1,721,047 research outputs found
Preface
No full textThe Russian-Ukrainian war is the most serious geopolitical conflict since the Second World War and will have certainly more significant global consequences than the previous financial or health crises suffered in the last twenty years.
In this particular critical moment, it is necessary to carefully analyze and evaluate the foreseeable repercussions on food and energy supplies and the potential impact on the international scene. At the same time, it appears indispensable and urgent to respond flexibly to current dynamics and make strategic choices consistent with long-term interests.
The direct and indirect criticalities generated by the difficult situation that has developed in recent times, have already determined negative impacts on the current management of agricultural production and food products, with high-risk consequences for the stability of numerous agri-food chains.
These critical issues immediately have a different impact depending on the sector such as, for example:
- for cereal crops, protein and oil crops there is the sudden unavailability of raw materials due to the closure of important markets, the consequent sharp rise in prices also due to limitations in logistics and procurement;
- in the fruit and vegetable sector, there may be an oversupply on domestic markets and a drop in the remuneration of producers;
- in the nursery and horticultural sector in hot greenhouses, the interruption of production processes may occur due to the increase in fuel prices for heating;
- in breeding, the unavailability of basic raw materials for the production of feed and therefore for nutrition, also exacerbated by an unsustainable increase in energy costs, could lead to the impossibility of completing the production cycles, forcing farmers to resort to the slaughter of heads in full production.
In the medium to long term, these criticalities can aggravate some structural problems of agricultural systems such as, for example:
- the growing dependence on foreign countries for genetic materials (varieties and hybrids) used for national crops, such as corn and wheat;
- the continuing difficult situation for many companies linked to the scarce availability of necessary manpower and production costs that often exceed the remuneration of the products;
- the increase in fuel costs, with an immediate impact on fruit processing and conditioning plants and on transport to markets.
In this difficult and cyclical phase of instability, the eleventh edition of the “Farm Machinery and Process Management in Sustainable Agriculture” International Symposium was an opportunity to present and discuss some proposals based on objective criteria to be implemented in the short and medium term to address the main problems and possible solutions for agriculture and for the entire agri-food system.
The FMPMSA International Symposium, in large part, in responding to the ambitious goal of proposing scientific and technological solutions as well as structural measures useful for increasing the resilience of agri-food systems
The theory of sifting the soil mass when cleaning potatoes on a spiral separator
Full text linkThe removal of soil and impurities is an important problem when harvesting potatoes. and the main reason for this problem is due to the modalities employed to carry out the potatoes mechanical harvesting. The equipments currently implemented on potato harvesters do not always allow to obtain high levels of soil and impurities separation, mainly due to the gluing of the moist soil to the surfaces of the separating organs. The authors have developed a spiral separator of soil clods from potatoes heaps, patented in Ukraine. The purpose of this paper has been to analyze the theory of sifting the soil mass when a spiral separator is used. A mathematical model of the motion of an elementary body along the spiral surface of a potato heap separator has been built. The numerical solution of the model has highlighted that the lowest angular speed (10 rad s-1) of the cleaning rollers allows the greatest amount of sifted soil mass. Field tests carried out confirmed that the developed spiral separator is able to perform the task achieving meaningful values of the efficiency of separation and heap purity. Further field and laboratory tests will be executed in order to improve the set up mathematical model
Mathematical model of the movement of a potato body along the surface of a spiral separator
Full text linkThe potato is grown in over one hundred countries spread over all latitudes, with the most diverse climatic conditions, from the areas near the Arctic Circle to the southern end of the South American continent. The potato is an irreplaceable component of the food tradition of many countries and is the most cultivated species after cereals (wheat, rice and corn). The authors set up and developed a new clod and rubbish spiral separator for potatoes, which is protected by the patent of Ukraine. The operation modalities of this machine are briefly described in the paper. The aim of this study is the development of a mathematical model concerning the movement of a potato body along the surface the spiral separator. In particular, equations are found for determining the coordinates of the position of a potato tuber on the surface of a spiral separator depending on the parameters of the spiral (spiral line) and the size of the tuber. Furthermore, the velocity of tuber movement in the stream formed by the surfaces of two neighboring spirals in the direction of the horizontal, vertical and longitudinal axis are determined. The results of this study will be used in the future to analytically considering the dynamics of movement of a potato tuber on the surface of a spiral separator, taking into account the conditions that exclude its damage
Use of simulation techniques to improve tractor operator safety
No full textMost of the serious accidents in agriculture occur in the area of tractor roll-over. In order to
reduce the number of work accidents, manufacturers have mandatory to equip their tractors
with ROPS and seat safety belt anchorages, according to the European Community directive
2003/37/EC.
In this field of very high interest for worker safety, we have been carrying out a research activity
aimed to analyse the injuries to operators and the effectiveness of restraint systems, by using a
multibody-FEA approach. In particular the Madymo code is utilised (MAthematical DYnamic
MOdels, TNO Automotive Safety Solutions).
