IRRIGATION AND DRAINAGE

Irrig. and Drain. 63: 523531 (2014)

Published online 7 May 2014 in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com) DOI: 10.1002/ird.1846

A NEW MODEL FOR HEAD LOSS ASSESSMENT OF SCREEN FILTERS DEVELOPED

WITH DIMENSIONAL ANALYSIS IN DRIP IRRIGATION SYSTEMS
WENYONG WU1,2*, WEI CHEN3, HONGLU LIU1,2, SHIYANG YIN1,2 AND YONG NIU1,2
1

Beijing Hydraulic Research Institute, Beijing, China

Beijing Unconventional Water Resources Development and Utilization and Water-saving Engineering Research Centre, Beijing, China
3
Tianjin North China Geological Exploration Bureau, Tianjing, China

ABSTRACT
This study is based on data of the hydraulic analysis of 15 types of screen lters, incorporating such technical parameters as the
pipe inlet/outlet inner diameter Dp, angle between lter body and inlet/outlet a, lter pore diameter ds, lter mesh number M,
water velocity of inlet/outlet vi, and average water velocity of lter pore vm to develop a dimensional head loss model. The
regression coefcient R2adj is 0.951 and the correlation coefcient R between the measured value and predicted value is 0.97.
Using the model to study lter head loss variations as different structure parameters change, and the variation of structure
parameters would lead to the changes of vi, vm, Re and Fr, consequently resulting in head loss variation. It was found that
the head loss decreases signicantly as the inlet/outlet diameter and lter mesh diameter decrease. An increasing angle or lter
mesh size (while keeping the lter diameter constant) does not have a signicant impact on the screen lter head loss. For the
screen lter structural design, the proper inner diameter of inlet/outlet and lter mesh diameter should be selected to reduce
both water head loss along the path and local head loss. Copyright 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
key words: ltration efciency; energy conservation; water-saving irrigation; structural development
Received 26 June 2013; Revised 14 December 2013; Accepted 14 December 2013

RSUM
Cette tude est base sur les donnes de lanalyse hydraulique de 15 types dcrans de ltres, intgrant ces paramtres techniques pour dvelopper un modle dimensionnel de pertes de charge, comme les diamtres internes dentre et de sortie de
la conduite Dp, langle entre le corps de ltre et laxe dentre/sortie a, le diamtre des pores du ltre ds, le numro de tamis
M, la vitesse de leau de dentre et desortie vi, et la vitesse moyenne de leau dans le ltre vm. Le coefcient de rgression R2adj
est 0.951 et le coefcient de corrlation R entre la valeur mesure et la valeur prdite est de 0.97. Le modle permet dtudier
les variations de pertes en charge de la tte de ltre en faisant varier les paramtres de structure que sont vi, vm, Re et Fr. On a
constat que la perte de charge diminue de manire signicative alors que le diamtre dentre/sortie et la taille du tamis
diminuent. Augmenter langle du ltre ou la maille du tamis (tout en gardant constant le diamtre du ltre) na pas eu dimpact
signicatif sur les pertes en charge du ltre. Pour la conception de la structure de lcran de ltre, le diamtre intrieur dentre/
sortie et la maille du ltre doivent tre choisis pour rduire la fois les pertes en charges linaires et les pertes locales dans la
tte du ltre. Copyright 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
mots cls: efcacit de ltration; conservation de lnergie; lirrigation conome en eau; dveloppement structurel

INTRODUCTION
Drip irrigation technology has the advantages of low energy
consumption and high irrigation uniformity. Filtering equipment can effectively prevent dripper clogging. Therefore,

the lter is the key piece of equipment inuencing drip irrigation system energy consumption and irrigation uniformity
(Gilbert et al., 1982; Adin, 1987; Duran-Ros et al., 2010).
Filter system head loss usually accounts for more than

*Correspondence to: Dr Wenyong Wu, Beijing Hydraulic Research Institute, No. 21, Chegongzhuang west road, Haidian District, Beijing, China Haidian district
Beijing 100048, China. Tel.: 0086-10-88416492, Fax: 0086-10-88423808. E-mail: wenyongwu@126.com

Un nouveau modle pour valuer les crans de ltres avec lanalyse dimensionnelle des systmes dirrigation au goutte goutte.

