ANIL KUMAR*, VIJAYA RANI, SANDEEP KUMAR ANTIL AND AJAY CHILLAR
Department of FMPE, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar-125004 (Haryana), India
KVK, Sonipat-131001 (Haryana), CCS HAU
Department of Mechanical Engineering, DSEU, New Delhi
*(e-mail : anilsaroha@hau.ac.in)
(Received : 16 April 2021; Accepted : 10 June 2022)
SUMMARY
The mechanical characteristics of wheat straw were evaluated in terms of shear and tensile strength with respect to variety, moisture content and inter node position. The parameters were determined for two varieties (WH – 1105 and HD – 2967) at three levels of moisture content (5, 10 and 15% (wb)) and five internode positions (IN1, IN2, IN3, IN4 and IN5). The results showed that shear strength decreased with increase in moisture content, whereas tensile strength increased with an increase in moisture content. The shear and tensile strength both increased from first internode to fifth internode in both the varieties. The shear strength of WH – 1105 was significantly higher (30 %) than HD – 2967 at each internode and all levels of moisture content. Similarly, the tensile strength of WH – 1105 variety was 10 % higher than HD – 2967 variety. The presence of carbon and oxygen as
key elements in both the varieties was confirmed by the Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS). The WH – 1105 wheat straw contains higher carbon content as compared to HD – 2967 which provided a strong reason for better mechanical properties.
Key words: Wheat straw, cutting force requirement, animal fodder