Investigation of Energy Consumption in Agriculture Water Pumping Stations by Different Operation Methods (A Case Study: Ashrafiyeh Agro-Industry Irrigation System)

In the recent decades, due to the development of the pressurized irrigation systems, the relationship between the water and energy has been extended more than ever. So, according to problems due to the water shortage, energy saving is considered as one of the most important challenges in the agriculture section. In this study, by considering the capabilities of the pumping systems, variable speed pumps have been examined in an agro-industrial region of Ashrafiyeh (Qazvin province, Iran) with an area of 85 ha. The energy consumption during the ten-year operation was analyzed in the five operation scenarios by the MATLAB/SIMULINK software. The results showed that the consumed electrical energy by using variable speed pumps was approximately decreased up to about 18 percent, as compared to the fixed speed pumps. The results of the evaluation of the consumed energy showed that the current operation circumstance increased energy losses up to about 60 percent, as compared to the other operation methods. The results also revealed that the overall energy efficiency for the current operation circumstance was 52 percent (78 percent of Nebraska Performance Criteria).