Investigation of the Relationship Between Egg Shell Strength and Thickness Using Non-Destructive Ultrasound Method

Abstract

This research investigates the main specifications of eggshell which are the thickness of the shell and its strength. For this purpose, random sampling was implemented on 180 fresh and healthy eggs of Bovance breed produced at Ghazvin province agricultural jihad organization’s training center. To measure the shell thickness, four methods, dial gauge, ultrasound waves, micro-meter and photometer, were applied. Due to its precision, the indicator hour destructive measurement method was selected as the control method. By analyzing and comparing data collected through 4 methods in the research, a significant difference between measurement methods was revealed. Moreover, comparing the measurement methods with the control method (dial gauge), the lowest measurement error was that of the ultrasound wave measurement method with 7.1% and the highest was that of the photometer method with 15.7%. Furthermore, regression equations are determined for the referred measurement methods with the shell strength. It was observed that the ultrasound method compared to other methods proposed in this study is more accurate for measuring the thickness of the eggshell non-destructively. Therefore, the non-destructive ultrasonic measurement method can be a suitable alternative to these methods due to the proximity of the measured values to non-destructive, direct, and accurate destructive methods. Since the ultrasound method is a fast and relatively inexpensive method, this method can be used in the quality grading process of eggs.