Development of a Variable Frequency Drive for Irrigation Pump Control

Abstract

This work presents the development of an affordable variable
frequency drive for irrigation applications. The variable frequency
drive system was designed to control the speed of irrigation pumps
based on water demand hence, minimizing energy wastage and
optimizing water distribution. The development of this work involved
the selection of locally sourced power electronic components as well
as the development of a controller for typical irrigation requirements.
Field testing and performance analysis showed a substantial potential
of this technology for enhancing agricultural water management
practices hence, reducing operational cost for farmers. This variable
frequency drive is intended to function correctly when supplied with
an AC voltage between 180V and 230V, at a frequency of 50Hz. Its
operational output frequency ranges from 10Hz to 50Hz. During
testing, the efficiency of the variable frequency drive was found to be
79.3%, while its voltage-frequency accuracy was 89.6%. The
maximum attainable speed recorded was 2930rmp. A lot of time was
spent during the development of this work. This is so because, it took
a lot of research and testing to get the right program that the
testing are consistent with those of commercially available Variable
Frequency Drives.