Journal of Stored Products Research 45 (2009) 14–18

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Journal of Stored Products Research

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The effect of moisture content on the physico-mechanical properties of some

hazelnut varieties
Hakan Kibar*, Turgut Öztürk
Ondokuz Mayis University, Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Agricultural Structures and Irrigation, 55139 Samsun, Turkey

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: To better understand storage design requirements for hazelnuts, this research determined the physico-
Accepted 23 June 2008 mechanical parameters (bulk density, true density, angle of internal friction, static coefficient of friction
and dynamic coefficient of friction) of hazelnut varieties Tombul, Badem, Mincane, Çakıldak and Sivri, for
Keywords: different structural surfaces. Physico-mechanical parameters (bulk density, true density, angle of internal
Hazelnut varieties friction, static coefficient of friction and dynamic coefficient of friction) were considered as the depen-
Physical properties
dent variables, and moisture content (8%, 12%, 16%, 20%) as the independent variable. The temperature
Mechanical properties
recorded in the laboratory during the experiments was 24.3  C. The highest average value for bulk
Density
Angle of internal friction density (520 kg m3) was recorded for the Sivri variety, the highest average value for angle of internal
Coefficient of friction friction (35.4 ) for the Badem variety, and the highest average value for true density (870 kg m3) for the
Mincane variety. The highest average values for static coefficient of friction (0.411) and the dynamic
coefficient of friction (0.287) were recorded for concrete surfaces and the Badem variety.
Ó 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction structures for crops. Mechanical properties such as friction depend

Hazelnuts (Corylus avellana L.) are one of the most important
inputs to the chocolate and confectionary industries and the best
quality hazelnut varieties are cultivated in the Eastern Black Sea
region of Turkey (Çağlayan and Durmuş, 2006).
During the post-harvest storage of hazelnuts, considerable
qualitative and quantitative losses occur. Especially, under storage
conditions with increasing moisture, hazelnuts are negatively
affected (Işıkber et al., 2006), and various mycotoxins can form
which are known to be harmful to human health. During long term
storage, the fatty acids in hazelnut (82.8% oleic acid and 8.9%
linoleic acid) are oxidized and the quality of hazelnut as a food is
reduced. Hazelnuts stored at excessively high moisture content and
temperature will go rancid. Over 100 mould species have been
isolated from hazelnuts, and some produce toxins under certain
circumstances. Of particular concern are Aspergillus flavus Link and
Aspergillus parasiticus Speare, both able to yield aflatoxin,
a substance of extreme toxicity. Aflatoxins are the major toxins
occurring in hazelnuts. They develop principally from mould
growth in the field but can accumulate further in storage (Bakker,
1999).
Knowledge about both construction materials and features of
the stored product is of importance in the design of storage
* Corresponding author. Tel.: þ90 362 3121919x1277; fax: þ90 362 4576034.
E-mail address: hkibar@omu.edu.tr (H. Kibar).
on the surface structure of the grain and arrangement of grains.
Deformation of grain is also becoming increasingly important to
estimating loads in storage structures for crops (Molenda et al.,
2004).
The main feature of granular materials of biological origin that
makes them different from mineral materials is the strong influ-
ence of moisture content on mechanical behavior and the
deformability of granules. Increase in moisture content of stored
grain may result in a six-fold increase in pressure acting on the silo
wall (Molenda and Horabik, 2005).
In this study, the physico-mechanical parameters of hazelnuts
(bulk density, true density, angle of internal friction, static coeffi-
cient of friction, dynamic coefficient of friction) required to design
storage structures were investigated for some important hazelnut
varieties cultivated in Turkey, namely Tombul, Badem, Mincane,
Çakıldak and Sivri.
2. Materials and methods
Samples of hazelnut varieties Tombul, Sivri, Badem, Mincane
and Çakıldak were obtained fresh from harvesting in 2005 and
dried at room temperature in a laboratory. Broken, split, spoiled
and deformed nuts were discarded before samples were prepared
for the experiment. Since the nut is oil yielding, the moisture
content was determined using the method reported by Ajibola et al.
(1990) and Oje (1993). This involved oven-drying of nut samples at
130  C with weight loss monitored hourly to give an idea of the

