CE408 IRRIGATION ENGINEERING

TOPICS: IRRIGATION ENGINEERING

WEEK: 1
LECTURE: 2
LEVEL: 8 T H SEMESTER
PREREQUISITES: NONE
 
COURSE TEACHER: ENGR. KHURAM SALEEM ( khurram
.civil@suit.edu.pk)
ACCESS AT: portal.suit.edu.pk
Civil Engineering Department, SUIT Peshawar
KHURAM SALEEM 1
Techniques of Water Distribution in the
Farms
Various ways of applying water to the fields:
1. Free flooding
2. Border flooding
3. Check flooding
4. Basin flooding
5. Furrow irrigation
6. Sprinkler and drip irrigation

KHURAM SALEEM 2
 Free flooding
WA
TER

Field is covered with ditches. There is a main ditch which has many subsidiary
F
LOW

ditches.
TH

SUBSIDIARY DITCHES
RO
UG
H
MA
IN

WA
AN

TER
DS
UB

FLO

MAIN DITCH
SIDI A

WI
NTO
RY
D ITC

THE
H

FI
ELD

KHURAM SALEEM 3
Free flooding
•It is called free flooding because the movement of water
flow is not restricted.
•No need to spend effort and expense on leveling the field
but water economy is compromised (it means too much water is consumed and
hence will be easily wasted too).
• This method is fit for closely grown crops.
•The subsidiary ditches are spaced at 20 to 50 meters depending upon the slope
of the field, texture of soil and type of crop.

KHURAM SALEEM 4
 Border Flooding
Main Ditch

Water entry into strips

Levees (low borders)

10 – 20 m
100 – 400 m

KHURAM SALEEM 5
Border Flooding
•Land is divided into a number of strips separated by
low level borders or levees.
• The strips should be 10 – 20 m in width and 100 – 400 m in length.
•The borders (levees) should be of heights (10 – 15 cm) to avoid overtopping of water
from one strip into another.
•Strip land should be leveled to avoid concentration of water in upper or lower reaches.
•The main ditch size depends upon the rate of infiltration of soil and width of each
strip. If infiltration rate of soil is more so it means water will be quickly absorbed and
thus the ditch size should be more. Fine textured soil has low infiltration rate and vice
versa.

KHURAM SALEEM 6
Formula for calculating time of irrigation
of a strip

◦ t = 2.3[y/f]log₁₀ [ Q/ (Q – fA) ]

◦ where t = time required to cover the area A

◦ A = area of the land strip to be irrigated
◦ f = rate of infiltration of soil
◦ Q = Discharge through the supply ditch
◦ y = depth of water flowing over the strip of land

KHURAM SALEEM 7
Question
Determine the time required to irrigate a strip of land of 0.04 hectares from a tube well
with a discharge of 0.02 cumecs. The infiltration capacity of the soil may be taken as 5
cm/hr. average depth of flow over the field is 10 cm?
Also find the max area that can be irrigated from this tubewell?
Solution:
1 ha = 10⁴ meter²
A = 0.04 x 10⁴ meter² = 400 meter²
Q = 0.02 cumecs = 0.02 meter³/sec = 0.02 x 60 x 60 meter³/hr
= 72 m³/hr
f = 5 cm/hr = (5/100) m/hr = 0.05 m/hr
y = 10 cm = 0.1 m

KHURAM SALEEM 8
Question
t = 2.3 y/f log₁₀ [ Q/Q – fA]
= 2.3 x( 0.1/0.05 )x log₁₀ [72/(72 – 0.05 x 400)]
= 0.65 hrs = 39 minutes

Max area that can be irrigated

Amax = Q/f = 72/0.05 = 1440 m² = 1440 / 10 ⁴ ha = 0.144 ha

KHURAM SALEEM 9
 Check Flooding

Levees (low borders)

Connecting Levee

KHURAM SALEEM 10
Check Flooding
The borders (levees) are connected by a cross border (levee) in order to increase
the number of strips and improve irrigation efficiency.
Each patch should be of 0.2 – 0.8 ha.

Fit for both high permeable and less permeable soils.

KHURAM SALEEM 11
Basin Flooding
A special type of check flooding in which water is transported to orchard trees
directly.
The main ditch transports water to subsidiary ditches and they to basins in
which plants are located.

KHURAM SALEEM 12
 Basin

Subsidiary ditches

Main ditch

KHURAM SALEEM 13
Furrow Irrigation Method
In this method, instead of flooding the entire field, only 1/5th or 1/3 rd of the
land is wetted with water.
It results in less evaporation, less deformation of soil.

Furrows are narrow field ditches of 8 – 30 cm depth, and they

8 – 30 cm
are provided (excavated) between rows of plants. Their length
is up to the length of the field, almost 400 m.

KHURAM SALEEM 14
Furrow Irrigation Method
They carry irrigation water with the purpose of seeping water directly to the
root zones of the rows of plants or crops (that are present
on its either sides)

They shouldn’t be too long as the

later reach (tail end) will not receive adequate irrigation.

KHURAM SALEEM 15
Sprinkler Irrigation Method
In this method water is applied to crops in spray form.
Its like an artificial rain. There is a network of pipes and
pumps that bring about this rain.

The method is very good but expensive. It is fit for

desert like areas of Pakistan where surface irrigation is not possible. But ours is a
poor country. It needs proper design and technical operation and regular
maintenance. That’s why it is popular in USA.

KHURAM SALEEM 16
Sprinkler Irrigation Method
•The entry of silt should be hindered into its system as that can choke the sprinkler equipment.
Conditions favouring the adoption of this method:
•When topography is irregular and leveling cant be done. And surface irrigation cant be done.
•Soil is fragile and easily erodible.
•When soil is excessively permeable and uniform water distribution by surface irrigation is not
possible.
•When water table is high. And surface irrigation could cause water logging.
•When area is such that seasonal water requirement is low like coastal areas.

KHURAM SALEEM 17
Sprinkler irrigation
Fit for crops:
That require humidity control like tobacco
Crops having shallow roots
Crops requiring high and frequent irrigation

Limitations:
Expensive Paddy crop
Not good for high temperature and high wind area. Winds disturb the sprinkle pattern
And not for crops that require deep irrigation like paddy crop

KHURAM SALEEM 18
Drip Irrigation Method
Water is transported to plants
through a system of pipes and
nozzles.
Whether on ground
or under ground directly
to root zone.

KHURAM SALEEM 19
 Drip Irrigation (directly to root zone)
It is also called trickle irrigation method

KHURAM SALEEM 20
The end

KHURAM SALEEM 21