Abstract
Moisture content at harvest is a key parameter that impacts quality and how well the cotton crop can be stored without degrading before processing. It is also a key parameter of interest for harvest time field trials as it can directly influence the quality of the harvested crop as well as skew the results of in-field yield and quality assessments. Microwave sensing of moisture has several unique advantages over lower frequency sensing approaches. The first is that microwaves are insensitive to variations in conductivity, due to presence of salts or minerals. The second advantage is that microwaves can peer deep inside large bulk packaging to assess the internal moisture content without performing a destructive tear down of the package. To help facilitate the development of a microwave moisture sensor for seedcotton; research was performed to determine the basic microwave properties of seedcotton. The research was performed on 110 kg micro-modules, which are of direct interest to research teams for use in ongoing field-based research projects. It should also prove useful for the enhancement of existing and future yield monitor designs. Experimental data was gathered on the basic relations between microwave material properties and seedcotton over the range from 1.0 GHz to 2.5 GHz and is reported on herein. This research is part one of a two-part series that reports on the fundamental microwave properties of seedcotton as moisture and density vary naturally during the course of typical harvesting operations; part two will utilize this data to formulate a prediction algorithm to form the basis for a prototype microwave moisture sensor.
Highlights
Moisture content, moisture content (MC), at harvest is a key parameter that impacts quality and how well the agricultural crops can be stored without degrading before processing
In order to develop a prototype microwave sensor, knowledge of the basic microwave material properties is required and, to date, there are no references that the authors are aware of reporting on the microwave properties of seedcotton that could be utilized to help develop a microwave moisture sensor for seedcotton modules
The objective of the research was to obtain a range of moisture contents and densities that are typical to freshly harvested seedcotton
Summary
MC, at harvest is a key parameter that impacts quality and how well the agricultural crops can be stored without degrading before processing. It is a key parameter of interest for harvest-time field trials as it can directly influence the quality of the harvested crop as well as alter the results of in-field yield and quality assessments. The only other pertinent references relating microwave sensing of moisture to cotton are the earlier works by the authors in sensing of cotton lint moisture as packaged in high-density cotton bales [1,2,3,4].
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