SAFR/AGLW/DOC/007

Irrigation Manual

Planning, Development
Monitoring and Evaluation
of Irrigated Agriculture
with Farmer Participation

Developed by

Andreas P. SAVVA
Karen FRENKEN

Volume II
Module 7

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

Sub-Regional Office for East and Southern Africa (SAFR)
Harare, 2002
 The views expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply
the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization
of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area of its
authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries

ISBN 0-7974-2315-X

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise,
without the prior permission of the copyright owner

© FAO SAFR 2002

Design and Layout: Fontline Electronic Publishing, Harare, Zimbabwe

Printed by: Préci-ex, Les Pailles, Mauritius

ii
 Foreword
The first edition of the Irrigation Manual was published in 1990 in two volumes by the “Smallholder Irrigation” Project
(UNDP/FAO/AGRITEX/ZIM/85/004). The authors of this first edition were FAO Staff on the project1. This edition of
one hundred copies ran out within two years from publishing.
Although the manual was written with Zimbabwe in mind, it soon became popular in several countries of the sub-region.
In view of the high demand, it was decided to proceed with a second edition. The experience gained from using the first
edition of the manual as the basic reference for the AGRITEX2 training programme of irrigation practitioners and the
University of Zimbabwe, was incorporated in the second edition which was published in 1994, in one volume by the
“Technical Assistance to AGRITEX” project (UNDP/FAO/AGRITEX/ZIM/91/005). This second edition was published
under the same authors as the first edition, with the assistance of a review committee from AGRITEX3. The two hundred
copies of this edition also ran out within two years of publishing.
In 1995, the FAO Sub-regional Office for East and Southern Africa (SAFR) was established in Harare, Zimbabwe, in
order to provide easy access to technical assistance and know-how for the countries of the sub-region4. In view of the
high demand for support in the field of smallholder irrigation by the countries of the sub-region, this office was
strengthened with four water resources management officers and a number of on-going programmes have been
developed to provide this support. One of these programmes is the publishing of a new regional edition of the irrigation
manual in support of the on-going national training programmes within several countries in the sub-region and to
provide the basic reference for another important programme, which is the sub-regional training on planning and design
of smallholder irrigation schemes.
This third edition aspires to further strengthen the engineering, agronomic and economic aspects of the manual and to
introduce new modules related to social, health and environmental aspects of irrigation development. The emphasis is
directed towards the engineering, agronomic and economic aspects of smallholder irrigation, in view of the limited
practical references in this area. This manual, being directed to the irrigation practitioner, does not provide an in-depth
analysis of the social, health and environmental aspects in irrigation development. It only attempts to introduce the
irrigation practitioner to these areas, providing a bridge between the various disciplines involved in irrigation
development.
The initiatives and efforts of the Water Resources Management Team of SAFR in publishing this Manual are considered
as a valuable contribution to the dissemination of knowledge and training of irrigation practitioners in the sub-region.
The material covered by this manual is expected to support both national and sub-regional training programmes in the
planning, design, construction, operation and maintenance and on-farm water management of irrigation schemes. This
will support the implementation of FAO’s mandate to increase food production through water control, intensification
and diversification, which are the basic components of the Special Programme for Food Security (SPFS).
The manual is the result of several years of field work and training irrigation engineers in the sub-region. The approaches
have been field tested and withstood the test of time.

1 A.P. Savva, Chief Technical Advisor; J. Stoutjesdijk, Irrigation Engineer; P.M.A. Regnier, Irrigation Engineer; S.V. Hindkjaer, Economist.
2 Agritex: Department of Agricultural Technical and Extension Services, Ministry of Lands and Agriculture, Zimbabwe.
3 Review committee: E. Chidenga, Acting Chief Irrigation Officer; P. Chipadza, Senior Irrigation Specialist; A. Dube, Senior Irrigation Specialist; L. Forichi, Irrigation
Specialist; L. Madhiri, Acting Principal Irrigation Officer; S. Madyiwa, Irrigation Specialist; P. Malusalila, Chief Crop Production; R. Mariga, Assistant Secretary, Economic
and Markets Branch; D. Tawonezvi, Agricultural Economist.
4 The following 21 countries are part of the FAO-SAFR region: Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Comoros, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius,
Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

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Irrigation manual

For ease of reference to the various topics covered by this Manual, the material has been divided into 14 modules,
covering the following:

