.157+0.12=2.277m.
The elevations of all points to the right of b3 are obtained by subtracting
progressively 0.12m from each grid point from the elevation of the
previous point on the left. Thus, the design elevation of
B4=2.037-0.12=1.917m, of B5=1.917-0.12=1.797m and so on.
The design elevations
0.02 of points on line a can be determined by adding
30 0.006m
100 46

to the elevation of the corresponding point on line B.

 Cont.
Similarly, the design elevation of all points on line C can be determined by
subtracting 0.006m from the elevations of the corresponding points on line
B.
The elevations of points on line C are obtained by subtracting 0.006m from
the corresponding elevations on line D and so on.
The design elevations, thus obtained, are shown on Fig. 4.6.

47
 Cont.
8. The cut or fill at each grid point is determined by a comparison of
the original and design elevations.
The values are entered at the entered at the corresponding grid point.
The total cuts and fills for each column are shown below the corresponding
Cut 1.646
columns.
Fill 1.608
1.646
Cut  fill ratio 
1.608

1.024

48

Note: If a higher value of the cut-fill ratio is desired, a larger value of

 PROFILE METHOD

Essentially it consists of a trial and error method of adjusting grades on plotted

profiles until the irrigation criteria are met with and the earthwork balance is
attained.
PLAN INSPECTION METHOD
The grid point elevations are noted on the plan, and the design grade elevations
are determined by inspection after the careful study of the topography.
It is largely a trial and error procedure.
In selecting the elevations formation level, the designer must simultaneously
consider
 The down field slope,
 Cross slope,
49
 Earth work balance and
 Haul distance.
 CONTOUR ADJUSTMENT METHOD

It is consists of trial and error adjustments of the contour lines on a plan
map.
Specially adapted to the smoothening of steep lands that have to be
irrigated.

50
 4.3 Construction procedure and equipment

In performing the land levelling operations, care is taken not to disturb the
grid stakes.
Procedures in land levelling using equipment's
 PRESERVATION OF TOP SOIL
 CONSTRUCTION TOLERANCE (Permissible tolerance of ± 3 cm)
 CHECKING
 FINISHING
 MAINTENANCE

51
 4.4 EQUIPMENT FOR LAND GRADING AND FIELD LAY-OUT

⁜The choice of equipment for land grading and filed layout depends on
1. The quantity of earth work involved
2. Type of power available
3. Economic feasibility of machine
4. Size of the farm

52
 Cont.

©Land smoothing is done by tractor drawn land planes or bullock drawn

wooden floats
© Some of the equipment are listed below
i. BULLDOZERS: Consists of crawler tractors equipped with dozer blades

ii. TRACTOR DRAWN SCRAPERS: They range in size from terrace blade to
heavy carrier type scrapers
iii. ANIMAL DRAWN BUCK SCRAPER: It is the most efficient implement for
land grading when animal power is available and also the fields are
small to medium
53
.

Tractor Drawn Scrapers

Bulldozer

54

Animal Drawn Buck Scraper

 IRRIGATION METHODS

Outline
Surface irrigation
Sub surface irrigation
Pressurized irrigation

55
 4.6 SURFACE IRRIGATION METHODS

Outline
Surface irrigation
Sub surface irrigation
Pressurized irrigation

56
METHODS OF
IRRIGATION
 Cont.

Surface irrigation is the introduction and distribution of water in a

field by the gravity flow of water over the soil surface.
Irrigation systems generally consist of four components;
o Physical systems (land & water)
o Social and organizational systems (soft components)
o Cropping system (agronomic aspect)
o Economic system (financial aspect)
The physical systems of surface irrigation systems as a whole consist of
four subsystems. These are:
⁜The water supply subsystem (source)
⁜The water delivery sub system (distribution network)
⁜The water use subsystem (quantity and quality of water) 58

⁜The water removal subsystem (Removal and disposal of surface and sub-
 Cont.

