Salinity in irrigation water and soil poses a major challenge to the expansion of agricultural land in Egypt. High salt concentrations can lead to significant issues for both soil health and plant growth. Additionally, understanding water hydraulics in pressurized irrigation systems is crucial for their effective design, management, and operation. Magnetic water treatment has emerged as a potential solution to mitigate these salinity-related problems. This study was conducted to examine the effect of magnetic fields on the properties of irrigation water. Magnetic devices with two field intensities (1600 and 14,500 Gauss) were used to treat water at three salinity levels: tap water (219 ppm), 1000, and 2000 ppm. Magnetization was found to influence several physical and chemical properties of water, including velocity, dynamic viscosity, dissolved oxygen, surface tension, and pH. It also had a beneficial effect in reducing the total number of microorganisms. In contrast, electrical conductivity was not affected by magnetization. Variations in water velocity were influenced by both the strength of the magnetic field and the time elapsed after magnetization. Under magnetic treatment, water viscosity decreased, and surface tension dropped by 1.5 and 3% as salinity increased from 219 to 1000 and 2000 ppm, respectively. Additionally, the total number of microorganisms was reduced by 17.1 and 57.3% at 219 ppm, by 38.6 and 57.5% at 1000 ppm, and by 32.5 and 55.5% at 2000 ppm, under magnetic field intensities of 1600 and 14,500 G, respectively, when compared to non-magnetized water. |