Copyright 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

524

W. WU ET AL.

40% of the overall head loss. High-efciency ltering

equipment should result in relatively higher pollutant removal efciency and lower head loss. The ultimate goals
for lter system structure design are to reduce energy consumption and improve efciency.
There are four common types of drip irrigation lter equipment: sand lters are usually used for removing suspended
organic particles with removal efciencies of 4785% (Ravina
et al., 1993; Elbana et al., 2012), centrifugal lters are generally
used for removing inorganic particles with a maximum removal
efciency of 98% (Keller and Bliesner, 1990; Demir and Uz,
1994) and disc lters and screen lters can be used to remove
both inorganic particles and suspended organic particles (Adin
and Alon, 1986; Puig-Bargus et al., 2005a; Duran-Ros et al.,
2009). In general, different types of lters used in combination
can achieve the best ltration effect.
The main factors impacting on lter head loss include the
structural parameters of the lter body, lter medium
physical parameters and ltering uid parameters.
Centrifugal lter head loss mainly depends on geometric
parameters, such as inlet/outlet diameter and cavity size.
This loss achieves maximum efciency when its vortex
nder length is one tenth of the total length of the centrifugal
lter (Martinez et al., 2008; Yurdem et al., 2010). The sand
lter head loss is closely related to the sand medium
effective diameter and the suspended solid content of
ltered water (Duran-Ros et al. 2010; Elbana et al. 2012).
In clean water, disc lter head loss is closely related to
inlet/outlet diameter, disc inner/outer diameter and disc
effective diameter. Y-shaped disc lters have the least
amount of head loss (Yurdem et al., 2008). Comparing
screen lters with sand and disc lters, screen lters are
easier to operate, more convenient to clean and have higher
removal efciency against inorganic pollutants (Tajrishy
et al., 1994; Puig-Bargus et al., 2003). Research on head
loss models can improve lter structure design and energy
efciency, leading to a more operationally efcient drip
irrigation system.
Dimensional analysis is an effective tool for developing
new mathematical models (Price, 2003). It is also not
necessary to develop complex physics process models
and the analysis can be performed using experimental
data (Sonin, 2001). In general, the dimensional analysis
model is a common method to evaluate the impact of
the lter physical structure on head loss (Puig-Bargus
et al., 2005b; Duran-Ros et al., 2010; Yurdem et al.,
2010). But previous studies mainly described the lter
structure with some lter body parameters, such as inside
diameter of the lter body, inside diameter of the inlet and
outlet pipe, effective length of the lter media, inside and
outside diameter of the lter media, etc. Few studies
introduced ow path parameters of lter media to establish a
head loss model.
Copyright 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The primary objective of this study is to develop a

dimensional computational model for head loss based on
different screen lter structure parameters including lter
mesh structure parameters and head loss experimental data,
leading to better insight with respect to the key technical
parameters for screen lter structure design and their
future improvement.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Experimental design
Fifteen types of screen lters were bought from the market
for the study. The lter structures and sizes are illustrated
in Figure 1 and Table I. The screen lters are made of a lter
body and a lter element. Apart from the shape parameters
measuring the length between the inlet/outlet Ld, inner diameter of the inlet/outlet Dp, inner diameter of lter body Db,
inner length of lter body Lb, inner diameter of lter screen
di, lter screen length Lf and angle between lter body and
inlet/outlet a, this study also used an Leica-DLMB optical
microscope (Leica, Wetzlar, Germany) to measure the lter
pore diameter dp and lter mesh diameter dm to calculate the
net ltering area S and measured mesh number M.
The experimental set-up is illustrated in Figure 2. The
groundwater used for the experiment was stored within a
temperature range of 1020 C, and it was recycled in a
pit-sized tank of 1.5 1.5 3.5 m. In addition, a secondary
ltration system using a sand lter with effective diameter
of 1.4 and a 120-mesh disc lter was used for preprocessing
the experimental water to ensure clean water quality. A pressure sensor (precision 0.001 MPa)and ow sensor(precision

