Effect of lateral flushing on emitter clogging in drip irrigation using high-sediment water

Abstract

High sediment content in irrigation water is a common challenge in agricultural regions, leading to increased clogging of emitters and reduced system efficiency. Lateral flushing (LF) is an effective measure to reduce emitter clogging for drip irrigation systems. However, the effect of LF on the clogging with high sediment water in different types of emitters remains largely unknown. Thus the effects of LF on the clogging of 8 flat emitters (FE), 3 cylindrical emitters (CE), 3 single wing labyrinth emitters (SL) and 2 inlaid strip emitters (SE) were evaluated. The degree of emitter clogging fluctuation values was 5.4–25.6% higher in the non-flushed drip lines compared to the flushing treatments. Additionally, the average discharge ratio variation (Dra) and coefficient of uniformity (CU) were improved by 7.7–21.9% and 11.6–67.4%, respectively, in the flushed drip lines compared to the non-flushed ones. The CE, FE, SL and SE drip lines that underwent flushing treatment operated for an additional 240, 180, 120 and 60 hourse, respectively, compared to those without flushing treatment. The results indicate that the flushing effect is better for FE and CE due to the accumulation of clogging material at varying rates and locations within the emitters, as well as differences in emitter structure.