REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Pump Efficiency

According to Hansen (1980) large areas of land in arid regions are situated that available

of water cannot be brought economically to them by gravity flow in canals and pipes. In many

areas, surface or underground water is pumped to the land to be irrigated. Pumps are frequently

required to lift drainage water into a higher channel where it can flow out of the area by gravity.

There are two types of irrigation pumps. The small discharge and high heads to large

discharge with low head. Small-discharge and high-head pumps are centrifugal pump used for

sprinkler irrigation and where water is lifted considerable distance while for pumps with large

discharge and low heads are used in drainage and large quantities of water are lifted.

(Israelsen,et.al,1962).

Where water is taken from the river of variable quantity, bank-side reservoirs is

constructed to store water. The use of bank-side reservoirs also allows a water abstraction to be

closed down for extended period at times when the river is unacceptably polluted or when flow

conditions are very low due to drought (Bhattacharya,2014).

To bring the water to the head of the field it has to be lifted either by pumps located

relatively near the irrigation area or by a diversion structure that may have to draw the water a

considerable distance upstream. The pump may be portable and can be shifted along the river to

whenever water is required (Zimmerman,1966).

As stated by Israelsen,et.al,2000 horsepower delivered by an electric motor or by

an engine to the shaft it turns is known as the brake horsepower. The ratio of useful water
horsepower delivered by a pump to brake horsepower is defined as the pump efficiency. The

water horsepower is the power theoretically required to lift a given quantity of water each second

to a specified height. In irrigation pumping it may be termed the output. Then:

62.5𝑄ℎ 𝑄ℎ
𝑊𝐻𝑃 = =
550 8.8

Where:

WHP = water horsepower

Q = discharge, cfs

h= vertical lift, ft

If Q is measured in gallons per minute rather than cubic feet per second, then:

8.33𝑄ℎ 𝑄ℎ
𝑊𝐻𝑃 = =
33,000 3960

Water Allocation and Distribution

Water needs of the crop are one of the importance in determining the time of irrigation

during the crop-growing season on irrigation projects which can be obtain the water supplies

from storage reservoirs or from surface or underground water resources. Some of the irrigated

areas have a limited water supply during cropping season, but an abundance of water during wet

or rainy season. Farmers cannot always supply water when the crop is in need. To save water

they must irrigate even the crop does not need, provided that the soil has the characteristics to

store water. Therefore, distribution of water must be considered in a discussion of proper time to

irrigate. (Hansen, 1980)

 In large irrigation schemes, the distribution of irrigation water and the delivery at the

farm gate is often arranged by rotational turns. The quantity of water to be received is often

proportional to the farm size. As the canals usually transport constant flows, the water is being

received during a period of time proportional to the farm size. Water users at the upstream part

of the irrigation system can more easily intercept extra water than the tailender. The degree of

farmers influence is correlated to the relative position of their land in the topography of the

scheme (Bhattacharya, 2014).

Operation and Maintenance Practices

Operation and maintenance is a crucial element of sustainability, it requires data for

proper planning which can be obtained through regular monitoring of the system. For proper

functioning and good performance of the system, frequent observations, measurement and

checks should be carried out frequently on the irrigation system. The operation service takes care

of the physical system, staffing and management. The various components of the system from

capture to application must be run as per the design and the operation manuals to ensure timely

and adequate delivery of water to satisfy crop water requirements. To ensure that the irrigation

system adequately serves the users and for a longer life, maintenance of the system is a must

(Mati, 2012).

According to NIA, operation and maintenance activities comprise of; operation of storage

and diversion dams, running of pumps, operation pf gates, turnouts and drainage ditches,

preparation and implementation of cropping and irrigation schedules, maintenance of the

physical facilities including service and access roads and repairs on minor damages caused by

floods and typhoons.

Irrigators Associations

According to NIA (National Irrigation Associations), The Irrigators Association is a

composition of group of farmers who are pinpointed as direct recipient of an irrigation project or

a system, duly registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission. With the assistance of

National Irrigation Associations (NIA), training activities were implemented to make them more

efficient and productive partners in irrigation development and management.

Indicators for Performance Evaluation of Pump Irrigation Systems

According to Abernethy (1989), various parameters are used as an indicator of the

system’s objective represents the performance of a system by its measured levels of

accomplishments.

This definition by Abernethy the performance of operation is a measure both of the point

of accomplishments of the output objectives and the management efficiency in accomplishing

this. To facilitate the process it must appoint set of parameters to evaluate and give details to its

performance. Performance indicators, by providing information on past activities and their

results, help in making informed judgements which may guide our decision making about future

activities.

At this point, it is important to make a distinction between objective(s) and target(s) as

they represent different aspects of the task:

Objective:

A broad goal that reflect the overall purpose of the irrigation system of the

sector within which the irrigation system falls. Typically, objectives are not
 precise, exemplified by such phrases as crop diversification, equity, adequacy,

or sustainability.

Target:

A specific value of something that can be measured: It provides

operational staff with information on the desired conditions that should be met if

the objective is to be fulfilled.

Performance indicators do more than measure the value of a particular item such as yield

or canal discharge. They have to include a measure of quality as well as of quantity, and be

accompanied appropriate standards or permissible tolerances.

If the value of the indicators falls outside a particular range of values then the

performance is presumed to be unsatisfactory.

Performance Evaluation

As stated by Hanson,et.al.1981 high energy costs require that irrigation pumping plants be

operated as efficiently as possible. Performance must be evaluated periodically so that pump

operator can determine current pump performance. To find out if an inefficient pump is

operating as designed and see if the performance is adequate or what changes are needed to meet

irrigation system requirements. Evaluation should include the following steps:

 Pump test. This provides data on current performance of the pump by measuring total

head developed by the pump, pump discharge and input power. With these data, overall

pump efficiency can be calculated.

 Comparison of pump performance with design performance. Pump performance

characteristic curve developed by the manufacturer describe design performance. These

consist of a head-capacity curve, an efficiency-capacity curve and in some cases a brake

horsepower measured during the pump test with characteristic curve at the measured

capacity, one can determine if the pump is operating as designed. This comparison

requires information on the pump model, number of stages, and impeller size in addition

to test data.

 Comparison of pump performance with irrigation system requirements. This step shows

whether head and capacity developed by the pump are adequate for head and capacity

requirements of the irrigation system. An irrigation system head curve can be used to

determine the effect of any pumping plant changes on the irrigation system or vice versa.

This curve describes the relationship between head and capacity of the irrigation system.

Irrigation System

Relying on rainfall to naturally irrigate the crops is not enough to sustain agriculture

hence, irrigation is practiced. To irrigate is to water crops by bringing in water from pipes,

canals, sprinklers and other man-made means for the purpose of agricultural production.

Places that experience insufficient rainfall occurrence could not sustain agriculture without

irrigation. (National Geographic, 2011)

The irrigation system consist of a main intake structure or pumping station that directs

water from the source of supply such as reservoir or a river into the irrigation system, a

conveyance system that transports water from the main intake structure up to the field

ditches, a distribution system that transport water through field ditches to the irrigated fields,
a filed application system that transports water within the fields and a drainage system that

remove the excess water from the fields (FAO 1985).