EVASOR, an Integrated Model to Manage Complex Irrigation Systems Energized by Photovoltaic Generators

The carbon footprint and energy cost of irrigation are increasing due to the modernization of irrigation systems, which also necessitates highly efficient use of water resources. Alternatives to conventional energy sources to power irrigation systems are renewable sources, primarily photovoltaic ene...

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Main Authors: Jorge Cervera-Gascó, Jesús Montero, Amaro del Castillo, José M. Tarjuelo, Miguel A. Moreno
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2020-03-01
Series:Agronomy
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/10/3/331
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author Jorge Cervera-Gascó
Jesús Montero
Amaro del Castillo
José M. Tarjuelo
Miguel A. Moreno
author_facet Jorge Cervera-Gascó
Jesús Montero
Amaro del Castillo
José M. Tarjuelo
Miguel A. Moreno
author_sort Jorge Cervera-Gascó
collection DOAJ
description The carbon footprint and energy cost of irrigation are increasing due to the modernization of irrigation systems, which also necessitates highly efficient use of water resources. Alternatives to conventional energy sources to power irrigation systems are renewable sources, primarily photovoltaic energy. Photovoltaic energy has the main disadvantage of producing a highly variable amount of energy, which affects the irrigation uniformity. Modeling irrigation systems in an integrated manner generates useful information about system performance for technicians that helps in the decision-making process. The EVASOR (EVAluation of SOlar iRrigation systems) model integrates different modules to simulate the whole solar irrigation system using a holistic approach: 1) I-Solar, which simulates the instantaneous power generated by the photovoltaic system, 2) AS-Solar, which simulates the variable speed pumping system, 3) Solar-Net, which simulates the hydraulic performance of the water distribution network, and 4) PRESUD-Irregular, which determines the discharge and pressure of all the emitters of the subunits together with irrigation quality parameters (coefficient of uniformity (CU), emission uniformity (EU), and coefficient of variation of the emitter discharge in the subunit (CVq) for any pressure at the subunit inlet. The integrated model EVASOR determines the irrigation quality parameters of complex irrigation systems with information on irradiance, air temperature, wind speed, and water table level for any combination of open subunits. To validate the model, results are presented regarding a case study located in southeast Spain.
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spelling doaj.art-6f1db0e0936c4e1b9763958fe41938e62022-12-21T22:52:24ZengMDPI AGAgronomy2073-43952020-03-0110333110.3390/agronomy10030331agronomy10030331EVASOR, an Integrated Model to Manage Complex Irrigation Systems Energized by Photovoltaic GeneratorsJorge Cervera-Gascó0Jesús Montero1Amaro del Castillo2José M. Tarjuelo3Miguel A. Moreno4Regional Development Institute, University of Castilla-La Mancha, 13001 Ciudad Real, SpainRegional Center of Water Research, University of Castilla-La Mancha, 13001 Ciudad Real, SpainRegional Development Institute, University of Castilla-La Mancha, 13001 Ciudad Real, SpainRegional Center of Water Research, University of Castilla-La Mancha, 13001 Ciudad Real, SpainRegional Development Institute, University of Castilla-La Mancha, 13001 Ciudad Real, SpainThe carbon footprint and energy cost of irrigation are increasing due to the modernization of irrigation systems, which also necessitates highly efficient use of water resources. Alternatives to conventional energy sources to power irrigation systems are renewable sources, primarily photovoltaic energy. Photovoltaic energy has the main disadvantage of producing a highly variable amount of energy, which affects the irrigation uniformity. Modeling irrigation systems in an integrated manner generates useful information about system performance for technicians that helps in the decision-making process. The EVASOR (EVAluation of SOlar iRrigation systems) model integrates different modules to simulate the whole solar irrigation system using a holistic approach: 1) I-Solar, which simulates the instantaneous power generated by the photovoltaic system, 2) AS-Solar, which simulates the variable speed pumping system, 3) Solar-Net, which simulates the hydraulic performance of the water distribution network, and 4) PRESUD-Irregular, which determines the discharge and pressure of all the emitters of the subunits together with irrigation quality parameters (coefficient of uniformity (CU), emission uniformity (EU), and coefficient of variation of the emitter discharge in the subunit (CVq) for any pressure at the subunit inlet. The integrated model EVASOR determines the irrigation quality parameters of complex irrigation systems with information on irradiance, air temperature, wind speed, and water table level for any combination of open subunits. To validate the model, results are presented regarding a case study located in southeast Spain.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/10/3/331solar pumpingirrigationmodellinghydraulicsdrip irrigationagriculturerenewable energyphotovoltaic energy
spellingShingle Jorge Cervera-Gascó
Jesús Montero
Amaro del Castillo
José M. Tarjuelo
Miguel A. Moreno
EVASOR, an Integrated Model to Manage Complex Irrigation Systems Energized by Photovoltaic Generators
Agronomy
solar pumping
irrigation
modelling
hydraulics
drip irrigation
agriculture
renewable energy
photovoltaic energy
title EVASOR, an Integrated Model to Manage Complex Irrigation Systems Energized by Photovoltaic Generators
title_full EVASOR, an Integrated Model to Manage Complex Irrigation Systems Energized by Photovoltaic Generators
title_fullStr EVASOR, an Integrated Model to Manage Complex Irrigation Systems Energized by Photovoltaic Generators
title_full_unstemmed EVASOR, an Integrated Model to Manage Complex Irrigation Systems Energized by Photovoltaic Generators
title_short EVASOR, an Integrated Model to Manage Complex Irrigation Systems Energized by Photovoltaic Generators
title_sort evasor an integrated model to manage complex irrigation systems energized by photovoltaic generators
topic solar pumping
irrigation
modelling
hydraulics
drip irrigation
agriculture
renewable energy
photovoltaic energy
url https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/10/3/331
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