TY - GEN
T1 - Improving irrigation in remote areas
T2 - ASME 2014 International Design Engineering Technical Conferences and Computers and Information in Engineering Conference, IDETC/CIE 2014
AU - Santaeufemia, Pablo S.
AU - Johnson, Nathan G.
AU - McComb, Christopher
AU - Shimada, Kenji
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2014 by ASME.
PY - 2014
Y1 - 2014
N2 - Water-lifting technologies in rural areas of the developing world have enormous potential to stimulate agricultural and economic growth. The treadle pump, a human-powered lowcost pump designed for irrigation in developing countries, can help farmers maximize financial return on small plots of land by ending their dependency on rain-fed irrigation systems. The treadle pump uses a suction piston to draw groundwater to the surface by way of a foot-powered treadle attached to each suction piston. Current treadle pump designs lift water from depths up to 7 meters at a flow-rate of 1-5 liters per second. This work seeks to optimize the design of the Dekhi style treadle pump, which has gained significant popularity due to its simplicity. A mathematical model of the working fluid and treadle pump structure has been developed in this study. Deterministic optimization methods are then employed to maximize the flow rate of the groundwater pumped, maximize the lift height, and minimize the volume of material used for manufacturing. Design variables for the optimization included the dimensions of the pump, well depth, and speed of various parts of the system. The solutions are subject to constraints on the geometry of the system, the bending stress in the treadles, and ergonomic factors. Findings indicate that significant technical improvements can be made on the standard Dekhi design, such as increasing the size of the pump cylinders and hose, while maintaining a standard total treadle length. These improvements could allow the Dekhi pump to be implemented in new regions and benefit additional rural farmers in the developing world.
AB - Water-lifting technologies in rural areas of the developing world have enormous potential to stimulate agricultural and economic growth. The treadle pump, a human-powered lowcost pump designed for irrigation in developing countries, can help farmers maximize financial return on small plots of land by ending their dependency on rain-fed irrigation systems. The treadle pump uses a suction piston to draw groundwater to the surface by way of a foot-powered treadle attached to each suction piston. Current treadle pump designs lift water from depths up to 7 meters at a flow-rate of 1-5 liters per second. This work seeks to optimize the design of the Dekhi style treadle pump, which has gained significant popularity due to its simplicity. A mathematical model of the working fluid and treadle pump structure has been developed in this study. Deterministic optimization methods are then employed to maximize the flow rate of the groundwater pumped, maximize the lift height, and minimize the volume of material used for manufacturing. Design variables for the optimization included the dimensions of the pump, well depth, and speed of various parts of the system. The solutions are subject to constraints on the geometry of the system, the bending stress in the treadles, and ergonomic factors. Findings indicate that significant technical improvements can be made on the standard Dekhi design, such as increasing the size of the pump cylinders and hose, while maintaining a standard total treadle length. These improvements could allow the Dekhi pump to be implemented in new regions and benefit additional rural farmers in the developing world.
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U2 - 10.1115/DETC2014-35463
DO - 10.1115/DETC2014-35463
M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:84926204659
T3 - Proceedings of the ASME Design Engineering Technical Conference
BT - 40th Design Automation Conference
PB - American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
Y2 - 17 August 2014 through 20 August 2014
ER -