English essay

Introduction

In this report, I have provided an overview of the advanced irrigation methods and related technologies available in the market place as well as recommendations on the effective ones. In this research, I have reviewed about 40 technology systems through technical magazines, journal articles, company Websites, postings in the social media, conference proceedings, and white papers. My recommendation is based on three major evaluation criteria such as quality and standards, cost-performance, and durability, which are briefly presented below after introducing various forms of technology operated irrigation methods that are not seen in East Asian countries.

Review on Advanced Irrigation Approaches

There are three major technology-driven irrigation methods in use: (i) sprinkler-based irrigation, (ii) center-pivot irrigation, and (iii) drip irrigation.

(i) Sprinkler-based irrigation is a common fixture in residential complexes, public areas and small gardens and farms. While it provides enough water for small-scale, non-commercial gardens, sprinkler-based irrigation is not recommended for our agricultural operations as it has low efficiency.

(ii) Center pivot irrigation is overhead irrigation through long irrigation pipes (~500 meters). The structure either rotates around a center or moves laterally. Since the crops are irrigated from the top, evaporation is limited. The consumption of energy to run the system is 15% higher than the sprinkler system due to pressure maintenance – the pressure must be uniform at each nozzle.

(iii) Drip irrigation is the most efficient form of irrigation currently available. It involves delivering water at a trickle directly to the roots of the plant so that the roots receive just enough water for minerals and nutrients. Consequently, losses are minimized, with efficiency reaching 80%. Due to the small amounts of water delivered, soil erosion and nutrient loss are reduced. The plants themselves remain dry, which prevents diseases. While the initial costs may be higher than with the other systems, the long-term benefits are preferable.

Evaluation Criteria and Procedure

The three evaluation criterions followed in this research are (a) Standards, (b) Cost-performance, and (c) Durability.

(a) Quality and standards play an important role in the process of selecting the products. ISO 9000 is a preferred quality standard adopted by many companies and vendors.

(b) For performance measure the volume of water per minute was considered. A table containing the performance index was prepared and following the median and mode procedure, and a selection of ten manufacturers was made.

(c) Durability was assessed based on mean-time between failure (MTBF) data available with the manufacturer.

Conclusions and Recommendations

Based on the assessment criterion, I have selected 5 manufacturers of sprinkler systems, 3 of center pivot and 3 of drip irrigation (see Table 1).

Table 1: Companies (in rank order) manufacturing technology products for advanced irrigation

Bibliography

"Netafim Drip/Micro Irrigation Solutions." Thinwall Dripline. Netafim Irrigation, n.d. Web. 14 July 2014.

Young, James. "The History of Drip Irrigation." GardenGuides. GardenGuides, n.d. Web. 14 July 2014.