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An urgent problem in the technological process of table beet production is cleaning of the root crops from adhering soil, soil impurities and plant residues after digging them out of the soil. Therefore, it is necessary to develop new, more advanced designs of beet heap separators that could provide not only high quality cleaning but also eliminate damage and loss of the root crops when performing this technological process. A new design of a spiral separator has been developed, which, based on the results of preliminary experimental studies, satisfies the above requirements. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct fundamental theoretical investigations to substantiate the rational parameters of the specified separator. The purpose of this research is to determine the design and kinematic parameters of an improved design of the spiral separator for the table beet roots, ensuring high-quality cleaning of the root crops from the soil impurities and plant residues, based on the development of a mathematical model of the movement of the root crops along the working surface of the separator. An equivalent diagram of the interaction of the beet root as a material particle, located in the working channel, formed by three cantilever-mounted spirals, has been constructed. The separator spirals are driven into rotational motion and, at the same time, can oscillate in a vertical plane under the impact of the variable mass of the beet heap, supplied to the working surface. Based on an equivalent circuit, a system of differential equations for the movement of the beet root along the surface of the working channel has been compiled. The solution of the resulting system of differential equations makes it possible to study the influence of the design and kinematic parameters of the separator on the speed of movement of the root crop in the working channel before it leaves the spirals. By determining the design and kinematic parameters in this way it will ensure improved quality of cleaning the beet roots from the soil impurities and plant residues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the technologies for harvesting carrots is to separate the tops without extracting the carrots from the soil with their subsequent digging up from the soil. Since the cutting of tops is carried out, as a rule, by a continuous rotary top-cutting apparatus, there is a need to further clean the root crop heads from the top residues. A new design has been developed for a two-shaft cleaner without extracting the carrots from the soil, which cleans each head from both sides with flexible cleaning blades, mounted on horizontal drive shafts. For a theoretical research of this process there was constructed a mathematical model of the interaction of the flexible cleaning blade with the head of the carrot. For this purpose, an equivalent diagram was drawn up for the interaction of the flexible cleaning blade with the carrot root crop, which is located in the soil (conventionally, it is actually firmly fixed in it). In addition, in this equivalent diagram the remains of the tops are shown on the head of the carrot root. Besides that, the interaction of the flexible cleaning blade with the head of the carrot root crop is implemented in two phases: first, the phase of impact of the blade upon the head of the root crop, and then its post-impact movement. These phases of impact upon the head provide conditions according to which, during the interaction, first, knocking down, and then combing off the remains of the tops occurs. The equivalent diagram shows the velocities of points during the impact interaction, the actual velocities and the applied forces. Based on the use of the theorem about the change in the momentum of a material point upon impact, the impact impulse is determined, and an analytical expression is obtained to determine the final speed of the impact point. Calculations have been made for the speed of the contact point after the impact, and graphical dependencies, affecting it has been found. The results of the theoretical studies showed that at a low velocity of the machine and tractor unit Vn the influence of the angular velocity ω of the blade has a significant influence on the value of the after impact velocity U of the blade. So, at a speed Vn = 0.5 m·s-1, the after impact speed U increases only by 40…350%. But at Vn = 3.0 m·s-1, the after impact velocity U increases only by 1.3…30.2% when the angular velocity ω of the blade changes in the range from 10 to 50 rad·s-1. The next stage of the research was the study of the post-impact movement of the flexible cleaning blade along the very head of the carrot, which made it possible to determine the conditions for efficient combing off the remains of the tops on it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maintaining normalized microclimate in poultry farming is one of the basic factors. It is the quality indicators of the air parameters that ultimately determine the quality of the final product. Keeping poultry requires a lot of effort and technological solutions. In this regard the authors have made improvements of the microclimate system in the air environment of the poultry house by installing exhaust fans on the side wall, in a total of 8 pcs, and 2 pcs. on the end wall. A powerful tool for predicting the airflow patterns in the poultry house is modelling. An alternative to experimental studies is Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) with ANSYS Fluent. The CFD model was performed on the Navier-Stokes equations for convective flows. The calculations used the Spalart-Allmaras turbulence model and the Discrete Ordinates radiation model. CFD modeling was performed at an air flow rate of 21.5 kg·s-1. The outside air temperature is assumed to be 2 °C and the thermal radiation parameter is entered. In poultry houses, the poultry, when kept on the floor, is a source of heat and is + 41 °C. Heating system is not provided. To remove air, exhaust fans of the Munters EM50 1.5Hp type are used. Fans are mounted on the side wall in the amount of 4 units. and 1 on the end wall. Supply valves Wlotpowietrza 3000-VFG with a total of 80 pcs. Above the valves there are built-in spoilers at an angle of inclination from the vertical 75°. The results of the CFD modelling showed that the valves, located at a height of 210 mm from the ceiling, work efficiently. The pressure drop at the supply valves is 73.565 Pa. The air speed at the inlet of the supply valves is 11.45 m·s-1. The air speed at a height of 0.7 m from the floor level varies within 0.86 m·s-1, the temperature is 14.12 °C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents the design of a flexible screw conveyor working body and a laboratory setup for experimental studies of determining its performance in transporting agricultural materials. Studies of conveying capacity have allowed to determine its dependence on many factors that characterize the process, namely: screw rotation frequency n, coefficient φ of line filling, inner diameter of the pipeline shell D. To determine the effect of these parameters on the performance of the screw conveyor, a full-factor experiment was conducted, the results of which showed that the dominant factor influencing the performance value is the rotation frequency of the working body n, and the least influential is the diameter of the housing D, but the value of the cooefficient φ of the main also has a significant effect on the performance of the transportation process. So, when changing the rotation frequency of the working body within the range of 300...800 rpm, the productivity increases by 50% for barley and 48% for industrial salt, when changing the line filling ratio within the range of 0.3...0.5, the productivity increases by 16% for barley and 18% for industrial salt, and when changing the pipeline diameter D from 0.08 m to 0.1 the productivity increases by 0.7% for barley and 0.2% for industrial salt. