Improving the efficiency and use of pressurized irrigation networks.

The Aravell i Bellestar irrigation community, in northern Lleida, operates an irrigation network built in the 1970s, made up of 11 km of open channel and 20 km of pressurized pipeline supplying irrigation water to 443 ha under an 800 l/s water-use concession granted by the river basin authority. The challenge is to quantify the current efficiency of the hydraulic infrastructure and optimize its performance, locating leaks and modulating the service pressure to match demand.

◦ To control flows captured (1) and returned (2) in the open channel: Instrumentation and ISURLOG dataloggers with NB-IoT communications and cloud data.
◦ For the main branches in the pressurized pipeline, with ISURLOG-NB dataloggers:
    ▪ Measuring the flow diverted at the head of the branch.
    ▪ Regulating service pressure according to demand.
◦ For the connections to individual crop plots:
    ▪ Adaptive irrigation based on soil moisture and weather conditions with an ISURDROP kit made up of an ultrasonic flow meter, an on/off valve and an IsurLog datalogger with LoRaWAN communications. On-demand irrigation by time slots or by desired m³.

"The implementation of ISURKI's cloud-based irrigation control system has allowed us to optimize the operation and water consumption for irrigating an entire 30 ha plot of pasture for dairy cattle production, based on the needs of each moment of the season." Carles Solans, owner of the SOLANS-CASTELLS farming operation.