Energy and Hydraulic Performance-Based Management of Large-Scale Pressurized Irrigation Systems

Improving energy and hydraulic performance of large-scale pressurized irrigation is now perceived as a very pressing need, after large budgets have been allocated into systems modernization. This paper tackles this priority area by developing a management oriented multi-step methodology, that integrates different existing models, to sector the system according to the pressure requirements of the hydrants, and to regulate the pumping station for i) a fixed and a variable pressure head control, and for ii) an enhanced performance. When applied to an on-demand system in the Sinistra Ofanto irrigation scheme of Foggia (Italy), this integrated approach showed potential for energy saving under the optimal scenario of 49 %, and noticeable improvement in the system performance in terms of hydrant pressure heads, as compared to the actual conditions. The monetary assessment demonstrates that the achieved energy saving amounts to 23,636 Euros per irrigation season, 45 % among which are due to sectoring.