Soil Pulverization Research Articles

Geofoam Block in Soft Soil Embankment Applications: A Review

The major issues of building a road over soft soils are low bearing capacity and large settlements. The challenges of road construction on soft soils are enormous, so innovative and environmentally friendly methods are required. Geofoam is a type of lightweight infill material and was already used in Norway in road construction applications in 1972. Using Geofoam reduces compacted fill by 40%, less excavation required and less pulverization of native soil making this a time-saving and economically and environmentally viable solution. The purpose of Geofoam backfill is for lightweight backfilling, reducing soil pressure. Geofoam blocks can be used as a substitute for soft soil fill or as fill on top of soft soil as subgrade for pavement. This paper discusses the latest developments on the various applications of Geofoam blocks as backfill in soft soils presented based on information provided by the author.

Influence of the Locally Manufactured Chisel Plow with Moving Wings on Some Soil Physical Properties and Soil Pulverization Index

Influence of the Locally Manufactured Chisel Plow with Moving Wings on Some Soil Physical Properties and Soil Pulverization Index

Effects of Deep Plowing with a Chisel Plow Before Wheat Seeding on Rate of Soil Pulverization, Soil Physical Properties, Drainage, growth and Yield During Soybean Cultivation in an Upland Field Converted from Paddy Field with Three-Crop Rotation of Rice, Wheat, and Soybean in Two Years

Effects of Deep Plowing with a Chisel Plow Before Wheat Seeding on Rate of Soil Pulverization, Soil Physical Properties, Drainage, growth and Yield During Soybean Cultivation in an Upland Field Converted from Paddy Field with Three-Crop Rotation of Rice, Wheat, and Soybean in Two Years

Performance evaluation of tractor drawn power harrow

Power harrow is the tillage implement, now being projected as important implement that results in production of fine tilth soil. The study was conducted to compare the performance of rotavator and power harrow taking forward speed (2, 2.5, 3 and 3.5 km/h) and operating depth (50, 80, 110 and140 mm) as independent parameters and theoretical field capacity (ha/h), effective field capacity (ha/h), field efficiency (per cent), fuel consumption (l/h), soil pulverization (mm) as dependent parameters.The maximum theoretical field capacity (0.42 ha/h), effective field capacity (0.36 ha/h) and field efficiency (85.71%) was found at forward speed of 3.5 km/h. Also, the results of this study proved that the fuel consumption and soil pulverization was greatly affected by tractor speed and working depth. Increase in forward speed and operating depth increases the fuel consumptionand decreases the soil pulverization.The minimum fuel consumption (4.33 l/h) and mean mass diameter of soil (5.80 mm) was recorded at 2 km/h forward speed at 50 mm operating depth of the power harrow.The cost of operation of the power harrow was found to be Rs. 3870per hectare.

Effect of Moldboard types, Two depths of Tillage and Two speeds of Tractor in some Physical Properties and Pulverization of Soil

Factorial experiment under randomized complete block design with three replication was conducted in field in collage of Agricultural Engineering Science – University of Baghdad in 2022, for study effect of two types of moldboard slatted and general purpose in some physical properties under two depths of tillage 15 and 25 cm and two speeds of tractor 4.146 and 7.224 km/hr. Slatted moldboard recorded least (best) number of clods > 10 cm 4.58 clod/m2, soil bulk density 1.259 g/cm3, higher porosity 52.48 % and higher volume of disturbed soil 804.14 m3/h. Depth of tillage 25 cm got higher volume of disturbed soil 967.21 m3/h. Depth 15 cm got lower number of clods > 10 cm 4.91 clod/m2, 1.209 g/cm3 and higher porosity 54.35 %. Speed of tractor 7.224 km/h got higher volume of disturbed soil 983.79 m3/ h and least number of clods > 10 cm 7.50 clod/m2. Speed of tractor 4.146 km/h got least bulk density 1.259 g/cm3 and best porosity 52.48 %. No significant interaction speed tractor with moldboard types in bulk density and porosity. The rest of all interactions were significant.

