Design and Selection of Best Pump Capacity for a Solar-Powered Smart Drip Irrigation System for Tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum) in Mokwa, Nigeria

Abstract

The trend in the advancement of irrigation system in both developed and developing nations of the world is amazingly progressing. It has gone beyond only applying water to plants, but applying good quality water, right quantity and at the right time. This can only be achieved when proper pump design and selection is prioritized. This research paper focuses on the design and selection of best pump capacity for a solar-powered smart drip irrigation system for tomato in Mokwa, Nigeria. The preliminary result obtained indicated that the soil of the area is loamy sand, with gravimetric moisture content of 0.39gg -1 for every 1g at saturation. Time of irrigation and irrigation frequency obtained are 90minutes and 3days respectively. Total volume of water required by plants to attain maturity stage is computed to be 4,260 litres. Based on the total volume of water obtained, two reservoir tanks of 5,000 and 2,500 litres capacities, to serve as ground and overhead respectively was suggested for the work. The conveyance pipe diameter was determined as 0.027m, velocity of water through the conveyance pipe was determined as 1.35m/s, the overall dynamic head was determined as 4.57m and pump capacity in kilowatt was computed as 0.046kW, which is approximately 0.1kW. The pump is designed to lift water into the overhead tank only, which will fall by gravity by action of the automatic valves through lateral lines as at when needed by the plants. However, the smallest commercial solar-powered pump for irrigation available was about 0.37kW (0.5HP), and therefore it is selected for the experiment. It is recommended that design specifications are obeyed during installations.