59

Typical elements of a surface irrigation system

 SURFACE IRRIGATION PROCESSES AND METHODS

Surface irrigation system has four distinct hydraulic phases of water

distribution system on the soil:
1. Advance phase: [Start of irrigation and arrival of the advancing (wetting) ]
2. Ponding (wetting storage or continuing) phase : [End of advance
and inflow cut-off]

3. Depletion (vertical recession) phase : [Supply cut-off and the time that
water dries up at the inlet boundary]

4. Recession (horizontal recession) phase : [Time required for the water

to recede from all points in the channel]
60
Cont.

61
SURFACE IRRIGATION METHODS

62
 1. BORDER IRRIGATION METHOD
Border irrigation can be viewed as an expansion of basin irrigation to
include long rectangular or contoured field shapes, longitudinal but no
lateral slope, and free draining or blocked conditions at the lower end.

63
 Cont.
Borders can be grouped into three major categories depending on the
management strategy adopted:
1. FIXED FLOW: The inlet flow rate remains constant throughout the
duration of irrigation
2. CUTBACK: Irrigation begins with a maximum or near maximum non
erosive inlet flow rate becomes less with time.
3. TAIL WATER REUSE: This is a system in which excess surface runoff from
the downstream end is collected in a sump and then pumped back into
the same field to open up more borders or used to irrigate another
field. 64
 Cont.
ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES

Large water streams can be used Requires relatively large water streams
safely for quick advance of water to minimize
Low labor requirement deep percolation losses at the upper
end of the border strip.
Wastage of water by deep percolation
in coarse textured
65
 2. FURROW IRRIGATION METHOD
It is a surface irrigation system that applies water to the soil by allowing water to
flow down slope, in evenly spaced channels called furrows, rills, or corrugations.
Furrow irrigation systems differ from border irrigation in that only part of the
ground surface is covered with water.
Water enters the soil by both vertically downward and lateral infiltration.
Furrow spacing depends on:-
The soil type
Crop spacing
Farm equipment used etc.
Based on these and other factors the furrow spacing varies from 60 to 120 cm
66
Depending on soil texture furrow length -> 20 to 300 m and velocity 2 to 15
m3/hr.
Cont.

Fur
r ow
Spa
cin
g 67
 Cont.
ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
 The number of furrows irrigated at one time can Water erosion hazards may be high, depending
be adjusted to match available water on field slope and soil texture
 Uniform application can be obtained (water Tail water is nearly always required by graded
distribution and land levelling) furrow irrigation to provide uniform or adequate
 Initial capital investment is relatively low on irrigation in the lower part of the field.
lands not requiring extensive land levelling. To get adequate amount of water infiltrated in
the lower end of the field, the upper end is
 There is no waste of land in the field ditches
almost always overwatered
 Water in furrows contacts only ½ to 1/5 of the
Salts either from the soil or water supply can
land surface thereby reducing puddling and
concentrate on ridges and beds
crusting of soil
With some low and high intake soils and wide
 Furrows serve as field drains in areas of heavy
planting beds, lateral spread of water 68may not
rainfall be adequate to provide complete irrigation
 Low evaporation losses across the bed in a reasonable irrigation time.
 3. CHECK BASIN IRRIGATION METHOD
It is also known as method of irrigation by plots.
The land to be irrigated is divided into small plots or check basins
surrounded by checks or levees
The irrigation water is applied by filling the plots with the water up to the
desired depth.
Basin irrigation is suited to different crops such as, rice, cotton, groundnuts
etc.
It is also suited for soils having moderate intake rate (≤50 mm/h) with
smooth, gentle and uniform land slope.
However, for sloping lands, basins are prepared by constructing 69levees
along the contours with vertical interval of 6 to 12 cm or 15 to 30 cm in
Cont.

70
 Cont.

ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES

Water can be applied uniformly. Ridges interfere with the movement of

Even small streams can be used for implements

irrigation of crops efficiently. Considerable land is occupied by the

ridges and with lateral field channels
Simple and cheap when equipment
The method impedes surface drainage
is used for constructing bunds
Precise land shaping and grading is
required
High labour requirement 71

Not suitable for water sensitive crops

 RING BASIN IRRIGATION METHOD
This method is a modification of check basin method and is suitable
for sparsely grown orchard crops and cucurbits.

ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES

High irrigation application High labour requirement

efficiency can be achieved with Bunds restrict use of modern
properly designed system machinery in the field
Unskilled labour can be used, as Limited to relatively uniform lands
there is no danger of erosion

72
 Cont.
•

73
 DESIGN OF SURFACE IRRIGATION
METHODS
Design of surface irrigation is the process of making decision on:
 flow rate,
System parameters
channel length, Design
Maximum allowable flow velocity (V m
cut off time, etc.

Detail design Preliminary designRequired amount of application (Z

Infiltration parameter (I)

System System
parameters variables
Channel geometry (shape + spaci
74

Channel bed slope (S

 DESIGN OF SURFACE IRRIGATION
SYSTEMS
DESIGN OF FURROW IRRIGATION SHAPE AND SIZE OF THE FURROW
Efficient furrow Irrigation
SYSTEM Furrows are generally v-shaped or
method u-
Furrows Spacing shaped in cross section and are 15-30 cm
deep and 25-40 cm wide at the top.
Furrow Length
Ranges 45-300 m FURROW STREAM SIZE

Furrow slope The size of the stream usually varies from

Min. Slope =0.05% 0.5 to 2.5 liters/sec.

Shape and Size of the However, the maximum non-erosive flow

Furrow rate in furrows is estimated using the
empirical equation
Furrow Stream Size
75

where qmax Maximum non-erosive furrow stream,

Cont.
After the water has reached the lower end of the furrow, the stream size
is reduced, which is known as cut-back stream.
The cut-back stream flows until the required amount of water has been
applied.
With known stream size, the average depth of water applied during the
irrigation can be calculated using

Where, d = average depth of water applied, cm

Q = stream size, liter per second
T = duration of irrigation (elapsed time), hrs
76

W = furrow spacing in m
 4. SPRINKLER IRRIGATION
• It is a system at which water is convoyed to the sprinkler under
pressure and ejected to the atmosphere through the nozzles and fall on
the ground in the form of spray.
• It is a method of applying irrigation water which is similar to natural
rainfall.

77
 Cont.
ADAPTABILITY OF SPRINKLER IRRIGATION LIMITATIONS OF SPRINKLER IRRIGATION

 Shallow soils the topography of which prevents Wind distorts sprinkler pattern and causes uneven
proper levelling distribution of water

 Steep slopes and easily erodible soils. Ripened soft fruits may be affected by spraying
water.
 Irrigation stream too small to distribute water
Water must be clean and free of sand, debris and
efficiently
large amount of dissolved salts.
 Undulating land too costly to level sufficiently
High initial investment as compared to surface
 Land needs to be brought in to top production irrigation.
quality High power requirements
 Soils with low water holding capacities and Fine textured soils with slow infiltration rate cannot
shallow rooted crops which require frequent be irrigated efficiently in hot windy areas.
irrigation.
In areas of high temperature and high 78 wind
 Higher application efficiency can be achieved by velocity, considerable evaporation losses of water
properly designed and operated systems. may take place
Cont.

Fixed Nozzle

Types of sprinklers
Perforated sprinkler
& Sprinkler systems

Rotating sprinklers
79
 SPRINKLER SYSTEM COMPONENTS

A typical sprinkler irrigation system

consists of the following components:
 Pressure generating units (pump unit)
 Water carrier units (mainlines, sub
mainlines, laterals)
 Water delivery units (riser pipes and
sprinklers)
 Quality improvement sub units (screens,
desilting basins)
 Ancillary units (fertilizer and another
chemical applicator)

80
 Cont.
The pump unit is usually a centrifugal pump which takes water from the
source and provides adequate pressure for delivery into the pipe system
Mainline: a line between the source of pressurized water and the point at
which water is delivered to the field is the next component.
Lateral line: this comes out of the mainline to deliver water to the
sprinkler nozzles.
Sprinkler heads: It's operating characteristics under optimum water
pressure and climatic conditions, mainly the wind velocity determine its
suitability and the efficiency of the system.
The spray area which is wet by each sprinkler nozzle at a particular
81

operating pressure is called wetted diameter and designated as dw

 Cont.
The quantity of fertilizer to be injected is calculated for the area
according to the recommended rate of fertilizer application in kilograms
per hectare, using the formula,
S l * S m * N s * Pn * W f
WF 
10,000