Application of Computational Intelligence Methods in Agricultural Soil–Machine Interaction: A Review

Rapid advancements in technology, particularly in soil tools and agricultural machinery, have led to the proliferation of mechanized agriculture. The interaction between such tools/machines and soil is a complex, dynamic process. The modeling of this interactive process is essential for reducing energy requirements, excessive soil pulverization, and soil compaction, thereby leading to sustainable crop production. Traditional methods that rely on simplistic physics-based models are not often the best approach. Computational intelligence-based approaches are an attractive alternative to traditional methods. These methods are highly versatile, can handle various forms of data, and are adaptive in nature. Recent years have witnessed a surge in adapting such methods in all domains of engineering, including agriculture. These applications leverage not only classical computational intelligence methods, but also emergent ones, such as deep learning. Although classical methods have routinely been applied to the soil–machine interaction studies, the field is yet to harness the more recent developments in computational intelligence. The purpose of this review article is twofold. Firstly, it provides an in-depth description of classical computational intelligence methods, including their underlying theoretical basis, along with a survey of their use in soil–machine interaction research. Hence, it serves as a concise and systematic reference for practicing engineers as well as researchers in this field. Next, this article provides an outline of various emergent methods in computational intelligence, with the aim of introducing state-of-the-art methods to the interested reader and motivating their application in soil–machine interaction research.

Multi crop high efficiency seed drill with solar hybrid seed metering: A step toward precision and sustainability

High crop production with limited energy resources is always the priority area of developing countries. Conventional agricultural experimenting and crop production methods are time-consuming, challenging, laborious, and energy intensive. Various developments and experimental studies have been carried out for advancement in agriculture technologies. This study is mainly focused on the design and development of a unique high-efficiency seed drill machine to increase the energy efficiency of agricultural experiments, and crop production and conserve the tillage, seed, fertilizer, and power requirement. This machine has a special seed dividing head and seed distributor triggered with a mechanical timer. The mechanical timer is responsible to deliver seed to the seed distributor as per fixed plotting intervals. The seed distribution unit distributes the seeds uniformly in all furrows as per the pre-decided seed rate aided with a centrifugal glider aided with a DC motor powered by a 30 W solar PV plate and backup battery. Moreover, the machine has 9 × 9 s-type spring tines for seed and fertilizer, which are mainly designed for better soil pulverization and aeration with significant in-field resource conservation as per conventional alternatives. The effective width is seven feet and adjustable rows with versatile seed rate options. Overall, the results from different field tests verified the uniform seed dispersal with improved germination rate. The analysis of power requirements compared to conventional machines results in the 40% less power requirement. Overall, the machine has customized unique features for experiments and energy-efficient precision agriculture to conserve input resources.

Дослідження впливу параметрів глибокорозпушувача та комбінації робочих органів на ефективність обробітку ґрунту

The paper proves the expediency of deep subsurface tillage with combined chisel deep tillers and raises the question of the expediency of studying the influence of tillage unit parameters and a combination of operating parts on the efficiency of tillage. Existing research addresses the issues of soil monolith destruction, interaction of certain elements and operating parts with soil particles, construction of statistical models of the operation of certain elements of tillage units, search for rational forms of surfaces of operating parts and the ways to reduce overall traction resistance of different deep tillers, but the assessment of the quality of operation of such tillage units depending on their design, combination of operating parts and parameters has not been sufficiently studied. To study the parameters of a deep tiller, a prototype was made, which is actually a full-fledged tillage unit with three chisel tines with a straight riser, a chisel, a tooth and wings. The design of the experimental deep tiller is made in such a way that the position of the chisel tines on the unit frame can be changed on the brackets in a wide range, both between rows and in terms of the working width of the unit. In addition, the deep tiller can be operated with different variants of the toothed roller. After selecting the most significant factors and the interval of their values based on the methodology for planning a multivariate experiment, studies were conducted to obtain a statistical mathematical model and response surfaces for tillage efficiency. The obtained regression equation was tested for reproducibility and adequacy, and the graphical display of the research results allows obtaining the desired design parameters and operating modes of the tillage unit. Experimentally found areas of rational values at which the quality of soil pulverization is equal to 70...75%, which is achieved at the depth of loosening with chisel tines 32...42 cm, the distance between the chisel tines in one row 80... 100 cm, distance between rows of chisel tines 40...55 cm, tillage speed 8...9.5 km/h, depth of wings on the tine riser 24...27 cm and number of additional operating parts (toothed rollers) 2 pcs.

