**3. Results**

#### **3.1 Field design**

Several designs of submerged ponds were successfully tested on the Abu Dhabi-type saltfish land. The design was modified to benefit from the tide and root movement rather than the use of pumps in the submerged ponds and was tested in Jubail, Saudi Arabia. The Sabkha lands are usually sedimentary, with a low filtration rate (less permeability) to the extent that 1 ha or more of a single irrigation outlet can be submerged, since the Sabkha field is not divided into separate basins, but the entire area is submerged.

In this method, the field is surrounded by a narrow barrier of soil and distributed within the barrier and at a depth of 1 m. A water pipe passes through the seawater during the tides to submerge the irrigation channels at a depth of half a meter to distribute the water to 10 m. A gate is also set up to control the level of water in the field. In order to fill the field, the gate is closed. The sea water (either as a result of the tide movement or using a pump) can pass through the main irrigation pipe to the irrigation channels and plant lines. A pump is often needed.

This method has been successfully tested in Mangrove, Salicornia, Abu Dhabi, where it has grown on Sabkha land, using seawater 50 g/l in irrigation. Soil salinity prior to planting was reduced from 80 to 120 g/l in a 10 cm layer by seawater washing for 1 week using 3 successive immersion and drainage cycles with salinity reduced to 50 g/l. The irrigation was done every 2–3 days in summer and every 4–5 days in winter.

It is worth mentioning that most of the water used is lost in surface drainage and therefore the water use efficiency is low. This design is suitable only in the case of Sabkha land, which can rely on the tidal and root water in irrigation without the need to use pumps.

It is the most widely used method of surface irrigation. This experiment was conducted on a sandy loam in Kino Bay, Mexico. Salicornia has been cultivated as an oilseed crop in 20 ha as a commercial farm since 1986. The farm was divided into

**67**

irrigation.

*Performance of Water Desalination and Modern Irrigation Systems for Improving Water…*

1 ha. The seawater well was used for irrigation from 5 to 10 days after germination and the water used was 3–4 m/200 days for yield. This rate falls within conventional crop rates, but irrigation efficiency is relatively low because about half of the added

Salicornia has been cultivated, where watering can be used in the first 100 days (up to the floriculture stage) and then the pipes have been used to connect to connect the water to the ground level next to the growing plants. The amount of water used for irrigation and washing was about 2–3 m and the growth period of the crop is 250 days (about 1.25–1.5 times the evaporation rate). The machines and pipes

Drip irrigation using seawater is used to irrigate the Atriplex shrubs. A high yield was obtained. No salinity and clotting problems were observed. The irrigation is continuous daily, and salt accumulation is more frequent when burying the pores in

Pibars and Mansour [30] compared sprinkler, surface drip, subsurface drip, and furrow irrigation to produce potato and sunflowers in the new reclaimed lands. Subsurface drip irrigation (SDI) with a 20-kPa irrigation criterion was among the

Pibars et al. [32] studied four options for managing drip irrigation of potatoes

Sprinkler irrigation at different irrigation criteria was compared to surface drip and buried drip irrigation (with a range of fertilization treatments), for potato yield and grade in Minnesota [3]. Less water was required using either drip irrigation system. Surface drip and buried drip were among the most productive systems for total and marketable yield. Furthermore, drip irrigation or sprinkler irrigation (at a relatively dry soil criteria) reduced nitrate leaching under potato compared to normal sprinkler irrigation [13] reporting that reduced nitrogen rates did not affect potato yield, when irrigated with a subsurface drip system. In **Figures 2–5**, the effect of different drip irrigation systems and different saline water on wheat grain,

Mansour and Aljughaiman [22] showed that drip irrigation had potential as an economically viable potato production method in the southeastern United States. Optimized irrigation rates were 99–86% of the water called for in their irrigation model. Ref. [29] examined tape depth and emitter spacing on tuber yield and grade of Norgold Russet potato in Lubbock, Texas. Tape depth or emitter spacing did not influence potato yield, but the proportion of misshaped tubers was greater when the tape was buried at 0.2 m than with shallower placement. Soil temperature was

straw yield and wheat grain, and straw water productivity is shown.

in North Dakota. Automation of the irrigation based on a soil water tension irrigation criterion at 30 kPa had relatively high water use efficiency. Tayel et al. [27] compared automated controlled SDI irrigation with the conventional semiclosed seepage subirrigation in Florida. The conventional irrigation system is under criticism because of surface runoff and nutrient contamination of adjoining waterways. The SDI system required more electrical energy but used 36% less water to obtain the same potato yield. Mansour et al. [42] examined irrigationscheduling options for drip-irrigated potatoes. For sprinkler-irrigated potato, extensive work has been done on potato responses to N fertilizer and N losses, but relatively few studies have studied potato N fertilization and loss under drip

used in this system must be resistant to the impact of seawater.

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.87010*

water is lost under the root zone.

**3.3 Drip irrigation**

**3.2 Center pivot sprinkler irrigation**

the soil rather than on the soil surface.

most productive irrigation systems.

*Performance of Water Desalination and Modern Irrigation Systems for Improving Water… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.87010*

1 ha. The seawater well was used for irrigation from 5 to 10 days after germination and the water used was 3–4 m/200 days for yield. This rate falls within conventional crop rates, but irrigation efficiency is relatively low because about half of the added water is lost under the root zone.

#### **3.2 Center pivot sprinkler irrigation**

Salicornia has been cultivated, where watering can be used in the first 100 days (up to the floriculture stage) and then the pipes have been used to connect to connect the water to the ground level next to the growing plants. The amount of water used for irrigation and washing was about 2–3 m and the growth period of the crop is 250 days (about 1.25–1.5 times the evaporation rate). The machines and pipes used in this system must be resistant to the impact of seawater.

