Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Rebecca Matangaidze, Mandivamba Rukuni, Joseph P. Musara, Aspinas Chapwanya, Godfrey B. Nyamushamba
Summary: This study investigated the governance structures of five smallholder dairy schemes in Zimbabwe, and found that poor governance, mainly caused by incompetent boards and management committees, was the major factor affecting cooperative performance. It also revealed that cooperatives could become proficient and grow if good governance factors were in place. Therefore, cooperatives should adopt business models based on private sector partnerships to maximize expertise and technical support, and take advantage of existing opportunities to mitigate threats and improve product diversity, value addition, and effective pricing strategies. Capacity building roadmaps should be developed to identify competent and efficient boards for achieving these milestones.
TROPICAL ANIMAL HEALTH AND PRODUCTION
(2023)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Fiona Grant, Carolyn Sheline, Julia Sokol, Susan Amrose, Elizabeth Brownell, Vinay Nangia, Amos G. Winter
Summary: This paper presents a model for optimizing the design of solar-powered drip irrigation systems and explores the sensitivity of the optimal design to field area, system reliability constraint, and varying weather conditions using a case study of a Moroccan olive orchard. The results demonstrate that the model can significantly reduce system costs and operate effectively in real-world conditions.
Article
Environmental Studies
Tavengwa Chitata, Jeltsje Kemerink-Seyoum, Frances Cleaver
Summary: This article explores the everyday management of an irrigation scheme in Zimbabwe with concepts of institutional bricolage, moral ecological rationalities, and care. It emphasizes the importance of adaptability and motivations of care and control in shaping the management arrangements. The focus on moral-ecological rationalities contributes to critical water studies and sheds light on governing water and relationships between society-water/people and the environment.
ENVIRONMENT AND PLANNING E-NATURE AND SPACE
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Industrial
Hongyan Dui, Xuan Wei, Liudong Xing, Liwei Chen
Summary: This paper proposes a maintenance metric for improving the performance of an irrigation network and develops an optimum maintenance efficiency model. A case study of an irrigation network with 27 nodes is used to verify the practicality and effectiveness of the proposed method.
RELIABILITY ENGINEERING & SYSTEM SAFETY
(2023)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Yanlin Zhao, Chuanjiang Deng
Summary: This paper utilizes the AHP method to construct an evaluation model for the benefits of trough solar heat collection and irrigation system (TSHCIS) engineering. The sub-objectives of TSHCIS engineering benefits are evaluated based on economic, social, ecological, and other aspects. The paper proposes an evaluation index system for TSHCIS projects, considering the social, economic, and physical geographic characteristics. The study verifies the effectiveness of the AHP method in evaluating TSHCIS through an evaluation of a TSHCIS project in Panzhihua City.
Article
Social Sciences, Interdisciplinary
Joseph P. Musara, Kudakwashe Watetepa, Wellington Bandason, Vincent T. Munyati, Emmanuel Zivenge, Lovemore Musemwa, Never Mafuse
Summary: This study used a multinomial logit model to examine factors affecting smallholder irrigation farmers' selection of crop enterprises in their crop mix decisions. It found that variables such as age of household head, association to membership groups, number of buyers available in the markets, and prices of respective crops significantly affect the choice of enterprises. The research also highlighted the constraints faced by small scale irrigation farmers in decision making, such as lack of effective information dissemination mechanisms and weak core competencies of market signals interpretation.
COGENT SOCIAL SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Food Science & Technology
Lerato Phali, Maxwell Mudhara, Stuart Ferrer, Godswill Makombe
Summary: Smallholder Irrigation Schemes (SIS) play a crucial role in sustaining livelihoods and employment in rural communities of South Africa. However, the performance of farmers in these schemes is still below par, despite government efforts to revitalize and rehabilitate them. This study evaluates the performance of water-users in four SIS in KwaZulu-Natal Province and identifies factors that affect their technical efficiency. The findings highlight the importance of strengthening institutions, empowering farmers through training and access to credit, and improving water availability to enhance profitability and productivity.
