Smart Irrigation System Considering Optimal Energy Management Based on Model Predictive Control (MPC)

Abstract

Traditional irrigation techniques usually cause the wasting of water resources. In addition, crops that are located in rural areas require water pumps that are powered by environmentally unfriendly fossil fuels. This research proposes a smart irrigation system energized by a microgrid. The proposal includes two stages: the first generates the daily irrigation profile based on an expert system for the adequate use of the water. Then, considering the irrigation profile, the power required for the water pump is measured—the optimal daily profile of electricity demand is determined in the second stage. The energy system is a microgrid composed of solar energy, a battery energy storage system (BESS) and a diesel generator. The microgrid is managed by an energy management system (EMS) that is based on model predictive control (MPC). The system selects the optimal start-up time of the water pump considering the technical aspects of irrigation and of the microgrid. The proposed methodology is validated by a simulation with real data from an alfalfa crop in an area of Ecuador. The results show that the smart irrigation proposed considers technical aspects that benefit the growth of the crops being studied and also avoids the waste of water.