Where:
WF = Amount of fertilizer per setting, Kg.
Sl = Distance between sprinklers, m
Sm = Distance between laterals, m
Ns = Number of sprinklers
Pn = Number of positions a given sprinkler can serve (In solid set
82

system)
 Cont.
WETTING PATTERNS
 The wetting pattern from a single rotary sprinkler is not very uniform.
 Normally the area wetted is circular (see top view) and semi circle (Side
view)

83
 Design of sprinkler irrigation systems
• A sprinkler irrigation system, to suit the particular conditions of the
procedureininorder
site, is specially designed planning and design
to achieve high efficiencies in its
performance and economy.
D
e Capacity of
InventoryWof p Types of Sprinkler Nozzle
Sprinkler
C ResourcesaandI t systems and selection and Selection
t Irrigation
l Conditions
S r h lay-out spacing Criteria
e System
i M p r
r
m W a r i o
P
a a p i g f
o A
t t n a
w p Locati
i e o k t I Orien
e p on
c r f l i r tation
r l and
e o r of
i natur
C s t r n i mains
S c e of
o u h g and
o a water
n p e S I a latera
u t suppl
d p p n t ls
r i y
i l a a t i
c o
t y r c e o
e n
i e i r n 84
o a n v
R
n g a W
a
s l a
t
t
 SPRINKLER SELECTION AND SPACING
The actual selection of sprinkler is based largely upon design
information furnished by the manufacturers of the equipment.
The required discharge of an individual sprinkler is a function of the
water application rate and two-way spacing of the sprinklers
The gross application rate is given by

Q = (SL x Sm x Dg) / 360 in which,

Q = sprinkler nozzle discharge, lit/sec

SL = spacing of sprinklers along the lateral, m

Sm = spacing of laterals along the main, m 85

Dg = gross application rate, cm/hr

 Cont.
The net application rate is given by

Da = Dg (1- Ls)

• Da = net application rate in cm/hr and

• Ls = evaporation and wind drift fraction

A common method of computing evaporation and wind drift is using the
Nomo-graph developed by Frost and Schwallen (1955).
This Nomo-graph was developed based on over 700 sprinkler nozzle
tests.
The variable includes – 1) nozzle diameter 2) operating pressure
86 3)
wind speed 4) relative humidity and air temperature.
Cont.

87
 Cont.
Procedures to follow
Solution for the evaporation and wind drift losses in line no.6 is achieved by
establishing two pivot points on the lines 4 & 8.
The pivot point on line 4 is determined by first drawing a straight line between the
% relative humidity and air temperature to intersect the vapour pressure deficit on
line 3.
A second straight line is then drawn from the vapour pressure deficit through
nozzle diameter on line 5.
The intersection of this line with line no. 4 is pivot point ‘A’.
A third straight line is drawn between the nozzle operating pressure line no.7 and
wind velocity line no.9, where this line crosses line no.8, is the pivot point ‘B’.
The final step is to draw a straight-line connecting pivot points ‘A’ & ‘B’, which
88
intersects the evaporation and wind drift losses given in percentage on line no. 6.
 Cont.
• Example: determine evaporation and wind drift for a sprinkler system with
the following operating characteristics: RH = 10%, T = 900F (32.20C), U = 5
mph = 8 kmph, dnozzle = 12/64"(4.76 mm), P = 40 psi (276 kpa).
SOLUTION:
 Step 1: straight line between RH and air temperature intersects vapour pressure deficit
line at 0.62 psi (4.27 kpa)
 Step 2: second line between vapour pressure deficit line and nozzle diameter establishes
a pivot point A on line 4
 Step 3: pivot point B on line 8 is determined by drawing a straight line between the
operating pressure (40 psi) and wind speed (5 mph)
 Step 4: A straight line between two pivots, A & B results evaporation & wind drift losses
89

approximately as 8.5% on line 6

Cont.
Trimmer (1987) performed analysis of the Frost & Schwalen Nomo-graph
to put into terms more applicable to current computer methods.
The final equation for "evaporation & wind drift" is given by