The Technical Evaluation of Three Different Types of Tillage Combined Machines and compared them with Individual Tillage Machines

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of a locally manufactured combined tillage machine on the draft force, fuel consumption, field efficiency, power loss, and soil pulverization index. The combined tillage machine accomplished the primary, secondary, and deep tillage in a single pass. The combined tillage machine types were compared to individual tillage machines. The combined tillage machine accomplished the primary, secondary, and deep tillage in a single pass. A randomized complete block (RCBD) experiment was the statistical method used for the investigation with three replicates. The field experiments were conducted in silty loam soil. The combined tillage machines were used in three types. The first configuration (T1) consists of a subsoiler+ chisel plow + disk harrow + roller, the second configuration (T2) consists of a subsoiler + chisel plow, and the third configuration (T3) consists of chisel plow + disc harrow at two operating speeds (1.5 and 3 km.h-1). Individual tillage machines were used in three conventional tillage systems M1, M2, and M3. M1. Conventional tillage systems M1, M2, and M3 perform similar tasks to combined tillage machine types T1, T2, and T3 respectively. The results showed that T3 reduced draft force by 40 and 34.35%, saved fuel by 19.88 and 25.89%, and reduced power loss by 54.25 and 37.22%, while increasing field efficiency by 13.64 and 5.63 and the soil pulverization index by 26.67 and 66.24% compared with T1 and T2 respectively. The combined tillage machinesT1, T2, and T3 reduced the draft force and power loss while increasing the field efficiency by 19.05, 22.41, and 53.49%, respectively, compared with conventional tillage systems M1, M2, and M3. The combined tillage machinesT1, T2, and T3 achieved the lowest values of the soil pulverization index, with values of 19.91, 41.93, and 33.10 mm, and saved fuel by 58.68, 41.61, and 26.86% respectively, compared with conventional tillage systems M1, M2, and M3. The results also revealed that operating speed and its interaction with the combined tillage machine types had a significant effect on all of the studied characteristics (p<0.05).

Effects of Deep Plowing with a Chisel Plow on Rate of Soil Pulverization, Soil Physical Properties, Drainage, and Growth Yield During Wheat Cultivation in an Upland Field Converted from Paddy Field with Three-Crop Rotation of Rice, Wheat, and Soybean in Two Years

Effects of Deep Plowing with a Chisel Plow on Rate of Soil Pulverization, Soil Physical Properties, Drainage, and Growth Yield During Wheat Cultivation in an Upland Field Converted from Paddy Field with Three-Crop Rotation of Rice, Wheat, and Soybean in Two Years

Substantiation of flat blade parameters for soil loosening

Layer-by-layer loosening of soil contributes to an increase in energy consumption for its cultivation. Thus, in order to reduce traction resistance, a blade with a variable crumbling angle has been developed. In the blade stand area, it is proposed to increase crumbling angle of the chisel plow by analogy with working bodies of the chisel plow to 300, and the blade wing should be made in the form of a flat-cutting blade with a small crumbling angle. To substantiate paw profile in the strut zone, a static equation of action of forces has been drawn up depending on curve shape of the front. Distribution regularity of specific soil pressures on the blade has been determined. To verify results reliability of theoretical studies, a field experiment was carried out. Behind the tractor wheel, a beam with 4 proposed blades was installed, first row blades were set to a depth of 7 cm, and second row blades, following the trail of the first blades, to a depth of 15 cm. Using method of soil sifting on sieves with round holes, structural and aggregate composition of soil was determined along the track. Maximum lump size in the traditionally treated area is 105 mm, while maximum lump size in the layer-treated area is 80 mm, which is 24% less. Use of layer-by-layer processing in the areas compacted by the tractor propellers made it possible to improve soil pulverization quality, and thereby reduce negative factors of overcompaction by tractor running system.

