Prevention and treatment of drip emitter clogging: a review of various innovative methods

Abstract

Abstract Various new and innovative methods of prevention and treatment of emitter clogging were demonstrated by researchers in recent years. A total of nine such innovative approaches were reviewed, classifying them under three broad categories, viz., physical, chemical and biological methods. Though flushing of laterals is a known method, it was found that increasing its frequency and at higher pressures improved the emission rate and uniformity of the emitters significantly. When Treated Waste Water (TWW) is used for irrigation, flushing with fresh water after every five irrigations effectively removed the emitter clogging. Among the various physical methods reviewed, use of MERUS ring, application of pulsating pressure with triangular wavefront and ultrasound treatment were found to be effective in removing composite clogging problem in drip emitters. Among the chemical methods, fertigation using urea phosphate (UP) at low concentrations for longer periods reduced the pH of irrigation water and contributed to the removal of chemical precipitates from the lateral pipes and emitters. Use of antagonist Bacillus bacterial strains helped in removing not only CaCO3 precipitation but also biofouling due to the use of TWW in the drip systems. However, this method needs to be further developed and optimized for its effectiveness and replicability.