Irrigation system and method

• US 6,709,198 B2
• Filed: 10/26/2001
• Issued: 03/23/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 02/14/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: International Water & Energy Savers, Ltd. (Boaz Wachtel)
• Original Assignee: International Water & Energy Savers, Ltd. (Boaz Wachtel)
• Inventors: Wachtel, Boaz
• Primary Examiner(s): Pezzuto, Robert E.
• Assistant Examiner(s): MAYO-PINNOCK, TARA LEIGH
• Application Number:
  US10/044,342
• Publication Number:
  US 20020141828A1
• Time in Patent Office: 879 Days
• Field of Search: 405/36, 405/51, 405/56, 405/59, 405/130, 47/10.1 F, 165/45, 622/60, 138/DIG.11
• US Class Current: 405/36
• CPC Class Codes: A01G 25/06 Watering arrangements making use of perforated pipe-lines located in the soil
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 5/0009 Horizontal tubes
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 5/0087 Recirculating of the cooling medium
• CPC Class Codes: E03B 3/06 from underground consolidating foundation soil by draining, e.g. by lowering the water level E02D3/00; subsoil filtering E21B43/02
• CPC Class Codes: E03B 3/28 from humid air condensing of vapours in general B01D5/00; dehumidification of air for air-conditioning F24F3/14
• CPC Class Codes: Y02A 20/00 Water conservation; Efficient water supply; Efficient water use

Abstract

An irrigation system comprising a closed-loop piping system, a portion of which is a condensing section extending on or below ground surface, and at least another portion of which is a cool-collecting section buried under ground at a cool ground zone. The closed-loop piping holds a liquid which is propelled by a circulating system through the piping system. The liquid is chilled by heat exchanging at the cool ground zone and then flows to the condensing section where moisture from the vicinity is extracted by condensation over the condensing section. The moisture is readily available for consumption by agriculture growth.

Claims

1. An irrigation system comprising an energized cooling system for controlling a liquid to a desired temperature, said system comprising:

a closed-loop condensation piping placed on or below ground surface;

an energized liquid circulating arrangement for circulating the liquid through the system; and

a control system receiving inputs from within and without the irrigation system suitable for regulating the temperature of the liquid circulating through the irrigation system and

retaining a substantially constant temperature difference Δ

T between the ground temperature and the liquid temperature, where;

2. An irrigation system according to claim 1, wherein a liquid reservoir is provided.

3. An irrigation system according to claim 2, wherein at least the liquid reservoir is placed under ground.

4. An irrigation system according to claim 1, wherein the cooling system includes heat exchanger arrangements.

5. An irrigation system according to claim 1, wherein either the liquid circulating arrangement or the cooling system is energized by an energy supplied by at least one of the following energy sources:

solar, wind, electric, hydraulic and biomass energy source.

6. An irrigation system according to claim 1, wherein the piping is formed with increased section area for increasing the amount of liquid condensed on a sheath thereof as compared with a piping having a circular cross-section.

7. An irrigation system according to claim 6, wherein the piping has an indented or serrated sheath area.

8. An irrigation system according to claim 1, wherein the control system governs flow parameters of the liquid and operative parameters of the irrigation system.

9. An irrigation system according to claim 1, wherein the cooling system comprises one or more cooling units.

10. The irrigation system of claim 1, wherein the closed loop condensation piping has at least one pipe disposed on the ground surface and at least one parallel pipe disposed below the ground surface such that the at least one pipe on the ground surface is used as a source of irrigation by condensation of water and the at least one pipe disposed below the ground surface chills the roots of agricultural growth.

11. The irrigation systems of claim 1, wherein the liquid temperature is warmer than an external environmental temperature such that the agricultural growth is protected against frost.

12. A method for underground irrigation according to which a liquid is propelled at a temperature of the liquid, which is set below ground temperature, said liquid is propelled through a closed piping buried below ground surface, wherein said temperature of the liquid is set to allow extracting moisture from the environment by condensing the liquid over a sheath of the piping, wherein said temperature of the liquid is selected so as to prevent freezing of a ground zone at the vicinity of the piping and said moisture is available for consumption by agriculture growth in the vicinity of the piping.

13. An irrigation method according to claim 12, wherein the piping is connected to a liquid reservoir, to a circulating arrangement and to a cooling system for chilling the liquid propelled through the piping.

14. An irrigation method according to claim 12, in which a substantially constant temperature difference Δ

T between the liquid temperature and the ground temperature is retained by regulating the liquid temperature, where;

15. An irrigation system comprising a closed-loop piping system at least a portion of which is a condensing section extending on or below ground surface, and at least an other portion thereof being a cool-collecting section buried under ground at a cool ground zone, where the ground temperature remains substantially cooler than the mean air temperature;

said irrigation system is provided with a circulating system suitable for propelling a liquid through the piping system;

whereby said cool-collecting section is adapted for chilling the liquid by heat exchanging at the cool ground zone without however freezing of the cool ground zone, the arrangement being such that when the chilled liquid flows to the condensing section a moisture from the vicinity of the condensing section is extracted by condensation over the condensing section, said moisture is readily available for consumption by agriculture growth.

16. An irrigation system according to claim 15, wherein the cool-collecting section is buried at least one meter under ground surface.

17. An irrigation system according to claim 15, wherein the cool-collecting section is buried at or below a depth at which the temperature difference between the ground temperature and the main air temperature remains substantially constant.

18. An irrigation system according to claim 15, wherein the liquid comprises an anti-freeze agent, to thereby decrease the freezing point of the liquid.

19. An irrigation system according to claim 15, wherein the piping system comprises several condensing sections and several cool-collecting sections;

said cool-collecting sections being arranged in altering depths to thereby minimize heat transfer influence between adjoining sections.

20. An irrigation system according to claim 15, wherein the cool-collecting section comprises a heat exchanger arrangement for increasing heat exchange rate.

21. An irrigation system according to claim 15, wherein several closed-loop piping systems are connected via a flow control valving system to the circulating system.

22. An irrigation system according to claim 15, further comprising a control system for activating the circulating system only when the temperature of the cool ground zone is below a predetermined temperature value at the vicinity of the condensing section.

23. An irrigation system according to claim 22, wherein the control system comprises:

a controller connected to the circulating system,

a ground temperature sensing means for sensing temperature at the cool-collecting section and,

an ambient temperature sensing means for sensing temperature at the condensing section,

wherein said ground temperature sensing means and said ambient temperature sensing means generate corresponding temperature signals which are processed by the controller to generate an activating signal to the circulating system, whenever the cool ground zone is below the predetermined temperature value measured at the vicinity of the condensing section.

24. An irrigation system according to claim 23, wherein the ground temperature sensing means and the ambient temperature sensing means is suitable for sensing either or both liquid temperature and temperature at the vicinity of the condensing section.

25. A method for irrigation comprising:

propelling a liquid through a closed-loop piping system comprising at least a condensing section extending on or below ground surface, and at least a cool-collecting section buried under ground at a cool ground zone where the ground temperature remains substantially cooler than the mean air temperature;

chilling said liquid at the cool-collecting section without however freezing of the cool ground zone,

extracting of moisture from the vicinity of the condensing section by condensation over a sheath at the condensing section, said moisture being readily available for consumption by agriculture growth.