Module 1: Irrigation development: a multifaceted process

Module 2: Natural resources assessment
Module 3: Agronomic aspects of irrigated crop production
Module 4: Crop water requirements and irrigation scheduling
Module 5: Irrigation pumping plant
Module 6: Guidelines for the preparation of technical drawings
Module 7: Surface irrigation systems: planning, design, operation and maintenance
Module 8: Sprinkler irrigation systems: planning, design, operation and maintenance
Module 9: Localized irrigation systems: planning, design, operation and maintenance
Module 10: Irrigation equipment for pressurized systems
Module 11: Financial and economic appraisal of irrigation projects
Module 12: Guidelines for the preparation of tender documents
Module 13: Construction of irrigation schemes
Module 14: Monitoring the technical and financial performance of an irrigation scheme
To those who have been waiting for so long for a practical irrigation engineering manual: here it is. I am sure that it will have
a lot to offer to both the new and experienced irrigation engineers.

Victoria Sekitoleko
FAO Sub-Regional Representative
for East and Southern Africa

iv
 Irrigation Manual
Module 7

Surface Irrigation Systems

Planning, Design,
Operation and Maintenance

Developed by

Andreas P. SAVVA
and
Karen FRENKEN

Water Resources Development and Management Officers

FAO Sub-Regional Office for East and Southern Africa

In collaboration with

Simon MADYIWA, Irrigation Engineer Consultant

Patrick CHIGURA, Irrigation Engineer Consultant
Lee TIRIVAMWE, National Irrigation Engineer, Zimbabwe
Victor MTHAMO, Irrigation Engineer Consultant

Harare, 2002

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 Acknowledgements

The preparation of the third edition of the Irrigation Manual is an initiative of FAO's Sub-Regional Office for East and
Southern Africa (SAFR).
The whole project was managed and coordinated by Andreas P. Savva and Karen Frenken, Water Resources Development
and Management Officers at FAO-SAFR, who are considered as the main authors. Karen Frenken is also the main technical
editor.
The inputs by Simon Madyiwa, Patrick Chigura, Lee Tirivamwe and Victor Mthamo to this Module 7 are appreciated. The
preparation of several drawings by Solomon Maina for this Module is acknowledged.
Special appreciation is extended to Chris Pappas for his substantial contribution to the layout of the irrigation manual.

vi
 Contents
Foreword iii
Acknowledgements vi
List of figures x
List of tables xiii
List of abbreviations xv
Unit conversion table xvii

1. INTRODUCTION TO SURFACE IRRIGATION 1

1.1. Components of a surface irrigation system 1
1.1.1. The water source 1
1.1.2. The intake facilities 1
1.1.3. The conveyance system 1
1.1.4. The water storage facilities 1
1.1.5. The field canal and/or pipe system 1
1.1.6. The infield water use system 3
1.1.7. The drainage system 3
1.1.8. Accessibility infrastructure 3
1.2. The four phases of surface irrigation 3
1.2.1. The advance phase 3
1.2.2. The storage or ponding phase 3
1.2.3. The depletion phase 4
1.2.4. The recession phase 4
1.3. Infiltration and contact time 4
1.3.1. Estimation of the infiltration rate using the infiltrometer method 5
1.3.2. Estimation of the infiltration rate using the actual furrow method 7
1.3.3. Determination of optimum stream size and furrow length 9
1.3.4. Determination of optimum stream size and borderstrip length 10

2. CRITERIA FOR THE SELECTION OF THE SURFACE IRRIGATION METHOD 13

2.1. Furrow irrigation 13
2.1.1. Furrow shape 13
2.1.2. Furrow spacing 15
2.1.3. Furrow length 15
2.2. Borderstrip irrigation 17
2.2.1. Borderstrip width 18
2.2.2. Longitudinal slope of the borderstrip 18
2.2.3. Borderstrip length 18
2.2.4. Guidelines for the determination of borderstrip width and length 19
2.3. Basin irrigation 20
2.3.1. Basin size 20
2.4. Efficiencies of surface irrigation systems and of the different surface irrigation methods 22
2.4.1. The different types of efficiencies in an irrigation system 22
2.4.2. Efficiencies of the different surface irrigation methods 23
2.5. Criteria for the selection of the surface irrigation method 24
2.5.1. Soil type 24
2.5.2. Type of crop 24
2.5.3. Required depth of irrigation application 24
2.5.4. Land slope 24

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 2.5.5. Field shape 24
2.5.6. Labour availability 24