0022-474X/$ – see front matter Ó 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.jspr.2008.06.005
 H. Kibar, T. Öztürk / Journal of Stored Products Research 45 (2009) 14–18 15

surface tension is low. To calculate true density, the air dried weight
Nomenclature of samples was first determined. The samples were then
submerged in toluene and the displacement volume was deter-
Q Amount of added water, g mined. In the second stage, the true density of samples was
Wi Dry sample weight, g calculated by using Eq. 3 as follows;
Mi Initial moisture content of sample, %
Mf Final moisture content of sample, %
ms þ mw
r¼ (3)
g Bulk density, kg m3 Vs þ Vw
G1 Free weight of bulk density bucket, kg To determine the angle of internal friction of hazelnut samples
G2 Weight of bulk density bucket with hazelnuts, kg the direct shear method was used according to Uzuner (1996), Zou
V Inner volume of bulk density bucket, m3 and Brusewitz (2001), Molenda et al. (2002) and Mani et al. (2004).
r True density, kg m3 The velocity used during the experiment was 0.7 mm min1 and
ms Weight of liquid, kg the angle of internal friction of samples was calculated by using Eqs.
mw Weight of air dry sample, kg (4)–(6).
Vs Volume of liquid, m3
Mc Moisture content, % N
s ¼ 100 (4)
Vw Volume of sample, m3 A
s Normal atmospheric pressure, kPa
N load applied on the sample, kg T
A Cellular area, cm2
s ¼ 100 (5)
A
s Shear stress, pressure on cutting edge, kPa
T Shear force, load on cutting edge, kg s ¼ ðc þ s x tanfÞ (6)
c Coefficient of cohesion The static and dynamic coefficients of friction of samples were
f Angle of internal friction, degrees determined according to the method of Beyhan et al. (1994). Wood,
mS Static coefficient of friction concrete (C30) and galvanized steel surfaces were used as friction
Fs Force starting movement at surface interface, kg m2 surfaces. During the experiment, the test surface moved at a low
W Force applied to surface interface, kg m2 velocity (2.4 cm sec1). The surfaces were driven by a 12 V,
md Dynamic coefficient of friction adjustable direct current motor and strength of friction was
Fd The average of forces required to cause two measured by using a digital dynamometer (Fig. 1). Strength of
surface to slide, kg m2 friction has been taken into consideration as an important param-
eter to determine static and dynamic coefficients of friction. Static
coefficient of friction was calculated from the constant strength of
time at which the weight began to remain constant. Weight of
friction read in the digital dynamometer after movement occurred
samples was found to remain constant after oven-drying for
at the interface. The dynamic coefficient of friction was calculated
a period of about 4 h. Firstly, considering the various harvest
from the strength of friction read in the digital dynamometer at the
moisture contents for hazelnut varieties, moisture content levels of
onset of motion. The static and dynamic coefficients of friction of
8%, 12%, 16% and 20% were established. The equilibrium moisture
hazelnut samples were calculated by using Eqs. (7) and (8).
content under laboratory conditions was taken as the reference for
the desired moisture content in hazelnut varieties. The tempera- Fs
ture recorded in the laboratory during the experiments was 24.3  C. ms ¼ (7)
W
Samples were dried to 8%, and Eq. (1), developed by Balasu-
bramanian (2001), was used to determine the amount of additional Fd
md ¼ (8)
moisture required to bring the moisture content up to the higher W
levels of 12%, 16% and 20%. Research data were analysed using the SPSS statistical pro-
  gramme. Duncan’s multiple range comparison was used to deter-
Wi Mf  Mi mine the materials among which significant differences existed
Q ¼ (1)
100  Mf (P < 0.05).

The bulk density, true density, angle of internal friction, static

3. Results and discussion
coefficient of friction and dynamic coefficient of friction for hazel-
nut samples were determined at the desired moisture contents
3.1. Initial moisture content
under the laboratory conditions. To determine the bulk density of
the experimental samples at different moisture levels, the method
The initial moisture contents of hazelnut samples used in the
defined by Mohsenin (1980) and Singh and Goswami (1996) was
study are presented in Table 1. Moisture contents varied between
used. The weight of a bulk density container of 1000 ml volume was
8.1% and 9.1%.
used to determine bulk density. The bulk density container
was filled to 5 cm above the top. The hazelnuts were then allowed
to settle into the container and the excess removed before bulk
density determination, using Eq. 2.

