This study evaluated the hydraulic performance and farmer perception of a locally developed spiral water pump under different pumping heads. Discharge, rotational speed, and efficiency were assessed as head increased from 2 m to 12 m, and farmer feedback was collected on practical operation, maintenance, and perceived benefits. The source results show that discharge and rotational speed decreased as pumping head increased. Discharge declined from 0.25 L s⁻¹ at 2 m head to 0.06 L s⁻¹ at 12 m head, while the reported efficiency also decreased with increasing head. Farmer feedback emphasized fuel-free operation, low operational requirements, and ease of use. The findings indicate that the evaluated pump is more appropriate for low-head applications and for irrigation systems in which water can be stored in a reservoir before application. Further field evaluation should focus on hydraulic optimization, installation stability, and long-term user performance.

Keywords: Spiral Water Pump, Low-Head Irrigation, Water Wheel, Discharge, Pumping Head, Rotational Speed, Hydraulic Efficiency, Farmer Perception, Small-Scale Irrigation, Renewable Energy, Fuel-Free Pumping, Sustainable Agriculture.

Anderson (2007). Centrifugal pump design. New York: McGraw-Hill. Industrial Engineering Letters, Pages 15–22. https://doi.org/10.7176/iel/9-5-03.

Bera, B., Sahoo, S., Guin, A., & Samanta, S. (2023). Smart and sustainable agricultural technology. Editors: Bhupendra Koul, Pranav Kumar, Prabhakar Etalesh, Goutam.

Boulton (2004). Hydraulic engineering. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Chilean Journal of Agricultural Research, 73(2): 175–180.

Cohen, A.P., McCoy, J.W., & Simmonds, G.L. (2009). Pump handbook. New York: McGraw-Hill. Journal of Water Resources and Ocean Science, 13(1): 6–22.

Daugherty, J.F. (2004). Centrifugal pumps: Design and application. New York: John Wiley & Sons. Journal of Chemical Information and Modeling, 53(9).

Desta, M.A., Tiba, G.S., Issa, M.M., & Heyi, W. (2023). Performance and cost comparison. Turkish Journal, 4(1): 73–90.

Hearn, A.R. (2010). Pumps and pumping systems. London: Butterworth-Heinemann. Water-Energy Nexus, 6: 32–45.

Karassik, I.J. (2001). Karassik2001Pump.

Meseret, M., Wami, D., & Nallamothu, R.B. (2024). Experimental study. Scientific Reports, 14: Article 73234.

Millimouno, A. (2022). Optimizing. Master’s Thesis.

Millimouno, A., & Cooke, R.A. (2024). Design, construction. African Journal, 24(4): 25990–26006.

Patil, N.R., Gaikwad, S.R., Navale, R.A., & Sonawane, D.S. (2014). Design. Applied Mechanics and Materials, 446–447: 549–552.

Streeter, V.L., Wylie, E.B., & Bedford, K.W. (2010). Fluid mechanics, 9th Edition.

Teka, T., Teklawold, D., & Abu, D. (2019). Regional review workshop. Proceedings. December 23–27.

White, F.M. (2011). Fluid mechanics, 7th Ed. McGraw-Hill Education.

Source of Funding:

No specific external funding source is reported in the source manuscript.

Competing Interests Statement:

The source manuscript does not report competing interests.

Consent for publication:

All the authors contributed to the manuscript and consented to the publication of this research work.

Authors' contributions:

Abu Dedo Ilmi led study implementation, hydraulic assessment, data analysis, and manuscript preparation; Roba Adugna Maru contributed to field supervision and manuscript review; Teka Tesfay contributed technical input and review.

Informed Consent:

Not Applicable.

Availability of Data and Material:

The underlying experimental data are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request, subject to author and institutional approval.

Institutional Review Board Statement:

Not Applicable.

Ethical Approval:

Not Applicable.

Acknowledgement:

The authors acknowledge the Oromia Agricultural Research Institute and Jimma Agricultural Engineering Research Center for institutional and technical support.

Declaration of Artificial Intelligence:

The authors declare that artificial intelligence tools were not used to generate, fabricate, or alter the experimental data. Any language-editing assistance used during manuscript revision did not replace the authors' responsibility for the scientific content, data, analysis, and conclusions.