3. DESIGN PARAMETERS FOR THE INFIELD WORKS 25

3.1. Crop and irrigation water requirements 25
3.2. Net and gross depth of water application 25
3.2.1. Net depth of water application 25
3.2.2. Gross depth of water application 26
3.3. Irrigation frequency and irrigation cycle 26
3.3.1. Irrigation frequency 26
3.3.2. Irrigation cycle 26
3.4. System capacity 27

4. LAYOUT OF A SURFACE IRRIGATION SCHEME 29

4.1. General layout 29
4.2. Nabusenga irrigation scheme layout 31
4.3. Mangui irrigation scheme layout 34

5. DESIGN OF CANALS AND PIPELINES 37

5.1. Design of canals 37
5.1.1. Calculation of the cross-section, perimeter and hydraulic radius of a canal 38
5.1.2. Factors affecting the canal discharge 38
5.1.3. Hydraulic design of canal networks using the chart of Manning formula 42
5.1.4. Canal section sizes used by Agritex in Zimbabwe 43
5.1.5. Longitudinal canal sections 45
5.1.6. Field canals for small irrigation schemes 49
5.1.7. Seepage losses in earthen canals 51
5.1.8. Canal lining 51
5.2. Design of pipelines 53
5.2.1. Design of the conveyance pipeline in Nabusenga irrigation scheme 54
5.2.2. Design of the piped system in Mangui irrigation scheme 54
5.2.3. Advantages and disadvantages of piped systems 60

6. HYDRAULIC STRUCTURES 61
6.1. Headworks for river water offtake 61
6.1.1. Headwork for direct river offtake 62
6.1.2. River offtake using a weir 63
6.1.3. River offtake using a dam 70
6.1.4. Scour gates for sedimentation control 71
6.2. Night storage reservoirs 73
6.2.1. Types of reservoirs 74
6.2.2. Reservoir components 75
6.3. Head regulators 77
6.4. Cross regulators 80
6.5. Drop structures and tail-end structures 80
6.5.1. Vertical drop structure 83
6.5.2. Chutes 85
6.5.3. Tail-end structures 86
6.6. Discharge measurement in canals 86
6.6.1. Discharge measurement equations 86
6.6.2. Weirs 89
6.6.3. Flumes 96

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 6.6.4. Orifices 107
6.6.5. Current meter 108
6.7. Discharge measurement in pipelines 110
6.7.1. Differential pressure flow meters 110
6.7.2. Rotating mechanical flow meters 110

7. LAND LEVELLING 111

7.1. Profile method 111
7.2. Contour method 111
7.3. Plane method 112
7.4. The cut : fill ratio 119
7.5. Use of computers 119

8. DESIGN OF THE DRAINAGE SYSTEM 123

8.1. Factors affecting drainage 123
8.1.1. Climate 123
8.1.2. Soil type and profile 123
8.1.3. Water quality 123
8.1.4. Irrigation practice 123
8.2. Determining hydraulic conductivity 124
8.3. Surface drainage 125
8.4. Subsurface drainage 127
8.4.1. Horizontal subsurface drainage 128
8.4.2. Vertical subsurface drainage 131
8.5. Salt problems 131

9. BILL OF QUANTITIES 133

9.1. Bill of quantities for Nabusenga irrigation scheme 133
9.1.1. The construction of a concrete-lined canal 133
9.1.2. The construction of a saddle bridge 135
9.1.3. The construction of a diversion structure 138
9.1.4. The overall bill of quantities for Nabusenga irrigation scheme 139
9.2. Bill of quantities for Mangui irrigation scheme 141

10. OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE OF SURFACE IRRIGATION SYSTEMS 143

10.1. Operation of the irrigation system 143
10.1.1. Water delivery to the canals 143
10.1.2. Water delivery to the fields 143
10.1.3. Operational success determinants 146
10.2. Maintenance of the irrigation system 147
10.2.1. Special maintenance 147
10.2.2. Deferred maintenance 147
10.2.3. Routine maintenance 147
10.3. Operation and maintenance responsibilities 148