Performance Assessment of Tractor-operated Bund Former for Mulched Field

Managing paddy field loaded with straw before wheat sowing in paddy-wheat crop production system is cumbersome due to various operations involved in the process. Bund forming for irrigation remains difficult among these operations due to mulched conditions. Simultaneous removal of straw (up to 1.25 m width), soil pulverization, and trapezoidal-shaped soil bund forming in one pass is required. Field evaluation of a tractor-operated bund former for mulched fields was conducted to observe the effects of rotor speed ratios (3:1, 4:1, 5:1), opening width of bund forming plates (270, 340, 410 mm), and straw loads (4.0-4.5, 6.0-6.5 t.ha-1) on the pulverization index (mm), height of bund (mm), width of bund (mm), fuel consumption (l.h-1) and field capacity (ha.h-1) of the machine. The effects of rotor speed ratio, opening width of bund forming plates, and straw load were significant (p<0.05) on pulverization index, bund height, bund width, and fuel consumption. Best performances were obtained at rotor speed ratio of 4:1 and bund forming plates opening width of 340 mm under both straw loads. This combination gave the optimum height of bund (277.6 mm), bund width (720 mm), pulverization index (12.76 mm), and fuel consumption (7.05 l.h-1) under both straw loads. The effective field capacity of the tractor-operated bund former was 1.17 ha.h-1 at forward travel speed of 1.5 km.h-1. The operational cost of the bund former was 792.36 ₹.ha-1.

Development of a dual sideway-share subsurface tillage implement: Part 2. Effect of tool geometry on tillage forces and soil disturbance characteristics

Simulation of tillage tool-soil interactions provides opportunities to accelerate new equipment design and evaluate its performance. The dual bent blade subsurface tillage implement which its performance has been evaluated in the field, is a new conservation tillage tool deserving its soil cutting efficiency to be improved by optimizing its geometry using discrete element method (DEM) modeling. In order to achieve this objective, the effect of share size (5.9, 7.6, 11.3, 16.8, 22.6 and 28.2 cm), rake angle (7.5°, 15°, 25°, 30°, 35° and 40°), tilt angle (10°, 20°, 25°, 30°, 35° and 40°), and shank rake angle (45°, 60°, 75°, 90° and 97.5°) of the tool plowing at 150 mm depth, on soil cutting forces and soil disturbance characteristics were investigated using the validated DEM model developed in part 1 of this study. Results showed that the draft and vertical forces increased with increasing share size, while the specific resistance (SR) decreased. With increasing share rake angle, the draft force, SR, upward vertical force and the degree of soil pulverization increased. The minimum SR of the tool was at the tilt angle of 20°. But at this tilt angle, the uniformity of the cutting-depth for a long share-size was low, due to greater lateral bending of the share. As the rake angle of the shank decreased, the draft and vertical upward forces decreased. DEM simulation results showed that an efficient non-inversion tillage implement design can be achieved by developing a dual sideway-share subsurface tillage tool having a total cutting width of 53 cm with the rake and tilt angles of 15° and 10°, respectively, and attached to a 75°-rake-angle shank and plowing 150 mm deep in a sandy clay loam soil.

Agrotechnical and Energy Performance of Tillage Tools

Introduction. One of the areas of agricultural production is crop production. At the same time, it is necessary to take into account all available possibilities of reducing the energy consumption and labor required for tillage operations that can be achieved by using energy efficient tillage tools. Materials and Methods. In the course of the research, an agrotechnical and energy assessment of the technological process of soil cultivation performed by tillage tools was carried out. The agrotechnical assessment includes identifying the indicators of unevenness of the tillage tool travel depth, soil pulverization, ridging, and the content of erosion threatening particles. As an energy assessment, the indicator of draught created by a tillage tool was taken. The researches were carried out for various configurations of the chisel cultivators with flat and curved hoes, and elements made of polymer. Results. The data of agricultural assessment and draught of chisel cultivators were obtained for various agricultural backgrounds: winter wheat stubble with preliminary disking in one track, winter barley stubble with preliminary disking in one track, and autumn fallow on the background. Discussion and Conclusion. According to the results of the research, it was found that, in terms of quality indicators, the tillage tools meet the agrotechnical requirements for a given processing depth of 25–35 cm. The operation of the chisel equipped with a curved hoe is characterized by the highest presence of clods up to 5 cm (91–96%). The ridge height was 6.8–8.0 cm for all tillage tools. It has been established that the tillage tools are advisable to be uses for anti-erosion soil cultivation. In terms of preserving plant and crop residues, a chisel with a curved hoe providing their content by 9.5–28.6% more than with a polymer of 13.2–14.3%. The chisel with polymer has the smallest draught of 7.6 kN, which is 18.28% lower in comparison with tillage tools equipped with a flat hoe.