Figure 1. Screen lter structure diagram

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525

75
105
117
75
66
93
110
137
119
131
100
107
134
136
115
124.0
72.1
89.8
124.3
208.5
77.8
77.6
64.5
84.2
66.8
67.3
67.6
67.9
65.1
82.3
214.5
170.2
127.6
213.9
176.8
195.6
152.3
120.4
130.1
126.4
186.5
169.9
121.3
122.2
139.4
11 520
12 372
9 777
24 051
7 847
10 303
10 849
6 647
6 803
13 345
13 345
8 912
9 411
9 419
9 391
103.0
105.8
107.2
222.0
110.2
135.5
135.5
110.7
109.5
110.8
110.8
110.0
110.0
109.9
108.7

0.001 m3)were installed. A computer and customized

software were used to monitor the pressure and ow changes
before and after ltering in real time. The computer automatically altered the inlet pressure from high to low pressure at a
step of 0.005 MPa with duration 3 min, and stable pressure
difference can be measured within 1 min. Each disc type
was tested three times. Table II lists the ranges for ow Q,
head loss H, the water velocity of inlet/outlet vi, average
water velocity of lter pore vm, Reynolds number Re.
The average water velocity of lter pore vm, measured
mesh number M and Froude number Fr (Tan, 2005) are
calculated as follows:
"
#
d2p
Q
S
vm
=



3600 10002 d m d p 2

(1)



dm dp
M 25:4=
1000

(2)

48.72
50.41
36.39
51.29
31.24
38.25
38.48
30.87
27.59
51.24
51.24
34.18
36.60
36.50
37.29

Fr

v2m
gd m

(3)

188
185
166
162
119
159
162
126
120
191
191
178
181
174
168

22.2
22.4
17.0
36.1
18.1
20.9
20.7
23.4
18.8
21.9
21.9
22.0
21.8
17.8
18.2

45
45
40
90
54
45
40
55
55
45
45
40
40
40
40

80.2
85.5
51.4
83.5
47.7
60.2
60.6
47.4
47.2
72.4
72.4
51.8
52.0
52.0
51.9

168.0
170.0
176.0
342.0
157.0
185.0
185.0
156.0
156.0
158.0
158.0
175.0
186.0
176.0
178.0

Dimensional analysis

LY1
LY2
JY1
JY3
AM2
GN2
GN3
IR2
IR3
YT1
YT2
LM1
LM2
LM4
AZ

The length
Inner diameter Angle between Inner diameter Inner length Inner diameter
Filter
Filter mesh
Filter pore
between the inlet/ of inlet/outlet lter body and of lter body of lter body of lter screen screen length Net ltering
diameter Measured
Type outlet Ld (mm)
area S (mm2) diameter dp(m) dm(m)
mesh M
Dp (mm)
inlet/outlet,
Lb (mm)
di (mm)
Lf (mm)
Db (mm)