REFERENCES 149

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 List of figures
1. Typical components of a surface irrigation system 2
2. Definition sketch showing the surface irrigation phases 3
3. Basic infiltration rate and cumulative infiltration curves 4
4. Cylinder infiltrometers 5
5. Analysis of the data of an infiltration test using an infiltrometer on a clay loam soil 6
6. Analysis of the data of an infiltration test using actual furrows on a clay loam soil 8
7. Time-advance graph for various stream flows in a furrow 9
8. Determining the head 10
9. Advance and recession of water on a borderstrip 10
10. Advance and recession curves for different borderstrip length needing different total volumes of water
to be applied 12
11. An example of a furrow irrigation system using siphons 13
12. Furrow shape depending on soil type 14
13. Soil moisture distribution on various soil types as a determinant of furrow spacing 14
14. Example of a borderstrip irrigation system 17
15. Cross-section of a borderstrip 18
16. Layout of basin irrigation 21
17. Typical layout of a surface irrigation scheme on uniform flat topography 30
18. The herringbone irrigation layout 31
19. Layout of Nabusenga surface irrigation scheme 32
20. Layout of Mangui piped surface irrigation scheme 33
21. Cumulative depth of irrigation versus time for different types of soil 34
22. Plot layout and hydrants 36
23. Flowchart for canal design calculations 37
24. Canal parameters 38
25. Different canal cross-sections 39
26. Hydraulic parameters for different canal shapes 41
27. Chart of Manning formula for trapezoidal canal cross-sections 43
28. Longitudinal profile of a field or tertiary canal 46
29. Longitudinal profile of a secondary or main canal 47
30. Longitudinal profile of a conveyance canal 48
31. Example of a longitudinal profile of a conveyance canal 49
32. Longitudinal canal profile generated by the Lonsec Programme 49
33. Methods commonly used to introduce water into the field 53
34. The longitudinal profile of the conveyance pipeline from Nabusenga dam to the night storage reservoir 55
35. Friction loss chart for AC pipes (Class 18) 56
36. Friction loss chart for uPVC pipes 57
37. Schemes irrigated from different water sources 61
38. Headwork with offtake structure only 62
39. Offtake possibilities in straight reach of river 62

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40. Possible arrangements for offtakes based on site conditions 62
41. An example of an intake arrangement of a headwork 63
42. An example of a diversion structure 64
43. C1 coefficient for different types of weirs in relation to submergence, based on crest shape 64
44. C2 coefficient for different types of weirs in relation to crest shape 65
45. Types of weirs 65
46. Gabion weir 66
47. Typical parameters used in the design of a stilling basin 67
48. Schematic view of a weir and apron 68
49. Masonry weir and apron 70
50. Dam cross-section at Nabusenga 70
51. Gravity offtake with diversion dam 72
52. Scour sluice 72
53. Design of a typical earthen night storage reservoir 75
54. Courses in brick wall of a reservoir 76
55. A simple in-situ concrete proportional flow division structure 77
56. Precast concrete block division box 78
57. Timber division structures 79
58. Duckbill weir photograph 80
59. Duckbill weir design 81
60. Diagonal weir 82
61. Some drop structures used in open canals 83
62. Standard drop structure without stilling basin 84
63. A vertical drop structure 85
64. A chute structure 86
65. Static and velocity heads 87
66. Variation of specific energy with depth of flow for different canal shapes 88
67. Hydraulic jump over a concrete apron 89
68. The form of a hydraulic jump postulated in the momentum theory 89
69. Parameters of a sharp-crested weir 90
70. Trapezoidal (Cipoletti) weir 92
71. V-notch weirs 93
72. Broad-crested weir 94
73. Romijn broad-crested weir, hydraulic dimensions of weir abutments 95
74. Romijn broad-crested weir, sliding blades and movable weir crest 95
75. Approach velocity coefficient, Cv, as a function of the total head over the movable weir, Hcrt 96
76. Parshall flume 97
77. Discharge correction factors for Parshall flumes with different throat widths 100-2
78. Head loss through Parshall flumes 103
79. Trapezoidal flume 105
80. Cut-throat flume 106
81. Cut-throat flume coefficients 106
82. Examples of orifices 107

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Irrigation manual

83. Free discharging flow through an orifice 107

84. Sluice gate under submerged conditions 108
85. Ott C31 propeller instrument 109
86. Depth-velocity integration method 109
87. Venturi flow meter 110
88. The profile method of land levelling: cut and fill and checking gradient levels with profile boards 111
89. The contour method of land levelling 112
90. Grid map showing land elevation and average profile figures 113
91. Average profile and lines of best fit 116
92. Part of the completed land levelling map for Nabusenga, assuming GX = 0.005 118
93. Irregular shaped field (elevations 0.0 are located outside the field) 122
94. Parameters for determining hydraulic conductivity 124
95. Cross-sections of drains 125
96. Rainfall-duration curve 126
97. Subsurface drainage systems at field level 127
98. Subsurface drainage parameters 128
99. Nomograph for the determination of equivalent sub-stratum depths 130
100. Nomograph for the solution of the Hooghoudt drain spacing formula 131
101. Salt accumulation in the root zone and the accompanying capillary rise 132
102. Cross-section of a concrete lined canal at Nabusenga 133
103. Saddle bridge for Nabusenga 136
104. Field canal bank breaching in order to allow the water to flow from the canal onto the field 143
105. Permanent outlet structure used to supply water from the canal onto the field 144
106. An example of a spile used to supply water from the canal onto the field 145
107. A siphon supplying water from a canal onto a field 146