FRONTIERS IN SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEMS
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Civil
Ehsan Moradi-Pari, Danyang Tian, Mojtaba Bahramgiri, Samer Rajab, Sue Bai
Summary: Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) communication systems have the potential to improve road safety and traffic flow through broadcasting Basic Safety Messages (BSMs). Two candidate technologies, DSRC and LTE-V2X, are compared and studied in this survey, focusing on their PHY and MAC layer performance. The advantages and disadvantages of each technology in supporting V2X applications are discussed, and their performance is evaluated using different metrics.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS
(2023)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Sakshi Chawla, Vinay Anand Tikkiwal
Summary: This study investigated the feasibility of installing a 1 MW grid-connected PV system in the arid climatic conditions of India, comparing the performance of four different module technologies in fixed-tilt and variable-tilt configurations. The study found that CIS technology had the highest annual energy yield in the variable-tilt configuration, while Mono-Si technology had the highest annual energy loss due to temperature. Mismatch losses for all technologies ranged from 0.1-1.1%.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENERGY RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Area Studies
Mark Nyandoro
Summary: This article examines the agrarian labour relationships between the Smallholder Gowe Irrigation Scheme, the dryland farming community, and the core irrigation estate in Sanyati, Zimbabwe from 1967 to 1990. It analyzes the emergence of smallholder cotton irrigation agriculture and the conflicts between this process and the labour demands of the estate sector. The article argues that once the main irrigation estate was established, the Gowe plot-holders served as the primary source of manual labour for the estate.
JOURNAL OF SOUTHERN AFRICAN STUDIES
(2022)
Article
Agronomy
Kithome Mary Muluki, Mogaka Hezron Rasugu, Mugwe Jayne Njeri, Isaboke Hezron Nyarindo
Summary: This study examined the factors that influence the decisions of smallholder farmers in Machakos County, Kenya to adopt and use irrigation technologies. The results showed that factors such as the sex of the household head, education, farm size, off-farm income, credit access, and access to extension services had a positive impact on the adoption of irrigation technologies. Therefore, it is recommended that agricultural extension organizations prioritize these factors when developing strategies and programs for smallholder farmers.
JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION
(2022)
Article
Thermodynamics
Pouya Ifaei, Amir Saman Tayerani Charmchi, Mattheos Santamouris, ChangKyoo Yoo
Summary: Insight into less-known aspects of sustainable development has been deepened through the development of the nexus between water and energy in the last decades. However, the complex sustainability problem cannot be fully investigated owing to the intrinsic shortcomings of the physical concept of energy. This study considered the exergy concept as a substitute for energy to develop water-exergy nexus analysis (WExNa) as an efficient analytical framework.
ENERGY CONVERSION AND MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Polymer Science
Zhuoqun Yu, Yongyan Wang, Jianguang Li
Summary: The performance of recycled tire polymer fiber (RTPF)-reinforced cemented paste backfill (CPB) was investigated to address environmental issues caused by scrap tire and tailings disposal. The inclusion of RTPFs improved the mechanical properties of CPB, with the best improvement effect observed at a fiber content of 0.6%. However, the flowability of RTPF-reinforced CPB decreased with increasing fiber content. Microscopic observations indicated that the bond between RTPFs and the CPB matrix influenced the mechanical properties. The cost-benefit analysis showed that reinforcing CPB with RTPFs could achieve high mechanical properties at a low material cost.
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Joao T. de Carvalho Neto
Summary: Photovoltaic devices' performance is influenced by the wavelength of incident radiation due to their spectral response. The spectrum of sunlight varies depending on location, climate, season, time, and angle, making it important to evaluate PV technologies under different light spectra to optimize installation conditions and minimize performance losses. To address this issue, this study proposes using an indoor experimental setup with adjustable RGB LED lights to analyze the performance of PV cells using different technologies (a-Si, p-Si, and m-Si) under specific light spectra.
IEEE SENSORS JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Jay Nigam, Totakura Bangar Raju, Ramachandra K. Pavan Kumar Pannala
Summary: Achieving sustainable water resource development and managing limited natural resources like water is a significant issue in India, where irrigation currently consumes about 80 percent of the total available water. The present study aims to rank irrigation canals in Jharkhand based on their efficiencies to improve the overall performance of Water Users' Associations (WUAs). The findings suggest room for improvement in the performance, but overall the WUAs have been successful in improving the technical efficiency of the irrigation system. These findings can be used to identify best practices and areas for improvement.