Experimental Study on the Performance of a Sand Filtration Method and Device by Using Natural Soils and Subsurface PVC Drainage Pipes

Abstract

Drip irrigation is an efficient water-saving irrigation technique. However, the clogging of emitters is a major problem for drip irrigation systems that adversely affects the uniformity of water distribution and lowers the water use efficiency. The irrigation water with high sand content, if not properly treated, will cause physical clogging of emitters. To meet the requirement of drip irrigation, irrigation water of high concentration of sand particles should be filtrated in advance. In this paper, experiments on sandy water filtration by using two kinds of natural soils, sandy loam soil and sandy soil, and subsurface PVC drainage pipes were carried out. The filtration performance by using these two soils was investigated and compared. In addition, impact of sandy water filtration on physical properties of sandy loam soil and sandy soil were analyzed. Results show that both the sand content and filtration velocity of the filtered water decrease exponentially with time. The impact of sandy water filtration on physical properties of the two soils was also evaluated and the main reasons for clogging of soil pore space were analyzed.