A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Engineering

Thesis (M.Eng.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2006

An optimization model was adopted to improve efficiency of water use and maximize net benefit in an irrigation system. Specifically, the Song Chu irrigation system in Thanh Hoa province in Vietnam was chosen as the study area. A sub-area of 1510 ha served by the South canal was considered. A Linear Programming (LP) technique using simplex method was applied to determine optimum crop planning and water allocation. The main objective was to maximize net benefit from irrigation system subject to various constraints such as land availability, water availability, capacity of the system and other conditions. The results obtained include optimal cropping pattern and water allocation in the study area. An steady flow methodology based on continuity and momentum equations was also used to check the capacity of the irrigation canal. Net benefit based on optimal water use was compared with existing case. The result shows that alter optimization, the net benefit increased while water demand was reduced at the weir. The study indicates that optimal water allocation does not only save water resource but also avoid water stress situation for the system in dry season. As such, high net benefit to farmers was obtained