#### **3.3 Drip irrigation**

*Irrigation - Water Productivity and Operation, Sustainability and Climate Change*

account when designing. Solutions are usually expensive.

not precisely leveled.

**3. Results**

**3.1 Field design**

entire area is submerged.

4–5 days in winter.

need to use pumps.

Usually, in the case of direct supply of seawater, it is a sea pier extending into the sea where pipes are drawn to fetch water by pumps. Irrigation channels must be constructed in the fields of the project, all of which affect the coast in terms of appearance and other uses of the coast. The movement of water and various marine organisms and the properties and effect of seawater on the rust of metals used in these marine environmental installations and the movement of waves, winds, and hurricanes are many difficult problems that must be considered and taken into

The alternative approach is indirect supply through wells to collect seawater, thus avoiding many of the above problems. Therefore, in the case of a groundwater reservoir, seawater wells are the best solution, but the limited capacity of the well may be a problem (many of these wells have been discovered despite their presence on the seashore in many studies). After a source of seawater is found, the next task is to connect the water to the root area, which can take many forms according to the irrigation method used. In the case of small spaces that can be used, simple irrigation method of watering where a system can be characterized by the rapid flow of water in open channels or light PVC pipes or plastic tubes can be folded. In the case of larger areas, the sprinklers can be used with either the axial or the lateral spray where the water is distributed homogenously on the ground even if the ground is

Several designs of submerged ponds were successfully tested on the Abu Dhabi-type saltfish land. The design was modified to benefit from the tide and root movement rather than the use of pumps in the submerged ponds and was tested in Jubail, Saudi Arabia. The Sabkha lands are usually sedimentary, with a low filtration rate (less permeability) to the extent that 1 ha or more of a single irrigation outlet can be submerged, since the Sabkha field is not divided into separate basins, but the

In this method, the field is surrounded by a narrow barrier of soil and distributed within the barrier and at a depth of 1 m. A water pipe passes through the seawater during the tides to submerge the irrigation channels at a depth of half a meter to distribute the water to 10 m. A gate is also set up to control the level of water in the field. In order to fill the field, the gate is closed. The sea water (either as a result of the tide movement or using a pump) can pass through the main irrigation

This method has been successfully tested in Mangrove, Salicornia, Abu Dhabi, where it has grown on Sabkha land, using seawater 50 g/l in irrigation. Soil salinity prior to planting was reduced from 80 to 120 g/l in a 10 cm layer by seawater washing for 1 week using 3 successive immersion and drainage cycles with salinity reduced to 50 g/l. The irrigation was done every 2–3 days in summer and every

It is worth mentioning that most of the water used is lost in surface drainage and therefore the water use efficiency is low. This design is suitable only in the case of Sabkha land, which can rely on the tidal and root water in irrigation without the

It is the most widely used method of surface irrigation. This experiment was conducted on a sandy loam in Kino Bay, Mexico. Salicornia has been cultivated as an oilseed crop in 20 ha as a commercial farm since 1986. The farm was divided into

pipe to the irrigation channels and plant lines. A pump is often needed.

**66**

Drip irrigation using seawater is used to irrigate the Atriplex shrubs. A high yield was obtained. No salinity and clotting problems were observed. The irrigation is continuous daily, and salt accumulation is more frequent when burying the pores in the soil rather than on the soil surface.

Pibars and Mansour [30] compared sprinkler, surface drip, subsurface drip, and furrow irrigation to produce potato and sunflowers in the new reclaimed lands. Subsurface drip irrigation (SDI) with a 20-kPa irrigation criterion was among the most productive irrigation systems.

Pibars et al. [32] studied four options for managing drip irrigation of potatoes in North Dakota. Automation of the irrigation based on a soil water tension irrigation criterion at 30 kPa had relatively high water use efficiency. Tayel et al. [27] compared automated controlled SDI irrigation with the conventional semiclosed seepage subirrigation in Florida. The conventional irrigation system is under criticism because of surface runoff and nutrient contamination of adjoining waterways. The SDI system required more electrical energy but used 36% less water to obtain the same potato yield. Mansour et al. [42] examined irrigationscheduling options for drip-irrigated potatoes. For sprinkler-irrigated potato, extensive work has been done on potato responses to N fertilizer and N losses, but relatively few studies have studied potato N fertilization and loss under drip irrigation.

Sprinkler irrigation at different irrigation criteria was compared to surface drip and buried drip irrigation (with a range of fertilization treatments), for potato yield and grade in Minnesota [3]. Less water was required using either drip irrigation system. Surface drip and buried drip were among the most productive systems for total and marketable yield. Furthermore, drip irrigation or sprinkler irrigation (at a relatively dry soil criteria) reduced nitrate leaching under potato compared to normal sprinkler irrigation [13] reporting that reduced nitrogen rates did not affect potato yield, when irrigated with a subsurface drip system. In **Figures 2–5**, the effect of different drip irrigation systems and different saline water on wheat grain, straw yield and wheat grain, and straw water productivity is shown.

Mansour and Aljughaiman [22] showed that drip irrigation had potential as an economically viable potato production method in the southeastern United States. Optimized irrigation rates were 99–86% of the water called for in their irrigation model. Ref. [29] examined tape depth and emitter spacing on tuber yield and grade of Norgold Russet potato in Lubbock, Texas. Tape depth or emitter spacing did not influence potato yield, but the proportion of misshaped tubers was greater when the tape was buried at 0.2 m than with shallower placement. Soil temperature was
