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Numerical investigation of the influence of texture, surface drip emitter discharge rate and initial soil moisture condition on wetting pattern size

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Abstract

Knowledge of the dimensions of the wetted zone formed under point source surface drip irrigation is essential to the design of cost-effective and efficient irrigation systems. Numerical simulations were carried out with Hydrus-2D/3D to investigate the influence of emitter discharge rates and initial soil moisture conditions on the wetting pattern dimensions of a series of soils with varying textures. Numerical simulations of simple 2D soil tank irrigation experiments were also conducted on two soil types. Based on the simulation results, the parameters of the Schwartzman and Zur model were refined. The results showed a small influence of discharge rates >1 L h−1 on the size of the wetting pattern. The only major difference was observed for the rates lower than 0.5 L h−1, where the largest wetting patterns were observed. Higher initial soil water content caused larger wetting pattern sizes in all directions. When compared to the 2D tank experimental results, Hydrus-2D/3D predicted the wetting pattern dimensions with a relatively small root mean square error not exceeding 2.6 cm. The numerical data obtained for a wide range of textures provided the opportunity to refine the parameters of the Schwartzman and Zur model, which, when compared to experimental data from the literature, provided good estimates of wetting pattern dimensions. This suggests that this simple model, for which the only soil parameter required is the saturated hydraulic conductivity, could provide a valuable and practical tool for irrigation design.

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Acknowledgments

This work was partly financed by the European Union, European Social Fund.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Plima d.o.o., Cesta Žalskega tabora 2, 3310, Žalec, Slovenia

    Boštjan Naglič

  2. Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Trumpington Street, Cambridge, CB2 1PZ, UK

    Cedric Kechavarzi

  3. Department of Environmental Science and Technology, Cranfield University, Cranfield, MK43OAL, UK

    Frederic Coulon

  4. Biotechnical Faculty, Chair for Agrometeorology, Agricultural Land Management, Economics and Rural Development, University of Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva 101, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia

    Marina Pintar

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  1. Boštjan Naglič
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  2. Cedric Kechavarzi
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  4. Marina Pintar
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Correspondence to Cedric Kechavarzi.

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Communicated by A. Furman.

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Naglič, B., Kechavarzi, C., Coulon, F. et al. Numerical investigation of the influence of texture, surface drip emitter discharge rate and initial soil moisture condition on wetting pattern size. Irrig Sci 32, 421–436 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00271-014-0439-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00271-014-0439-z

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