Table I. Physical parameters for lters used in the experiments

A NEW MODEL FOR HEAD LOSS ASSESSMENT OF SCREEN FILTERS

Copyright 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Screen lter head loss is related to lter body structure parameters, lter medium parameters and lter liquid parameters. As listed in Table III, the previous studies used more
parameters for ltered water and less parameters for lter
body structure and lter medium in head loss models establishment (Puig-Bargus et al., 2005b; Duran-Ros et al.,
2010). The lack of description of the body structure and lter
medium parameters has reduced the models versatility, limiting its application. Therefore, detailed description of the
screen lter body structure and lter mesh structure is very
important for screen lter hydraulic performance studies for
delivering clean water.
The parameters selected for the dimensional analysis
model need to be mutually independent. The lter body
structure parameters used for this study are the inner diameter of inlet/outlet Dp and the angle a. The lter medium
parameters selected are the lter mesh diameter dm and
measured mesh number M. The lter liquid parameters
selected are the water velocity of inlet/outlet vi, average water velocity of lter pore vm, water density , gravity g, water
viscosity and head loss H.
The two-dimensional matrix can be built using the 10
parameters listed above and mass (M), length (L) and time (T),
as illustrated in Table IV. Altogether, there are m = 10
independent variables and the number of basic variables,
k, is 3; therefore, there should be 7 derived variables as
dimensionless parameters:
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526

W. WU ET AL.

Figure 2. Experimental system structural diagram: (1) water pump; (2) ow sensor; (3) pressure sensor; (4) disk lter for preltering; (5) sand lter for
preltering; (6) backow valve; (7) control valve; (8) data log system and computer; (9) transducer, and (10) tested screen lter

Table II. Flow characteristic parameter range, mean and standard deviation

LY1
LY2
JY1
JY3
AM2
GN2
GN3
IR2
IR3
YT1
YT2
LM1
LM2
LM4
AZ

Flow Q(m3 h1)

Head loss H(kPa)

Water velocity of
inlet/outlet vi(m s1)

Average water velocity of

lter pore vm(m s1)

Reynolds number Re

1.80-5.85
2.18-6.55
2.57-5.67
7.50-19.32
1.20-3.60
2.12-6.46
2.40-6.61
1.57-6.55
1.38-5.23
1.69-6.63
2.68-6.71
2.09-6.55
1.77-6.39
2.12-5.50
1.50-7.30

4.00-35.00
6.00-42.00
15.20-84.50
6.00-43.60
7.10-56.20
6.00-46.40
8.00-51.00
4.80-61.80
5.50-88.00
4.00-44.00
7.20-41.00
7.00-55.00
5.60-58.00
10.10-78.00
7.70-54.40

1.29-4.19
1.54-4.61
3.15-6.95
2.03-5.24
1.30-3.90
1.71-5.23
1.98-5.46
1.01-4.22
1.39-5.25
1.28-5.01
1.90-4.75
1.54-4.80
1.31-4.74
2.37-6.15
1.61-7.82

0.11-0.35
0.10-0.30
0.21-0.47
0.22-0.56
0.20-0.61
0.11-0.34
0.14-0.39
0.15-0.65
0.15-0.58
0.08-0.32
0.10-0.26
0.13-0.40
0.13-0.46
0.15-0.38
0.11-0.55

28 665.03-93 162.26
34 435.82-103 307.65
53 556.59-118 091.20
73 455.01-189 190.73
23 485.13-70 455.39
35 836.61-109 347.99
41 007.05-112 978.92
23 638.47-98 854.16
26 116.82-98 570.98
27 593.74-108 439.03
42 463.76-106 218.59
33 726.37-105 471.45
28 685.92-103 484.99
42 121.62-109 399.92
29 211.01-142 113.92

Table III. Main technical parameters for relevant research studies

Reference

Filter body parameters

Filter medium parameters

Total ltration
surface area A
The ltration level or
lter pore diameter dp

Puig-Bargus et al. (2005b)

Duran-Ros et al. (2010)

Inlet/outlet pipe diameter Dp

Filtering liquid parameters

Water density
Water viscosity
Filter liquid volume V
The concentration of total suspended solids C
The ow rate across the lter Q
The mean diameter of efuent particle size distribution Pd
Water density
Water viscosity
Water velocity v
The concentration of total suspended solids C