G2  G1
g ¼ (2)
V
The water displacement method, as described by Aydın (2002)
and Abalone et al. (2004), was used to determine the true density of
hazelnut samples. In this method, toluene (C7H8) was used in place
of water because it is absorbed to a lesser extent by nuts and its Fig. 1. Apparatus to measure the force required to cause two surfaces to slide.
16 H. Kibar, T. Öztürk / Journal of Stored Products Research 45 (2009) 14–18

Table 1 Table 3
The initial moisture contents of hazelnut samples Angles of internal friction of hazelnut samples and standard errors.

Hazelnut varieties Moisture content (%) Moisture Angle of internal friction (f), degrees
Tombul 8.7 content (%)
Tombul Badem Mincane Çakıldak Sivri
Badem 9.1
8 29.8  1.34 32.4  0.89 28.3  1.53 28.4  1.15 29.2  1.55
Mincane 9.0
12 30.9  1.76 33.6  1.01 29.8  1.63 30.8  0.87 31.3  1.35
Çakıldak 8.1
16 32.8  0.98 34.3  1.10 31.8  1.04 32.0  1.41 32.7  1.23
Sivri 8.5
20 35.0  1.21 35.4  1.13 33.0  1.01 33.4  1.26 34.0  1.23

 
3.2. Bulk density fTombul ¼ 26:09 þ 0:430Mc R2 ¼ 0:97
 
The bulk densities and standard errors of hazelnut samples at
fSivri ¼ 26:35 þ 0:396Mc R2 ¼ 0:98
 
different moisture levels are presented in Table 2. The bulk densi- fÇakıldak ¼ 25:48 þ 0:405Mc R2 ¼ 0:97
ties varied between 417.43 and 520.14 kg m3, depending on  
moisture content. Because hazelnuts were in shell, increase in fBadem ¼ 30:55 þ 0:241Mc R2 ¼ 0:98
 
weight with increased moisture content occurred without a change fMincane ¼ 25:16 þ 0:400Mc R2 ¼ 0:98
in volume. Therefore, bulk density increased for all hazelnut vari-
eties. A positive linear relationship of bulk density to moisture
3.4. True density
content was observed by Kashaninejad et al. (2006) for pistachios.
The statistical analysis of experimental data showed that, related to
True densities of different hazelnut varieties and standard error
bulk density, the relationship between varieties (F ¼ 2710.7;
values are presented in Table 4. The true density of five different
d.f. ¼ 4,15; P < 0.01) and interaction of variety and moisture was
hazelnut varieties increased with moisture content, and it varied
highly significant (F ¼ 19.1; d.f. ¼ 1,12; P < 0.01). The results of
between 756 and 870 kg m3. The highest value for true density
analysis of regression determined by regression equations and R2
was determined in Mincane (870 kg m3) and the lowest value in
values, were as follows:
Çakıldak (756 kg m3). The true density of hazelnut varieties is
  dependent on the physical characteristics and the moisture content
gTombul ¼ 425:64 þ 3:35Mc R2 ¼ 0:99
  of the hazelnut kernel. Relative increase in weight is not propor-
gBadem ¼ 452:94 þ 2:38Mc R2 ¼ 0:97 tional to volumetric increase. Baryeh and Mangope (2005)
  observed that true density increased with increase in moisture
gMincane ¼ 450:13 þ 3:33Mc R2 ¼ 0:98 content for peas. The statistical analysis of experimental data
 
gÇakıldak ¼ 399:14 þ 2:25Mc R2 ¼ 0:98 showed that, relative to true density, the relationships between
  varieties (F ¼ 27.4, df ¼ 4,15; P < 0.01) and moisture content
gSivri ¼ 446:70 þ 3:60Mc R2 ¼ 0:99 (F ¼ 142.9; d.f. ¼ 3,16; P < 0.01) were highly significant, as
confirmed by the R2 values below.
3.3. Angles of internal friction  
rTombul ¼ 747:57 þ 5:74Mc R2 ¼ 0:99
 