In a previous paper we analysed the roll-over dynamics of a wheeled tractor with narrow track,
placed on a slope, by means of a pure multibody scenario. Both the tractor structure and the
ground were indeed modelled as infinitely rigid. In this paper the behaviour of two typical type
of soil have been implemented in the model (by means of a FE description), analysed and
compared with that of the rigid one. The aim of the study is to analyze how the soil mechanical
strength affects the results of the accident dynamics simulation, by comparing the values both of
the kinematic parameters and of the operator biological traumas. A better, more realistic
description of all the interesting quantities is obtained, as expected
Improvement of tractor operator safety by Multibody-FEM techniques: The influence of soil modelling
No full textPerformance Evaluation of Steam Power Plants with Wet Cooling Towers
No full textA theoretical model to design wet cooling tower systems and to evaluate their off-design performance is presented. The matching conditions between the cooling system and the Rankine cycle make it possible to evaluate the plant performance under different weather condition
Assessment of a Big Square Baler Able to Reduce Soil Impurities During Baling Process. First Evaluations
No full textIn animal husbandry, results optimization is largely dependent on how the animals are fed so fodder-crops have a fundamental role in this sector. Dried fodder production has relevance in Southern Italy, even if in this territory the agronomic and meteorological conditions generate physical and micro-biological problems in the production of fodder. Some of the fundamental complications are connected to the amount of soil inside the fodder, which often is the vehicle of a large number of CFUs (colony forming units) of Clostridium bacteria, that could have dangerous effects on the welfare of the cows. The aim of this paper is the evaluation of the performance of a large square baler, manufactured in Southern Italy, equipped with innovative devices which should allow to make prismatic bales compact and with less impurities if compared with the bales produced by similar square presses, built by other manufacturers. The presence and the amount of soil and impurities was assessed through first comparative tests carried out, considering also other two similar square presses. The obtained results, even if have to be validated through other in-depth tests, seem to confirm the benefits of the adopted technical solutions of the analysed large square baler
Assessment of Potential Territorial Suitability for the Sustainable Production of the “Acquaviva Red Onion” (Allium Cepa L.): A Study Using Overlapping Approach
No full textThe onion (Allium cepa L.) is one of the most important horticultural crops worldwide; it is widely appreciated by consumers for its nutraceutical effects. In the extreme South of the Murgia area (Apulia, Italy), the Acquaviva red onion has been cultivated for a very long time, as an excellence of this territory. The production of this product typically extends across a rather limited and substantially confined area within the municipality of Acquaviva delle Fonti. Therefore, this circumscribed oasis of production demands territorial planning policies aimed at valorizing its sustainable production by safeguarding the soils most suited to this typicality of production, whose erosion would result in the disappearance of a product with high territorial value. In order to assess the potential territorial suitability for the Acquaviva red onion, data on climate (average temperature and precipitation), soil (texture, pH, electrical conductivity and organic matter content), topography (altitude and slope) and land use were found for each district, through preliminary surveys, and using the Informative Territorial System (SIT Puglia) database. Territorial suitability ranges were established, based on the onion cultivation needs and the indications of the Designation of Municipal Origin (DE.C.O) production specification and the Slow Food production specification for Acquaviva red onion. Using the GIS software Arcmap Arcgis 10.5, all information layers were overlapped, obtaining the maps of suitability for each feature. Finally, from the overlap of these, it was possible to obtain an overall map of the areas with a greater territorial suitability. The results obtained suggest that accurate territorial planning can be integrated with the contents of a regional development program that is attentive to the valorisation of this typical local product. Beyond the purposes described above, this method could be extended to conterminous territorial areas to verify the possible expansion of the optimal production area
Mathematical model of the plane-parallel movement of the self-propelled root-harvesting machine
Full text linkThe harvest techniques and the employed machines are important factors in reducing soil loss due to root crop harvesting. Furthermore, the deviation of the working organs of the self-propelled sugar root harvesting machines from the axis of the row also leads to significant losses and damage to sugar beetroots. Therefore, the self-propelled machine units must move in a horizontal plane with a high degree of accuracy. The purpose of this study is to increase the efficiency of the self-propelled harvester by analyzing its plane-parallel motion and evaluating its constructive and kinematic parameters. In order to determine the influence of these parameters on the plane-parallel motion of the self-propelled root harvesting machine, its mathematical model has been calculated. Furthermore, experimental tests were executed in order to evaluate the degree of damage to sugar beetroot crops during their digging, depending on the magnitude of the deviations of the center of the digging tool. The results of this trials highlighted that if the crop row deviates from the conventional axis line by 10 mm, the root crop damage exceeds is 21.7% and at deviations by 70 mm, the damage exceeds 67%. The theoretical study of the trajectory of the center of the outside digging tool and the experimental evaluation of its work (in terms of the quality of harvesting with deviations in its trajectory of motion) formally confirm the coincidence of all the studies-both theoretical and experimental. The use of the model of the plane-parallel movement of the self-propelled root harvesting machine then improves the quality parameters of the technological process
Research into engineering and operation parameters of mineral fertiliser application machine with new fertiliser spreading tools
Full text linkThe output capacity of the machine for top spreading the soil with solid mineral fertilisers can be raised by means of increasing its working width. The authors have carried out field trials and field experiment investigations with the MVU-8 granulated mineral fertilizer spreading machine equipped with two prototype units of the centrifugal fertiliser spreading tool, in which the axis can be tilted at different angles to the vertical line. In accordance with the results of the completed investigations, it has been established that setting the axial tilt angle of the centrifugal operating device in the fertiliser spreading tool within the range of 25–30° provides for achieving a productivity of the combined tractor-implement unit for applying mineral fertilisers at a level of 35–40 ha per working shift hour. The best performance in the fertiliser application with regard to both the working width and the fertiliser placing distribution uniformity is ensured at angles of inclination of the disc in the fertiliser spreading tool with respect to the horizontal plane within the range of 25–30°. At these angles, the uneven distribution of the fertiliser over the working width is equal to 19.2%, the uneven distribution of the fertiliser along the unit’s line of travel is equal to 8.9%, while the deviation in the dosage of the applied fertilisers from the set value is equal to 7.5%
- …
