Investigation of interaction effect between static and rolling friction of corn kernels on repose formation by DEM

The coefficient of static friction(SF),the coefficient of rolling friction(RF)for particles are two key parameters affecting the repose angle formation and flow characteristics.In this paper,the interaction effects of SF and RF on the formation process of corn repose angle was investigated by the discrete element method.Firstly,five shape kinds of corn models(horse tooth,spherical cone,spheroid,oblate,and irregular shape)were established.Secondly,aluminum cylinder and organic glass box were used to conduct the simulation experiments with taking SF and RF as independent factors and seeing the repose angle as dependent value.Based on simulation results the regression equations were established.Simulation results showed the relation between two factors and the rotational kinetic energy is not nonlinear,and SF does not significantly restrict the flow of corn models after increasing the flow direction,and the effect of SF on the contact number between corns and the bottom plate is remarkable,while the effect of RF on the contact number is not remarkable.Finally,the interaction effect of two factors on the repose angle was analyzed by variance analysis and results showed SF and RF all have a significant impact on the repose angle.Moreover,their interaction effect has an impact on the repose angle.

Study of corn kernel breakage susceptibility as a function of its moisture content by using a laboratory grinding method

The rate of corn kernel breakage in the grain combine harvesters is a crucial factor affecting the quality of the grain shelled in the field. The objective of the present study was to determine the susceptibility of corn kernels to breakage based on the kernel moisture content in order to determine the moisture content that corresponds to the lowest rate of breakage.In addition, we evaluated the resistance to breakage of various corn cultivars. A total of 17 different corn cultivars were planted at two different sowing dates at the Beibuchang Experiment Station, Beijing and the Xinxiang Experiment Station(Henan Province) of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. The corn kernel moisture content was systematically monitored and recorded over time, and the breakage rate was measured by using the grinding method. The results for all grain samples from the two experimental stations revealed that the breakage rate y is quadratic in moisture content x,y=0.0796 x^(2)-3.3929 x+78.779;R^(2)0=0.2646, n=512. By fitting to the regression equation, a minimum corn kernel breakage rate of 42.62% was obtained, corresponding to a corn kernel moisture content of 21.31%. Furthermore, in the 90% confidence interval, the corn kernel moisture ranging from 19.7 to 22.3% led to the lowest kernel breakage rate, which was consistent with the corn kernel moisture content allowing the lowest breakage rate of corn kernels shelled in the field with combine grain harvesters. Using the lowest breakage rate as the critical point, the correlation between breakage rate and moisture content was significantly negative for low moisture content but positive for high moisture content. The slope and correlation coefficient of the linear regression equation indicated that high moisture content led to greater sensitivity and correlation between grain breakage and moisture content. At the Beibuchang Experiment Station, the corn cultivars resistant to breakage were Zhengdan 958(ZD958) and Fengken 139(FK139), and the corn cultivars non-resistant to breakage were Lianchuang 825(LC825), Jidan 66(JD66), Lidan 295(LD295), and Jingnongke 728(JNK728). At the Xinxiang Experiment Station, the corn cultivars resistant to breakage were HT1, ZD958 and FK139, and the corn cultivars non-resistant to breakage were ZY8911, DK653 and JNK728. Thus, the breakage classifications of the six corn cultivars were consistent between the two experimental stations. In conclusion, the results suggested that the high stability of the grinding method allowed it to be used to determine the corn kernel breakage rates of different corn cultivars as a function of moisture content, thus facilitating the breeding and screening of breakage-resistant corn.

Impact of Nitrogen Fertilization on the Oil, Protein, Starch, and Ethanol Yield of Corn （Zea mays L,） Grown for Biofuel Production

Nitrogen fertilization is one of the greatest challenges associated with the production of biofuel from corn grain. The objective of this research was to determine the effect of N fertilization on the content and yield of oil, protein, and starch in corn grain. The project was done in Southeast Missouri （USA）, from 2007 to 2009 in a silt loam soil. Corn grain contains 3.8-4.2% oil, 6.7%-8.9% protein, 68.0%-70.4% extractable starch, and 76.0%-77.7% total starch. The total starch yield ranged from 2.8 to 7.8 mg.ha1 whereas the extractable starch varied between 2.5 to 7.1 mg-ha1. As the N rate went up, the oil and starch content of the grain decreased, whereas the protein content and the protein, starch, and oil yields increased, reaching their maximum at the N rate corresponding to 179.0 kg N.ha~. The potential ethanol yield varied between 616.2 and 7,035.1 L-ha1 depending on the method of conversion of the starch into ethanol, the year and the N rate （P 〈 0.0001）. The negative correlation between N fertilization rate and starch content suggested that when farmers add too much N to their soil to increase grain yield, they reduce the starch content in those grains, and consequently the conversion into bioethanol. Therefore, for biofuel production to be beneficial for both farmers and the power plant owners, an agreement needs to be made with regard to the use of fertilizers.

Effects of typical corn kernel shapes on the forming of repose angle by DEM simulation

Corn kernel shape is an important feature to improve the accuracy of simulation results,also the repose angle is often used to calibrate model parameters in simulation.In this study,the effects of the corn kernel shapes on the behavior during corn kernels accumulation were investigated in detail.Firstly,the DEM models of three typical shapes of corn kernels were developed.Secondly,the influences of the corn kernel shapes on the process of forming repose angle were investigated,such as corn kernels distance change,energy conversion,and the contact number between corn kernels.Results show that the corn kernel shape has a significant effect on the repose angle formation.The irregular shape of corn kernels limit their rolling when adding the corn kernel length in one or two directions.In addition,the irregular shapes of corn kernels increase the contact number and extend simulation time.Regular shape corn kernels need to be mixed with irregular shape corn kernels to improve their flowability.Finally,observation of the trajectory of corn kernel repose angles indicates that spherical corn kernels contact the bottom plate early,and forming small cone first,then the cone becomes bigger to change the direction of other corn kernels from top to bottom.

Corn kernel classification from few training samples

This article presents an efficient approach to classify a set of corn kernels in contact,which may contain good,or defective kernels along with impurities.The proposed approach consists of two stages,the first one is a next-generation segmentation network,trained by using a set of synthesized images that is applied to divide the given image into a set of individual instances.An ad-hoc lightweight CNN architecture is then proposed to classify each instance into one of three categories(ie good,defective,and impurities).The segmentation network is trained using a strategy that avoids the time-consuming and human-error-prone task of manual data annotation.Regarding the classification stage,the proposed ad-hoc network is designed with only a few sets of layers to result in a lightweight architecture capable of being used in integrated solutions.Experimental results and comparisons with previous approaches showing both the improvement in accuracy and the reduction in time are provided.Finally,the segmentation and classification approach proposed can be easily adapted for use with other cereal types.