Angles of internal friction of hazelnut samples and standard rÇakıldak ¼ 710:73 þ 6:11Mc R2 ¼ 0:98
error values are presented in Table 3. The angle of internal  
friction was found to increase with increase in moisture content. rSivri ¼ 740:03 þ 4:03Mc R2 ¼ 0:99
 
The highest value for the angle of internal friction (f ¼ 35.4 ) rMincane ¼ 757:63 þ 5:50Mc R2 ¼ 0:99
was determined in the Badem variety at a moisture content of  
20%. The lowest value for angle of internal friction (f ¼ 28.3 ) rBadem ¼ 743:93 þ 5:95Mc R2 ¼ 0:99
was in the Mincane variety at a moisture content of 8%. A
positive linear relationship between angle of internal friction 3.5. Static and dynamic coefficients of friction
and moisture content was observed. Molenda et al. (1998)
also found in their study with wheat in a direct shear box that Depending on moisture content and surface (wood, concrete,
angle of internal friction increased with increase in moisture steel), the static and dynamic coefficients of friction and standard
content. The statistical analysis of experimental data showed errors for hazelnut varieties are presented in Table 5. The static and
that, related to the angle of internal friction, the relationship dynamic coefficients of friction for the different surfaces increased
between varieties was highly significant (F ¼ 69.8; d.f. ¼ 4,15; linearly as moisture content rose. The highest values of the static
P < 0.01), and the interaction of variety and moisture was and dynamic coefficients of friction were for the concrete surface,
significant (F ¼ 2.4; d.f. ¼ 12,7; P < 0.05). The results of regression and their lowest values were for the galvanized steel surface. The
analysis, as determined by regression equations and R2 values, highest value for the static coefficient of friction (0.411) was
were as follows: recorded for the Badem variety with 20% moisture content and

Table 2 Table 4
Bulk density of hazelnut samples and standard errors. True densities of hazelnut samples and standard errors.

Moisture Bulk density (g), kg m3 Moisture True density (r), kg m3
content content
Tombul Badem Mincane Çakıldak Sivri Tombul Badem Mincane Çakıldak Sivri
(%) (%)
8 451.80  5.41 473.69  3.25 477.49  3.85 417.43  3.38 476.62  5.66 8 793.10  4.63 792.33  6.64 803.00  5.29 756.00  6.43 788.00  6.66
12 467.60  4.83 478.70  5.76 487.74  4.89 427.00  3.73 489.10  3.19 12 818.50  7.31 815.67  7.22 823.33  3.53 787.33  7.22 812.33  5.46
16 477.80  6.66 492.10  3.97 506.00  5.11 433.30  4.19 502.50  4.00 16 836.30  3.06 837.67  4.98 842.67  4.98 812.67  4.26 837.67  5.55
20 493.10  3.33 501.10  7.10 515.81  4.05 445.76  5.04 520.14  4.32 20 863.67  4.81 864.67  7.13 870.00  5.86 829.00  1.53 860.00  6.24
 H. Kibar, T. Öztürk / Journal of Stored Products Research 45 (2009) 14–18 17

concrete surface, and the lowest value (0.160) was determined for Table 6
the Mincane variety with 8% moisture content and galvanized steel. Regression equations related to static coefficients of friction of hazelnut varieties.