Table IV. The main parameters of the dimensional matrix

M
L
T

Dp

dm

vi

vm

1
1
2

0
1
0

0
0
0

0
1
0

0
0
0

0
1
1

0
1
1

1
3
0

0
1
2

1
1
1

Copyright 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Irrig. and Drain. 63: 523531 (2014)

527

A NEW MODEL FOR HEAD LOSS ASSESSMENT OF SCREEN FILTERS

1 a
5

2 M

Dp
dm

3
vm
vi

vi Dp

v2m
gd m

(4)

H
v2m

Formula (4) can be used to build a correlation between the

dimensionless parameters from 1 to 6 to predict sand lter
head loss:
7 f 1 ; 2 ; 3 ; 4 ; 5 ; 6

(5)

The SPSS statistics software (SPSS Inc., Chicago, Illinois,

USA) was used to perform multi-variable linear regression
analyses on the dimensionless parameters after logarithmic
conversion. The statistical signicance level was set as 0.01.
A parameter was excluded if P >0.05.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Dimensional analysis model establishment
Statistical analyses were performed on the model using 347
sets of experimental data. The results are shown in Table V.
The model R2adj reaches 0.951.
Of the independent variables, ln 2, ln 3, ln 4, ln 5 and
ln 6 are signicant (P < 0.001) and their independent
variables and dependent variables are signicantly correlated (P < 0.001). The newly derived mathematical model
is shown by Formula (6):

1:059
H
0:009 0:468 vi Dp

12:081
M
(6)

v2m
 2 0:449  0:144  1:969
vm
Dp
vi
gd m
dm
vm
As shown in Figure 3, the H values computed using
Formula (6) are strongly correlated using a measured value;
the correlation coefcient R is 0.97. The studies performed
by Puig-Bargus et al. (2005b)and Duran-Ros et al. (2010)
focused on a dimensional analysis model for screen lter

Figure 3. The comparison between predicted and measured head losses

head loss under reclaimed water, and the models proposed

by these researchers used suspended solid concentration
(C) in reclaimed water as an important parameter and their
model correlation coefcients reached 0.979 and 0.984.
However,the dimensional analysis model proposed by
those research studies was derived using a measured value
regression analysis based on one type of lter (with inlet
size 50.8 mm and lter pore diameter 120 m). Therefore,
the models application has been notably limited. Our
study adopted 15 different types of screen lters,
representing multiple scenarios associated with different
inlet/outlet diameter and mesh numbers. Therefore, the
derived dimensional analysis model has better application
scope.
As illustrated in Figures 4 (a)(c), for every type of screen
lter the overall correlations are very high; there is good
agreement between the measured and predicted values. But
when there is a larger ow, the model had over- or
underprediction of head loss for YT2, GN2 (Figure 4) and
RL (Figure 5) screen lters compared to the measured values,
which indicated that the model made predictions with a degree
of error. The relative error between predicted and measured
head loss values for the 15 types of screen lters is 8.2 6.2%.

Table V. Statistical analysis results for the model

Non-standardized coefcients
Dependent
variable

Signicance
level P

ln 7

<0.001

Copyright 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Regression
coefcient R2adj

Independent
variable

Standard error

0.951

Constant
ln 1
ln 2
ln 3
ln 4
ln 5
ln 6

12.081
0.009
0.468
1.059
0.449
0.144
1.969

0.599
0.052
0.070
0.072
0.037
0.030
0.068

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528

W. WU ET AL.

Figure 4. Comparisons between predicted head losses H and measured head losses for different screen lters (a) AM2, GN2, YT2, LM4 and AM4; (b) IR3,
LM2, RL, GN3 and LY1; (c) LY2, JY1, YT1, LM1 and JY3

The head loss is affected by the disc lter structure

parameter and ow rate. The model may give satisfactory
predictions within the range of operational and lter structure parameters, which is valid for the following conditions:
66 M 137
1:01 vi 7:82 m s1

120:4 d p 214:5 m
0:75 Q 19:32 m3 h1
14736:11 Re 189190:73

0:08 vm 0:65 m s1

Head loss prediction under different structure

measures

17:0 Dp 36:1 mm

As illustrated in Figures 5-8, the lter head loss variations

under different structural parameter conditions were studied
based on the IR2 lter physical structure parameters.

