The grain parameters determination based on elements of the elasticity theory

Abstract

The grain of agricultural crops during the machine process undergoes loads exceeding the permissible ones, as a result of which, under the influence of the mechanisms’ units, the grain material becomes damaged. The paper is devoted to search of the solution for the problem of reducing the grain mechanical damages which appears when the seeds pass through the machining. Using buckwheat as an example, the author considers the application of methods of the theory of elasticity in order to assess the magnitudes of stresses arising in caryopses under their force loading. In this regard, it is recommended to represent the grain model of this crop in the form of a cylindrical trihedron. The text of the work contains the experimentally proven correspondence of the volume of the proposed model to the real one, depending on the humidity conditions, the value of the elastic modulus is determined. The considered method for assessing the magnitudes of stresses at a known value of the compressive force and the shape of the seed makes it possible to take into account the design parameters when designing agricultural machines.