Sharif Digital Repository

Among discharge flowmeters, the rectangular sharp-crested weir is one of the most popular and accurate, as well as being easy to work with. Using the standard weir, with the help of the conventional weir equation and Rehbock's or a similar standard formula for the discharge coefficient (Cd), the flow can be easily calculated. In order to increase the efficiency of the weir, it can be placed obliquely to the flow, increasing the effective weir length (L) and, hence, increasing the discharge for the same water head with the same channel width (B). The results of a comprehensive set of tests for oblique weirs (1·14 ≤ L/B ≤ 2·26 or oblique angles from 29° to 64°) show that for L/B less than 1·41... 

This paper compares the computation time of two algorithms for solving a structured constrained linear optimal control problem with finite horizon quadratic cost within the context of automated irrigation networks. The first is a standard centralized algorithm based on the active set method that does not exploit problem structure. The second is distributed and is based on a consensus algorithm, not specifically tailored to account for system structure. It is shown that there is a significant advantage in terms of computation overhead (the time spent computing the optimal solution) in using the second algorithm in large-scale networks. Specifically, for a fixed horizon length the computation... 

Determining an optimum height is remarked as one of the most important issues in heap designing and this is obtained by calculating the number and the height of heap lifts. Although the increase of lift height has benefits in heap leaching method from economic point of view, it will reduce the stability and make process problems such as low permeability. The current paper analyzes the effect of sulphuric acid irrigation on the strength parameters of Miduk oxide copper ores. In addition, the result of the process experiments have evaluated with different irrigation rates as well as variable conditions of permeability. From process view, approximately 75% of copper is recovered at irrigation... 

Urmia Lake River Basin (ULRB) is one of the most important habitats in the world and one of the major agricultural regions in Iran. On average, the ratio of irrigation to evapotranspiration in this basin is more than 73%. Investigating the irrigation water requirement pattern changes and the spatial distribution of evapotranspiration during the basin development period on a regional scale play important roles in understanding the basin situation. In this study, the actual evapotranspiration has been estimated by SEBAL model. By estimating the precipitation distribution in the basin, the agricultural irrigation water requirement pattern has been calculated using the land use map in 1995, 2010... 

This paper considers the computation time of two algorithms for solving a structured constrained linear optimal control problem with finite horizon quadratic cost within the context of automated irrigation networks. The first is a standard centralized algorithm based on the interior point method that does not exploit problem structure. The second is distributed and based on a consensus algorithm, not specifically tailored to account for system structure, but devised rather to facilitate the management of conflicting computational and communication overheads. It is shown that there is a significant advantage in terms of computation time in using the second algorithm in large-scale networks.... 

This paper is concerned with a distributed model predictive control (DMPC) method that is based on a distributed optimisation method with two-level architecture for communication. Feasibility (constraints satisfaction by the approximated solution), convergence and optimality of this distributed optimisation method are mathematically proved. For an automated irrigation channel, the satisfactory performance of the proposed DMPC method in attenuation of the undesired upstream transient error propagation and amplification phenomenon is illustrated and compared with the performance of another DMPC method that exploits a single-level architecture for communication. It is illustrated that the DMPC... 

Water is needed in all aspects of life and is vital to its social, economical and environmental dimensions. Having a key role in sustainable development, water management requires an integrated approach. Irrigation Water shortage promotes the development of innovative management and supply enhancement models. Effective water management requires a comprehensive consideration of all related aspects, e.g., technical, social, environmental, institutional, political and financial. Then the conventional methods of cost-benefit analysis and single-objective models have changed to multi-objective models. The rising of population in Iran puts significant pressure on authorities and infrastructures to... 

Water shortage is the main limitation for agricultural production in many parts of the world. Drought or unavailability of water may seriously limit plant growth as well as yield. A pot experiment was carried out to evaluate the effects of various irrigation strategies, i.e., Full (FI), deficit (DI) and partial root-zone drying (PRD) on physiological, biochemical and yield-related attributes of cotton crop. Irrigation treatments started 60 days after planting and lasted for 60 days. For FI and DI, 100% and 50% of evapotranspiration (ET) was replaced by irrigating the entire pot surface every 4–5 days. For PRD, root system was split into two equal halves and during each irrigation event, only... 

Considering the microstructure-processing-properties relationship, the attempt was made to distinguish the main structural features of drip irrigation tape grades. In this regards, two different commercial polyethylene grades using for irrigation tape application (DB and MD samples) with various microstructural features were fully characterized by means of thermal, rheological and mechanical measurements and microscopic observations. A set of DSC techniques revealed that DB sample has faster crystallization kinetic probably due to its high crystallizable segments in chains and broad molecular weight distribution. It was found, the type of co-monomer used in DB sample is 1-hexene and in MD... 

Socio-ecological systems include diverse resources of complexity involving complicated interactions, feedback, dynamic behavior patterns, heterogeneity in agents’ characteristics and behaviors, as well as system uncertainties. Agent-based modeling is introduced as a tool to simulate different levels of stakeholders and interactions, including individual, group, and institutional agents in complex socio-ecological systems. In the present study, an agent-based model was developed to explore sustainable solutions in uncertain conditions for groundwater restoration of a critical aquifer in the Lake Urmia Basin, Iran. Different projects for aquifer restoration such as wells monitoring, license... 

One of the main challenges in arid and semi-arid regions is the lack of water for various purposes such as industrial and agricultural applications. The problem is even more significant in traditional agriculture. The geographical location, climatic conditions, average annual rainfall, vegetation, air pollution and turbidity, and canopy of plants are important and lead to different water consumption in plants. Therefore, proper water consumption in agriculture in most countries leads to food security and a better supply of crops. In this research, we propose a fuzzy system that has eight inputs and seven outputs. Inputs include soil moisture, relative humidity, air temperature, wind speed,... 

The rapid shrinkage of Lake Urmia over the past two decades has raised serious environmental concerns. Several restoration plans have been proposed to reduce agricultural water consumption to supply a remarkable fraction of the lake's environmental flow requirement. However, an accurate and realistic evaluation of the effectiveness of these plans in reducing agricultural water consumption across the basin is still poorly understood. This study assessed the water-saving potential of agricultural alteration in a snow-dominated catchment in the Lake Urmia Basin. In particular, we explored the impact of crop pattern alteration via reducing the cultivation area and employing different irrigation...