Performance Indices of a Combined Tillage Machine for the Incorporation of Leguminous Green Manure at Appropriate Depth

Background: The decomposition rate of biomass depends significantly on soil properties and on the design of the machine used for incorporation. Well-chopped biomass, incorporated in a productive zone with uniform mixing, gives better results instead of placing longer stalks on or near the field surface. Methods: In the field experiments conducted during 2017 and 2018, interaction of soil and biomass, placed at various depths in sandy loam soil, was studied 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 and 90 days after incorporation (DAI). Further, mechanical incorporation of green manure crop with innovative two-bottom combined tillage machine, namely biomass incorporator, was studied at different levels of soil type, plant height, forward speed and rotor speed.Result: The depth range of 70-140 mm was found most appropriate for incorporation to achieve a higher decomposition rate. Plant stem of 50 days old dhaincha (Sesbania aculeata) crop decomposed by 13.0, 31.5, 29.25, 24.25 and 22.05% at depth range 0-70 (D1), 70-140 (D2), 140-210 (D3), 210-280 (D4) and 280-350 (D5) mm, respectively 10 DAI. About 55% of the biomass, incorporated at depth range D2, got decomposed 40 DAI. The average depth of placement of biomass with biomass incorporator ranged between 92 and 131 mm. The soil pulverization index and crop mixing index with the machine varied from 3.58 to 30.65 mm and 93.62 to 98.05%, respectively. The surface profile coefficient with the machine ranged between 24.2 and 50.6 mm. The efficient mixing of the biomass into the soil with thorough coverage of pulverized soil was achieved with rational field undulation.

Istraživanje kombinovanih načina obrade kultivatorom namenjenih stepenastoj obradi zemljišta

Soil preparation with single-operation serial machine-tractor units requires multiple passes over the field, which leads to excessive soil compaction and loss of fertile layer, increased consumption of fuel and lubricants. The use of machines with dynamic tillage tools to prepare the soil for sowing allows regulation of soil pulverization intensity and performing a technological operation in one pass. The aim of the research is to study the possibilities of a combined approach to graded tillage, combining static and dynamic tillage tools. The main disadvantages of tiller are poor penetration ability, high metal and energy consumption. The authors found that the rational joint use of static and dynamic tillage tool in the cultivator for graded soil treatment may reduce the energy consumption for the top layer cultivating by 1.5 times. Such aspects, as the degree of influence of the parameters and operating modes of the tiller on the specific energy consumption of processing, soil pulverization intensity and degree of the content of erosion-hazardous particles in the upper layer are revealed, design and operating parameters of the combined cultivator and its tillage tools are substantiated.

Effect of Adding Wings to the Shallow Tines on the Performance of Subsoiler Plow in the Soil Disturbed Area, Soil Pulverization Index & Equivalent Energy of Pulverization

The experiment was performed using locally manufactured subsoiler plow provided with wings on the outside of shallow tines feet to study the impact of adding the wings and depth of tillage on the disturbance area of soil, soil pulverization index (mean weight diameter, MWD) and the equivalent energy of soil pulverization (Eq EP) in clay soil. This experiment was done in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD), with three replications having a factorial experiment. Three tillage depths (40, 50, and 60cm) with and without wings on the feet of shallow tines were used. The results showed that the impact of adding wings and tillage depths had a significant effect on the disturbance area, soil pulverization index and the equivalent energy of soil pulverization (p < 0.05). The treatment of adding wings on shallow tines (S+shw) has pre-eminence in studied factors. The disturbed area increased by 11.11, 14.29 and 9.80%, the MWD decreased by 27.33, 32.31 and 19.38% and the Eq EP increased by 43.19, 53.03 and 25.13% when the depth of tillage increased from 40, 50 and 60cm respectively.

