Forces and loosening characteristics of a new winged chisel plough

Abstract

This study was devoted to verifying the performance of various configurations of a winged chisel plough (WCP) in a soil bin. The performance of the new tool was assessed at three wing depths (5, 10 and 15 cm), three bend angles (10, 20 and 30 °), and three rake angles (7.5, 15 and 22.5 °) with three replications using a completely randomised design at a constant depth and speed of 30 cm and 1 m·s–1, respectively. The draught and vertical forces, soil disturbed and upheaved areas plus the efficiency of the soil loosening were measured during the tests. The results revealed that the draught and vertical forces were significantly increased by increasing the wing depth, bend and rake angles. The soil disturbance area increased with an increase in the wing depth, bend and rake angles. While the soil upheaving was decreased by increasing the wing depth and bend angle, the effect of the rake angle on the soil upheaving area was not significant. The maximum efficiency of the soil loosening of 268.1 cm2·kN–1 was achieved for a wing depth of 10 cm, a bend angle of 20 °, and a rake angle of 15 °. A significant improvement in the efficiency of the soil loosening along with maintaining a considerable portion of the residue on the soil surface suggest that the WCP should be adopted for conservation tillage.