Abstract
Water irrigation systems are required to provide adequate pressure levels in any sort of network. Quite frequently, this requirement is achieved by using pressure reducing valves (PRVs). Nevertheless, the possibility of using hydraulic machines to recover energy instead of PRVs could reduce the energy footprint of the whole system. In this research, a new methodology is proposed to help water managers quantify the potential energy recovering of an irrigation water network with adequate conditions of topographies distribution. EPANET has been used to create a model based on probabilities of irrigation and flow distribution in real networks. Knowledge of the flows and pressures in the network is necessary to perform an analysis of economic viability. Using the proposed methodology, a case study has been analyzed in a typical Mediterranean region and the potential available energy has been estimated. The study quantifies the theoretical energy recoverable if hydraulic machines were installed in the network. Particularly, the maximum energy potentially recovered in the system has been estimated up to 188.23 MWh/year) with a potential saving of non-renewable energy resources (coal and gas) of CO2 137.4 t/year.
Highlights
IntroductionWater and its management is one of the more important current and future global challenges
Water and its management is one of the more important current and future global challenges.Its variability can cause cloudbursts, making sewers to overflow, while the scarcity of water in other components involves public services and reduces irrigation [1]
A flow estimation method must be implemented: the flow is assigned to pipes along time depending on registered volumes, irrigation trends, and consumption patterns
Summary
Water and its management is one of the more important current and future global challenges. Its variability can cause cloudbursts, making sewers to overflow, while the scarcity of water in other components involves public services and reduces irrigation [1]. An efficient management of water irrigation networks is crucial for facing future challenges related to the energy-water nexus, considering the importance of irrigation in the whole planet [2]. The development of the modernization of irrigation systems in agriculture (replacing open channel with pressurized irrigation) has considerably increased energy consumption in recent years [3]. The establishment of drip irrigation has made more efficient systems in water consumption but not in energy demand. Spain is not an exception: The annual irrigation volume consumed in Spain is 16.344 km3 /year [4]
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