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 List of tables
1. Typical infiltration rates for different soils 4
2. Infiltration rate data from an infiltrometer test 6
3. Infiltration rate measurement in a 100 m long furrow 8
4. Discharge for siphons, depending on pipe diameter and head 10
5. Guidelines to determine when to stop the water supply onto a borderstrip 10
6. Measurement of water advance and recession distance and time on a borderstrip 11
7. Furrow lengths in metres as related to soil type, slope, stream size and irrigation depth 16
8. Practical values of maximum furrow lengths in metres depending on soil type, slope, stream size and
irrigation depth for small-scale irrigation 17
9. Typical borderstrip dimensions in metres as related to soil type, slope, irrigation depth and stream size 19
10. Suggested maximum borderstrip widths and lengths for smallholder irrigation schemes 20
11. Criteria for basin size determination 20
12. Basin area in m2 for different stream sizes and soil types 21
13. Approximate values for the maximum basin width 22
14. Selection of an irrigation method based on soil type and net irrigation depth 24
15. Design parameters for Nabusenga and Mangui surface irrigation schemes 25
16. Summary of the calculated design parameters for Nabusenga and Mangui surface irrigation schemes 28
17. Km and n values for different types of canal surface 40
18. Typical canal side slopes 40
19. Recommended b/d ratios 41
20. Maximum water velocity ranges for earthen canals on different types of soil 41
21. Canal capacities for standard Agritex canal sections 44
22. Longitudinal profile for field canal - output from the Lonsec computer programme 50
23. Seepage losses for different soil types 51
24. Hazen-Williams C value for different materials 54
25. Weighted-creep ratios for weirs depending on soil type 68
26. Reinforcement requirements in a clay brick wall of a reservoir 76
27. Cross-sectional areas of reinforcement steel rods 77
28. Discharge Q (m3/sec) for contracted rectangular weir, depending on h and b 91
29. Discharge Q (m3/sec) for Cipoletti weir, depending on h and b 92
30. Discharge Q (m3/sec x 10) for a 90° V-notch weir, depending on h 94
31. Standard dimensions of Parshall flumes 98
32. Discharge characteristics of Parshall flumes 99
33. Land levelling results 117
34. Input and output data types for computer land levelling programme LEVEL 4EM.EXE 119
35. Land levelling calculations with line of best fit and cut:fill ratio of 1.01 120
36. Land levelling calculations with 0.5% gradient in the X direction and cut:fill ratio of 1.01 120
37. Land levelling calculations with line of best fit and cut:fill ratio of 1.21 121
38. Computer printout of land levelling data for Mangui piped surface irrigation scheme 121-2
39. Values for runoff coefficient C in Equation 70 126

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Irrigation manual

40. Concrete volume for different trapezoidal canal cross-sections 134

41. Summary of the bill of quantities for the construction of the 980 m long lined canal at Nabusenga 135
42. Summary of the bill of quantities for the construction of a saddle bridge 137
43. Summary of the bill of quantities for the construction of a diversion structure 138
44. Bill of quantities for Nabusenga scheme, downstream of the night storage reservoir 139
45. Summary of material requirements for Nabusenga (including 10% contingencies) 141
46. Bill of quantities for pipes and fittings and pumping plant at Mangui scheme 142
47. Discharge of permanent wooden field outlet structures 144
48. Rates of discharge through spiles (l/sec) 145
49. Discharge of siphons for different head and pipe diameter (l/sec) 146
50. Weed management and effectiveness 148

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 List of abbreviations

A Area
AC Asbestos Cement
ASAE American Society of Agricultural Engineers
C Cut
CI Cast Iron
J Density of water
D or d Diameter
d Water depth
dgross Gross depth of water application
dnet Net depth of water application
E Efficiency
EL Elevation
F Freeboard
F Fill
FC Field Capacity
Fr Froude Number
g Acceleration due to gravity
G Regression coefficient
GS Galvanized Steel
h water depth
H Head
Hf100 Friction losses per 100 m of pipe
HL Head Loss
IC Irrigation Cycle
IF Irrigation Frequency
IT Irrigation Time
Km Manning roughness coefficient
kPa Kilopascal
kW kilowatt
L Length
n Roughness coefficient (=1/Km)
NSR Night Storage Reservoir
P Allowable moisture depletion
P Wetted Perimeter
P Pressure
PWP Permanent Wilting Point
q Discharge into one furrow or discharge per m width
Q Discharge
R Hydraulic radius