Ls = [ 1.98 (D)- 0.72 + 0.22 (es - ea )0.63 + 3.6 x 10 - 4 (H)1.16 + 0.14 (U)0.7]
4.2

Ls = evaporation & wind drift, percent: D = nozzle diameter, mm

H = nozzle operating pressure, kpa: U = wind velocity, m / sec

es - ea. = 0.61 x e [ 17.27 T / (T + 237.3)] x (1 - RH)
es - ea = Vapour pressure deficit, KPA:
90

T = air temperature, 0c
 Capacity of sprinkler irrigation system
The capacity of the system is the continuous flow rate required to irrigate the
specified area within the selected operating schedule.
Q = 2780 (A X D) / F H E In which
Q = discharge capacity of the pump, lit /sec
A = area to be irrigated, ha
D = net depth of application, cm
F = number of days allowed for the completion of one irrigation, days
H = number of actual operating hours per day
E = water application efficiency, percent
Number of sprinklers (n) can be estimated by n = Q /q where,
Q = total discharge of the system 91

Q = design discharge of each sprinkler nozzle

DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM DESIGN LAY-
OUT

DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM DESIGN LAY-OUT

Lateral System Design MAIN LINE SYSTEM DESIGN

92
 LATERALS LAY-OUT

On moderate Uniform
sloping field
On Irregular
Moderately
TerrainSloping Terrain

93
 6. DRIP/Trickle IRRIGATION
It is method of watering plants frequently with a volume of water
approaching the consumptive use of the plants, thereby
minimizing such conventional losses as deep percolation, run-off and
soil water evaporation.
This method differs from other methods
Crop evapo-transpiration and applied water is maintained over
limited periods of 24 to 72 hours.
It is accomplished by using small diameter plastic lateral lines
with devices called emitters or drippers at selected spacing to
deliver water to the soil surface near the base of the plants.
94
 ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES

Major advantage is that close balance  Capital costs required for this system are
between applied water and evapo- higher compared to other systems. Hence,
transpiration reduces surface run-off and it has limitation for large scale application.
deep percolation to the minimum.  It requires higher level of technology and
Generally, produce high ratio of yield per sophisticated equipment.
unit area and yield per unit volume of  Trickle system operates on the principle of
water than surface / sprinkler irrigation
very precise amount of water in the vicinity
systems.
of root zone. Also, the system requires
System is applicable in marginal lands, limited fluctuations of pressure from the
which could not be irrigated by other design head.
methods.
95

Application efficiency is very high (more

than 90%) comparison to surface irrigation
 SYSTEM COMPONENTS
The components required for trickle system are more than those other
application systems due to the need of filtering the water supply
and to maintain specific pressure distribution throughout the
system
A drip system consists of essentially main line, sub-mains, laterals
and emitters
The mains, sub-mains and laterals are usually made of PVC tubing
(Polyvinyl chloride).
Emitters are also made of PVC material
96
Cont.

97
Cont.
Component of Drip Irrigation

Lateral
Secon Primar
lines
Pump dary Pressu y Chemi
comin The The The
Filter and Flush pressu re pressu cal
g off main sub- lateral
Unit prime valves re regula re injecto
the line main lines
mover gauge tor gauge r
sub-
s s
mains

98
 EMITTERS

Drip nozzles commonly called emitters or drippers, are provided at regular

intervals on laterals.
 Discharge rate of emitters usually range from 2 – 4 lit / hr but higher range
up to 8 lit/hr also available.
There are three major categories of emitters

1. Point source
2. Line source: (double wall device)
3. Micro-tubes
99
 DRIP IRRIGATION SYSTEM DESIGN
The following general information is required for designing a drip
irrigation system.
1. Water source: usually well or tank storing rainfall or run-off.
2. Types of crops: different crops require different plant spacings and
different irrigation requirements. Therefore, the size & type of
emitter depends on the type of crop.
3. Topographic conditions: the information on topographic
conditions is necessary for location of main, sub-main and laterals.
4. Soils: information on i) infiltration capacity ii) water holding capacity
and iii) bulk density are required for setting up irrigation schedules.
100

5. Climatic records: it will show when and how often the irrigation is
 !!!
ND
E
H E
T
101