Abstract
Water erosion in agricultural production systems in Brazil is the main factor capable of making these systems unsustainable, as its environmental impacts are reflected in increase in production costs. The aim of this work was to build and evaluate a portable rainfall simulator, easy to handle and low cost for erosion evaluation. The rainfall simulator was built using the operating principles of simulator described by Souza (2004); however, a new angular movement transmission model for the linear movement of the sprinkler nozzle was developed. VeeJet 80.150 sprinkler nozzle was used, which oscillated 60 cycles per minute over the plot. Evaluation was carried out through the uniformity of the equipment's precipitation inside the plot, collecting the simulated rainfall in rain gauges distributed in the plot for a period of 2 minutes. Statistical Uniformity Coefficients obtained in rainfall simulator tests were considered adequate and indicate that there is good uniformity of droplet distribution. Data obtained from the evaluation allowed concluding that the simulator meets the basic requirements to serve as a tool for scientific research related to water erosion. Thus, the developed rainfall simulator meets the technical requirements established in literature and can be used in various works in agricultural and environmental sciences.
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