Manufacture and Performance Evaluation of Machine to Extend Plastic Films Under Soil Surface to Improve Water Retention Balouza-North Sinai

Abstract

Water shortage presents a serious problem nowadays. This problem will certainly worsen in the future, and so, improving the irrigation water efficiency by various methods is one of the economically viable alternatives in overcoming the water scarcity. It considers a good solution to overcome the fight against famine especially in the developing countries. A new technique in cultivation by installing plastic membrane sheet below the crop’s root zone named subsurface water retention technology (SWRT) which helped to save irrigation water in the root zone, less farm losses, increasing the field water use efficiency and water productivity. But the difficult of installing SWRT system alienated many farmers from adopting this system. Therefore, in this paper, developed machine was manufactured to install the plastic membrane sheet below the root zone of Faba bean crop during the winter growing season 2018 in open field which cultivated at two systems, the first was ridges system and the second was flat soil system. The total fabrication cost of the study machine was 25000 L. E with 2018 price level. This research was carried out in a Balouza research station in north Sinai governorate. Subsurface drip irrigation system was used for irrigation process and laid by developed machine. Three treatments types were used, cultivated system treatment (ridges and flat soil), aspect ratio treatment (2:1, 3:1 and 4:1) (width to height) and the installing depth of plastic sheet from soil surface (20, 30 and 40) cm. In addition, control treatment was without using the plastic membrane sheet. Actual field capacity, field efficiency, pulling force, fuel consumption rate, total water stored, water consumptive use, stored and consumption water efficiency, Faba bean grain yield, productivity of irrigation water, cost of developed machine and cost of manual process were discussed and compared between the treatments. The obtained results indicated that the machine study succeed in carried out SWRT system and laying subsurface drip irrigation pipes at efficiency of 92% for plastic laying depth, (91% - 95%) for plastic aspect ratio (width - height) and 96% for depth of laying drip pipes. In general, SWRT system achieved the highest total water stored, water consumptive use and Faba bean grain yield about of 49%, 53% and 50% respectively, and achieved the lowest cost about of 74% compared to without using plastic film. The results showed that aspect ratio 2:1 achieved the lowest pulling force, fuel consumption and cost about of 24%, 22% and 7% respectively, and the highest actual field capacity about of 6% compared to 4:1 aspect ratio. While, the aspect ratio 4:1 achieved the highest total water stored, water consumptive use and Faba bean grain yield about of 21%, 26% and 14% respectively, compared to 2:1 aspect ratio. The lowest pulling force, fuel consumption and cost achieved at 20cm plastic laying depth about of 49%, 44% and 8% respectively, and highest actual field capacity about of 6% compared to 40cm depth. The highest total water stored, water consumptive use and Faba bean grain yield about of 14%, 17% and 11% respectively, at 40cm plastic laying depth compared to 20cm depth. The ridge system achieved the lowest pulling force, fuel consumption and cost about of 33%, 32% and 8% respectively, and the highest actual field capacity, total water stored, water consumptive use and Faba bean grain yield about of 5%, 8%, 9% and 8% respectively, compared to flat soil.