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Irrigation manual

R Cut : Fill ratio

RZD Effective Root Zone Depth
S Slope or gradient
T Irrigation time
TDH Total Dynamic Head
uPVC unplasticized Polyvinyl Chloride
V Volume
V or v Water velocity
z Elevation

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 Unit conversion table

Length Mass
1 inch (in) 0.0254 m 1 ounce 28.3286 g
1 foot (ft) 0.3048 m 1 pound 0.4535 kg
1 yard (yd) 0.9144 m 1 long ton 1016.05 kg
1 mile 1609.344 m 1 short ton 907.185 kg
1 metre (m) 39.37 inches (in) 1 gram (g) 0.0353 ounces (oz)
1 metre (m) 3.28 feet (ft) 1 kilogram (kg) 1000 g = 2.20462 pounds
1 metre (m) 1.094 yards (yd) 1 ton 1000 kg = 0.984 long ton
1 kilometre (km) 0.62 miles = 1.102 short ton

Area Pressure
1 square inch (in2) 6.4516 x 10-2 m2 1 pound force/in2 6894.76 N/m2
1 square foot (ft2) 0.0929 m2 1 pound force/in2 51.7 mm Hg
1 square yard (yd2) 0.8361 m2 1 Pascal (PA) 1 N/m2
= 0.000145 pound force /in2
1 acre 4046.86 m2
1 atmosphere 760 mm Hg
1 acre 0.4046 ha
= 14.7 pound force/in2
1 square centimetre (cm2) 0.155 square inches (in2) (lbf/in2)
1 square metre (m2) 10.76 square feet (ft2) 1 atmosphere 1 bar
1 square metre (m2) 1.196 square yard (yd2) 1 bar 10 metres
1 square metre (m2) 0.00024 acres 1 bar 100 kpa
1 hectare (ha) 2.47 acres
Energy
Volume 1 B.t.u. 1055.966 J
1 cubic inch (in3) 1.6387 x 10-5 m3 1 foot pound-force 1.3559 J
1 cubic foot (ft3) 0.0283 m3 1 B.t.u. 0.25188 Kcalorie
1 cubic yard (yd3) 0.7646 m3 1 B.t.u. 0.0002930 KWh
1 cubic centimetre (cm3) 0.061 cubic inches (in3) 1 Joule (J) 0.000947 B.t.u.
1 cubic metre (m3) 35.315 cubic feet (ft3) 1 Joule (J) 0.7375 foot pound-force (ft.lbf)
1 cubic metre (m3) 1.308 cubic yards (yd3) 1 kilocalorie (Kcal) 4185.5 J = 3.97 B.t.u.
1 kilowatte-hour (kWh) 3600000 J = 3412 B.t.u.
Capacity
1. imperial gallon 0.0045 m3 Power
1. US gallon 0.0037 m3 1 Joule/sec 0.7376 foot pound/sec
1. imperial barrel 0.1639 m3 1 foot pound/sec 1.3557 watt
1. US. barrel 0.1190 m3 1 cheval-vapor 0.9861 hp
1 pint 0.5681 l 1 Kcal/h 0.001162 kW
1 US gallon (dry) 0.0044 m3 1 watt (W) 1 Joule/sec
1 litre (l) 0.22 imp. gallon = 0.7376 foot pound/sec (ft lbf/s)
1 litre (l) 0.264 U.S. gallon 1 horsepower (hp) 745.7 watt 550 ft lbf/s
1 litre (l) 0.0061 imperial barrel 1 horsepower (hp) 1.014 cheval-vapor (ch)
1 hectolitre (hl) 100 litres 1 kilowatt (kW) 860 Kcal/h
= 0.61 imperial barrel = 1.34 horsepower

= 0.84 US barrel
1 litre (l) 1.760 pints Temperature
0C (Celsius or centigrade-degree) 0C = 5/9 x (0F - 32)
1 cubic metre of water (m3) 1000 l
0F (Fahrenheit degree) 0F = 1.8 x 0C + 0F
= 227 U.S. gallon (dry)
1 imperial barrel 164 litres K (Kelvin) K = 0C + 273.15

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Irrigation manual

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