The knowledge about the distribution uniformity is very importam when working with sprinkler irrigation because it allows the identification of under-and-over-irrigated areas. In an experiment carried out at Centro de Pesquisa Agropecuária do Oeste (EMBRAPA-CPAO), Dourados, Mato Grosso do Sul State, the distribution uniformity of a conventional type sprinkler irrigation system was ascertained. One sprinkler, mounted at height 70cm and operating under four working pressures (280, 340, 400 and 480 kPa) was used. Using simulation of overlapping, the distribution of precipitation for four spacings (12x12, 12x18, 18x18 and 18x24m) was obtained. The experimental area was divided into 9m² plots. At the center of each plot one pluviometer was installed at height 30cm. The wind speed was measured with an anemometer mounted 2m above ground. Two 60 minutes assays were carried out for each working pressure. The distribution uniformity was calculated by the following coefficients: the Uniformity Coefficient of Christiansen, the Coefficient of Wilcox and Swailes, the Uniformity Coefficient of Benami, the Criddle Pattern Efficiency and the Beale Pattern Efficiency. The highest coefficients were the ones with 12x18 and 12x12 spacing. In general, the uniformity decreased with increasing wind speed, with similar wind speed there was increase in uniformity with increasing work pressure. The highest uniformity indices were obtained with Coefficient of Christiansen, followed by Coefficient of Wilcox and Swailes, while Coefficient of Benami provided the lowest values.
sprinkler irrigation; distribution uniformity; sprinkler performance