64:5 d m 208:5 m
Copyright 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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A NEW MODEL FOR HEAD LOSS ASSESSMENT OF SCREEN FILTERS

529

Figure 5. Simulated head loss variation under different lter angles for the
IR2 screen lter

There are ve angles of the tested screen lter between

the screen lter body and inlet/outlet: 40, 45, 54, 55
and 90. Figure 5 shows the simulated head loss variation
at the angles of 45, 55, 65and 90 for the IR2 screen lter. There is no signicant head loss difference (P < 0.05)
among the various angles. The increase of angle between
the lter body and inlet/outlet could reduce head loss around
the corner of lter body and outlet, but it could simultaneously increase head loss around the corner of the lter
body and inlet. The most important fact is that the angle
variation does not change vm and vi, consequently Reynolds
number (Re) and Froude (Fr) number should not change notably. Our simulation shows that the angle change would not
result in signicant changes for lter head loss. This result is
important for lter designers and manufacturers.
Figure 6 shows the simulation results for IR2 screen lter
head losses under different inlet/outlet diameter conditions:
17, 20, 23, 26 and 29 mm. It can be observed that the
inlet/outlet diameter variation has a signicant impact on head
loss (P < 0.05). The head loss of the inlet/outlet diameter for
Dp of 20, 23, 26 and 29 mm reduced by 35.9, 87.7, 157 and
245% respectively compared to Dp of 17 mm. The microscope
LEICA-DMLB was used to measure lter pore and lter mesh
diameters, and which higher accuracy was achieved.)

Figure 6. Simulated head loss variation under different inlet/outlet diameter

conditions for the IR2 screen lter
Copyright 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Figure 7. Simulated head loss variation under different lter pore diameter
conditions (with a constant lter mesh size of 137) for IR2 screen lter

The most plausible explanation for these ndings is that inlet/outlet diameter impacts the ow velocity and pattern. As
the diameter Dp increases from 17 to 29 mm, ow velocity vi reduced by 65.6%, and inlet/outlet Reynolds number (Re) would
reduce by 76.8%, leading to a signicantly decreased head loss.
Figure 7 shows the simulation results for IR2 screen lter
head losses under different lter mesh diameters dm of 65,
85, 105 and 125 m (with a constant lter mesh number of
137). A lter mesh diameter of 65 m showed the minimum
head loss among all tested screen lters. The head loss for
dm of 85, 105 and 125 m increased by 19.9, 60.1 and
146% respectively compared to dm of 65 m. Under the
same lter mesh number conditions, the lter mesh diameter
increases resulted in lter pore diameter decreases (as in
Formula (2)). As dm increases from 65 to 125 m, which
inevitably led to vm decreasing by 298%. The dm increase
resulted in increases of the length and width of streams,
consequently the Froude number Fr increases by 108%
(P < 0.05), and the head loss increases accordingly.
Figure 8 shows the simulation results for IR2 screen lter
head losses under different lter mesh number conditions
(with a constant lter mesh diameter of 64.5 m): 140,
120, 100 and 80 mesh. The head loss increases as the mesh
number increases, but it is not signicant (P < 0.05). In
equation (2), the lter pore diameter (dp) decreases as the
mesh number (M) increase with a xed lter mesh diameter
(dm), leading to average ow velocity acceleration for the
lter pore, as well as 45.1% increase in the Fr. However,
this impact is not very signicant. As shown in Figure 9,
the YT1 and YT2 lters have similar physical structure
parameters but differ only in mesh number (mesh number
131 versus 100). Based on the measured values, even though
the lter mesh number for YT1 is 31% more than that of
YT2, the average head losses are 23.5 and 23.5 kPa, respectively, showing no signicant difference between YT1 and
YT2 (P < 0.05), which veried the result of Figure 8.
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530