Effect of velocity ratio on performance characteristics of an active-passive combination tillage implement

A study was conducted to investigate the effect of velocity ratio (ratio of peripheral velocity to the forward velocity of tillage tool) on the performance of an active-passive combined offset disc harrow. This implement unites the benefits of powered discs and combination tillage to reduce draft requirements, wheel slip, and gross fuel consumption. The test parameters consisted of forward velocities (3.46, 4.55, and 6.82 km h−1) and rotational velocities of front gang axle, NFGA (95, 133, and 150 rpm) to ultimately vary the velocity ratio from 1.48 to 4.59. Tests were conducted in freshly harvested paddy fields with sandy clay loam soil having moisture content and cone index of 11 ± 0.75% (dry basis) and 975 ± 50 kPa, respectively. The results indicate that increase in velocity ratio from 1.48 to 3.49 helped to reduce both draught and torque requirement with negligible reduction observed when velocity ratio was increased beyond 3.49. At a velocity ratio of 2.91, the specific energy consumption was minimum. Attempts were made to select a suitable velocity ratio based on tillage performance index considering both fuel energy input and tillage effectiveness parameters such as crop residue burial efficiency and soil pulverization. It is suggested to operate this type of implement at velocity ratio of 3.09 (forward velocity 4.55 km h−1, NFGA 133 rpm) and 4.06 (forward velocity 3.46 km h−1, NFGA 133 rpm) during the first pass and the second pass, respectively to obtain maximum tillage performance with minimum energy consumption.

Structural soil quality related to microbiological parameters in sugarcane.

Sugarcane crop conventional tillage has been replaced by deep soil preparation with few studies about its effect on soil quality and sustainability. The aim of this study was to assess structural volumes ina dystrophic Red-Yellow Latosol subjected to conventional tillage (CT) and deep localized soil tillage (DLST) to verify how the microbiological parameters were affected. The study was conducted in a soil derived from the Caiuá Sandstone formation in Brazil. Four trenches were dug for each soil tillage system to describe the cultural profile and evaluate carbon microbial biomass (CMB) and nitrogen (NMB), basal respiration (BR), and metabolic quotient (qCO2). CT profiles exhibited a predominance of cracked soil volumes, medium-sized and large compact clods with some porosity, and continuous volumes with no cracks and of intermediate porosity. DLST profiles were predominantly free-soil volume with no cohesion and porous in appearance, and compact, cohesive volumes with no porosity visible. The highest levels of CMB and NMB were in the cracked soil under CT. Higher microbial activity indicated by BR and qCO2 were in the free powdery soil under DLST. Soil pulverization caused by DLST could cause serious consequences on soil functionality, boosting erosion, and metabolic stress in the microbiota.

Specific energy requirements and soil pulverization of a combined tillage implement

Reducing energy use in soil preparation has become increasingly important since it is a major cost in planting. Experiments were conducted with a combined tillage implement consisting of a subsoiler and a rotary harrow to reduce the cost due to step reduction in soil preparation. Three tillage operations, two forward speeds, and two rotational rotor speeds were determined as input factors in this study. Soil clod size, performance parameters, and the specific energy requirements of a combined tillage implement were investigated. The field experiments were using two different soil conditions. Increasing the rotor speed from 299 to 526 rpm decreased the mean soil clod diameter at a depth of 0–200 mm from 22.98 to 19.83 mm and from 31.77 to 26.57 mm for fields 1 and 2, respectively. The specific energy requirement was affected significantly by rotor speed and tillage operation. The specific energy requirements for the combined tillage implement with an on-frame pivot joint and an on-pivotable-shank joint were less by 10.4 and 21.1% and by 18.4 and 24.7%, for fields 1 and 2, respectively, compared to the total power requirement for the separate use of a subsoiler and a rotary harrow.