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the main technological approaches for ensuring favourable conditions of growth and development of plants is depositing mineral fertilisers. The quality of it influences the soil fertility and harvest of agricultural crops. We have developed a new construction of the spreader working body, the axis of which is at the angle to the horizon. Theoretical and experimental research is conducted on the kinematic parameters of such working body. The aim of the present research is determination of the constructive and kinematic parameters that ensure maximal distance of spreading mineral fertiliser particles from the spreading disc with the angle to the horizontal plane. In the research the methods of modeling, theoretical mechanics and mathematics, as well as calculations and presentations of graphical dependences are used. The present article describes the obtained analitical expressions for determination of the absolute speed of mineral fertiliser particles from the spreader disc with an inclined working body, considering the initial speed of moving the aggregate for spreading mineral fertilisers on the surface. The mineral fertiliser particle absolute speed from the spreading disc of the working body is presented as a vector through its projection on the axis of specially developed system of Cartesian coordinates at a moment of time. Based on the obtained analytical expressions, graphical dependences are presented characterising the studied process. It is proved that at increasing the coefficient of friction of the mineral fertiliser particles from 0.1 to 0.7, the angle of the mineral fertiliser particles leaving the disc increases from 2 to 33 deg at the initial speed of movement of the aggregate 2 m·s-1 and from 2 to 37 deg at the initial speed 4 m·s-1. Therefore, some of the fertiliser particles will leave the disc at the agle bigger than the inclination of the disc to the horizontal plane within 20"30 deg. Changes of the angle speed of the disc rotation do not essentially influence changes of the angle of the fertiliser particles leaving the disc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the sugar beet harvesting process the most significant technological operations are digging the root crops out of the soil and removing the uncut leaves. Field experimental studies have been carried out to determine the operational characteristics of this top harvesting machine. For this, a program and methodology for conducting such experimental studies were developed, the results of which were processed by statistical methods on a PC, using the basic methods of the regression and correlation analysis. Performance indicators have been obtained: productivity, when aggregated with a class 1.4 wheeled tractor -- 2.15 ha⋅h-1; specific fuel consumption -- 3.02 kg⋅ha-1. The power for the process of harvesting sugar beet tops is 14.48 kW, the traction power does not exceed 3.6 kW. It has been established that the power required for cutting the tops is 6.0-6.2 kW, and, to ensure transportation and loading of the cut tops into the vehicle, a power of 3.5-4.8 kW is needed. The obtained results of the investigations of the operational indicators of the three-row top harvesting machine, developed by us, are about 2 times smaller than in comparison with the commercially available harvesting machines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In accordance with contemporary technologies, the fight against contamination of sugar beet crops by multiple applications of herbicides, which are environmentally hazardous, is carried out. In the biological cultivation of beets, the use of chemical preparations is not allowed. The purpose of this study was experimental determination of a possibility for efficient thinning sugar beet plantations with the help of a new spring-toothed harrow, which has mechanical selectivity with respect to the shoots of weeds. The revealed agrotechnical differences between the shoots of the sugar beet and the common weeds made it possible to substantiate the design peculiarities of the new harrow with spring teeth. The new harrow with the chain-spring operating tools in an optimal operating mode in the range of the soil moisture (W = 14-20 %) ensures destruction of the weed shoots - from 60 to 75.1 % with a removal of the sugar beet shoots from 3 to 5 % (mostly poorly developed or diseased plants). The conducted field tests of the harrow with the chain-spring teeth showed its efficiency and advantages over the other existing harrow designs in the care for sugar beet plantations without application of herbicides. The research results of a harrow with chain-type working tools showed that, in contrast to the existing serial specimens, it removes up to 5 times less sugar beet shoots, and destroys by 11-15 % more weeds. This harrow can find application on the fields for ecologically clean management of soil cultivation on the farms and other private households. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At present the sugar beet top removal process is carried out without extraction of the beets from the soil, and it is implemented in two stages: at first, complete removal of the basic amount of the green mass without using a contour follower, followed by individual additional cleaning of the root crop heads from the top (leaf) residues. The use of top removal machines as independent harvesting moduli allows their aggregation with various types of row-crop tractors, which causes a necessity to determine conformity of this or other top removal machine with the traction and energy parameters in order to ensure high efficiency of using the proposed machine and tractor aggregates. The conducted investigations made it possible to develop a mathematical model for the justification and selection of optimal parameters of the machine and tractor aggregates composed of a tractor and a frontally mounted (frontal) top removal machine. In this connection, dependencies of the operating speed of the movement of a particular harvesting aggregate and its efficiency depending on the specific resistance of the top removal machine were determined in an analytical way. The numerical calculations performed on the PC provided a possibility to determine the optimal parameters of the mentioned aggregates by the efficiency and energy intensity criteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]