W. WU ET AL.

Figure 8. Simulated head loss variation under different lter mesh conditions (with a constant lter diameter of 64.5 m) for the IR2 screen lter

However, increasing the angle and screen lter mesh

number (with a constant lter diameter) has no signicant
impact on head loss. The lter pore diameter and lter mesh
diameter are important parameters for evaluating lter
hydraulic performance. With the same mesh number, lter
mesh diameter increase can result in increases in both
measured ow velocity through the lter pore and the length
and width of the streams, consequently the Froude number
would be increased signicantly, and head loss would
increase accordingly. For screen lter structure design, one
should mainly consider the critical technical parameters,
such as inlet/outlet ow velocity, lter pore ow velocity
and ow pattern. Given a xed ow range and lter
mesh number, a larger inlet/outlet diameter and smaller lter
mesh diameter should be designed such that the inlet ow
velocity and average lter ow velocity can be reduced by
having a larger net lter surface to minimize both head loss
caused by pipeline turbulence and local head loss caused by
streams. The model established in the study estimates the
head loss, Hf, for different disc lters valid for the limits
of the variables; 66 M 137, 1.01 vi 7.82 ms 1,
0.08 vm > 0.65 ms 1, 17.0 Dp 36.1 mm, 64.5 dm
208.5 m, 120.4 dp 214.5m, 0.75 Q 19.32m3h 1,
14736.11 Re 189190.73.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The study was funded by the National Natural Science Funds
51339007 and National Science and Technology project
under grant numbers 2011BAD25B00 and 2012BAD08B02.

NOMENCLATURE
Figure 9. the compare of measured head losses between YT1 (131-mesh)
and YT2 (100-mesh) screen lter

CONCLUSIONS
This study is based on the theorem proposed by
Buckingham. We used the test results of 15 different types
of screen lter as basic information and proposed a dimensional computation model for screen lter head loss. The
main correlated parameters include the inner diameter of
inlet/outlet Dp, angle between lter body and inlet/outlet a,
lter pore diameter dp, measured lter mesh number M,
the water velocity of inlet/outlet vi and average water velocity
of lter pore vm. The regression coefcient R2adj is 0.951, and
the correlation coefcient between the measured value and
predicted value R is 0.97. This study stimulated head loss
under different parameter change treatments based on the
structure parameters of the IR2 screen lter. We demonstrated that head loss can be signicantly reduced when
the inlet/outlet diameter and lter mesh diameter decrease.
Copyright 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Ld
Lb
Lf
dp
dm
di
vi
vm

Re
C
v
g

M
Dp
Db
S
Q

the length between the inlet/outlet, mm

inner length of lter body, mm
lter screen length, mm
lter pore diameter, m
lter mesh diameter, m
inner diameter of lter screen, mm
the water velocity of inlet/outlet, ms1
average water velocity of lter pore, ms1
water viscosity, Pa s
Reynolds number, dimensionless
the concentration of total suspended solids, kgm3
water velocity, ms1
acceleration of gravity, ms2
angle between lter body and inlet/outlet, dimensionless
measured mesh number, dimensionless
inner diameter of inlet/outlet, mm
inner diameter of lter body, mm
net ltering area, mm2
ow rate, m3h1
Irrig. and Drain. 63: 523531 (2014)

A NEW MODEL FOR HEAD LOSS ASSESSMENT OF SCREEN FILTERS

H
A
V

Pd
Fr

head loss, kPa

total ltration surface area, m2
lter liquid volume, m3
water density, kgm3
the mean diameter of efuent particle size distribution, m
Froude number, dimensionless

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Irrig. and Drain. 63: 523531 (2014)