Arkansas Irrigation Pumps: Pumping Plant Efficiency per UADA Extension

University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture Cooperative Extension page "Pumping Plant Efficiency". Author and date are not stated on the page. Only stated points are included; fuel-cost and grant-program remarks on the page are left out.

Key points from the page

The page says older diesel power units and old wells are common among agricultural producers, and that upgrading wells or motors should be evaluated technically and economically.
Irrigators need a way to evaluate their pumping systems, for example to decide between switching to an electric motor or rebuilding a diesel plant.
Pumping efficiency compares fuel used with water pumped (Not verified: in detail: the exact factors the page names, such as well depth, engine condition and motor speed, and the laboratory-standard comparison, were not re-confirmed).
Typical figures given: electric pumping systems 75-85% overall efficiency; diesel pumps 18-35%, depending on engine age and care.
If data cannot be collected, efficiency can be estimated with assumptions, which must be made carefully to avoid grossly over- or underestimating performance.

The Irrigation Pumping Plant Efficiency Series (3241-A to 3241-M)

The page lists a 13-part series developed by LSU AgCenter, Texas A&M, the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture and New Mexico State University. Topics named include: water horsepower, variable frequency drives, soft starters for electric motors, measuring natural gas at a pumping plant, basics of on-site pumping plant evaluations, diesel and natural gas dual fuel, pump curves, reading electrical meters, pump efficiency, conserving irrigation water in the southern region, measuring irrigation flow, and irrigation pumping plant safety.

Not verified: Arkansas well permits, water rights and any site-specific sizing; the page does not cover them. The individual series publications were not opened.

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