The commercial development of the center pivot irrigation machine has brought the technology of machine design into an area formerly dominated by hydraulics and hydrology. The major attributes of these systems--accommodations to sandy soils and rolling terrain, efficiency in application of water, automation and flexibility in operation--are countered by depletion of the aquifer on a long-term basis and high energy consumption. The key to continued short-term expansion of center pivot irrigation will be the cost of energy relative to the market value of crops raised under the system.
The Center Pivot - The First Irrigation Machine
Sae Technical Papers
1979 SAE International Off-Highway and Powerplant Congress and Exposition ; 1979
1979-02-01
Conference paper
English
Terrain , Water , Soils , Energy consumption
Power Sources for Center Pivot Irrigation
SAE Technical Papers | 1977
|Product Focus: Center Pivot Irrigation Systems
British Library Online Contents | 1999
|Automatic Restart for Center Pivot Irrigation Systems
British Library Online Contents | 1996
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