Regression equations related to the static coefficient of friction for Surface Hazelnut varieties Regression equations
hazelnut varieties and R2 values are presented in Table 6. Beyhan Wood Tombul m ¼ 0.139 þ 0.0093Mc (R2 ¼ 0.97)
et al. (1994) researched static coefficients of friction for some Badem m ¼ 0.192 þ 0.0112Mc (R2 ¼ 0.97)
hazelnut varieties (Tombul, Palaz, Kuşfındığı and Sivri), in shell and Mincane m ¼ 0.107 þ 0.0103Mc (R2 ¼ 0.96)
Çakıldak m ¼ 0.178 þ 0.0070Mc (R2 ¼ 0.94)
with husk at 21.6  C, and determined that moisture content and
Sivri m ¼ 0.137 þ 0.0092Mc (R2 ¼ 0.94)
surface characteristics influenced the coefficient of friction. The
statistical analysis of experimental data showed that, relative to Concrete (C30) Tombul m ¼ 0.149 þ 0.0103Mc (R2 ¼ 0.96)
Badem m ¼ 0.228 þ 0.0095Mc (R2 ¼ 0.95)
varieties (F ¼ 18.6; d.f. ¼ 4,55; P < 0.01), moisture content (F ¼ 52.7; Mincane m ¼ 0.145 þ 0.0098Mc (R2 ¼ 0.96)
d.f. ¼ 3,56; P < 0.01) and friction surface (F ¼ 25.1; d.f. ¼ 2,57; Çakıldak m ¼ 0.185 þ 0.0099Mc (R2 ¼ 0.90)
P < 0.01) had highly significant effects on the coefficient of friction Sivri m ¼ 0.169 þ 0.0088Mc (R2 ¼ 0.97)
but interactions of variety and surface, variety and moisture, Galvanized Tombul m ¼ 0.126 þ 0.0091Mc (R2 ¼ 0.98)
surface and moisture, and variety, surface and moisture, were not steel Badem m ¼ 0.184 þ 0.0080Mc (R2 ¼ 0.98)
significant. Mincane m ¼ 0.089 þ 0.0097Mc (R2 ¼ 0.97)
The highest value for the dynamic coefficient of friction (0.287) Çakıldak m ¼ 0.126 þ 0.0099Mc (R2 ¼ 0.99)
Sivri m ¼ 0.109 þ 0.0099Mc (R2 ¼ 0.98)
was recorded for the Badem variety with 20% moisture content and
a concrete surface. The lowest value (0.093) was in Sivri with 8%
moisture content and a galvanized steel surface. Regression equa-
tions for the dynamic coefficients of friction of hazelnut varieties
4. Conclusion
and R2 values are presented in Table 7.
In this study, the physico-mechanical parameters (bulk density,
true density, angle of internal friction, static coefficient of friction
and dynamic coefficient of friction) relevant to the design of storage
Table 5 structures for hazelnuts were investigated for some important
Static and dynamic coefficients of friction of hazelnut varieties. varieties. The following results were obtained;
Hazelnut Moisture Coefficient Surfaces
varieties content of friction - Post-harvest moisture contents of the hazelnut varieties varied
Wood C30 Galvanized
(%)
concrete steel
from 8.1% to 9.1%.
- The highest average value for bulk density was determined in
Tombul 8 mS 0.216  0.007 0.238  0.006 0.204  0.003
md 0.139  0.003 0.147  0.005 0.127  0.005 Sivri variety (520.14 kg m3), and the lowest average value was
12 mS 0.243  0.003 0.259  0.005 0.231  0.007 determined in the Çakıldak variety (417.43 kg m3). Bulk
md 0.174  0.007 0.182  0.006 0.153  0.004 density increased with moisture content.
16 mS 0.298  0.004 0.322  0.008 0.267  0.004 - The highest average value for angle of internal friction was
md 0.206  0.003 0.213  0.004 0.189  0.003
20 mS 0.322  0.006 0.354  0.007 0.313  0.006
determined in the Badem variety (35.4 ), and lowest average
md 0.233  0.003 0.243  0.004 0.204  0.005 value determined in the Mincane (28.3 ). The angle of internal
friction increased with moisture content.
Badem 8 mS 0.285  0.007 0.302  0.007 0.243  0.011
md 0.154  0.003 0.162  0.006 0.123  0.007
- The highest average value for true density was observed in the
12 mS 0.314  0.010 0.336  0.005 0.286  0.004 Mincane variety (870.00 kg m3), and the lowest average value
md 0.176  0.009 0.205  0.007 0.152  0.006 was observed in the Çakıldak variety (788.00 kg m3). The true
16 mS 0.370  0.007 0.394  0.006 0.315  0.005 density increased with moisture content.
md 0.251  0.011 0.264  0.004 0.186  0.007
- The highest average value for static coefficient of friction
20 mS 0.384  0.005 0.411  0.003 0.341  0.006
md 0.290  0.006 0.287  0.005 0.235  0.010 dependent on surface (wood, concrete, galvanized steel) was
recorded in the Badem variety (0.411), and the lowest average
Mincane 8 mS 0.181  0.005 0.225  0.009 0.160  0.006
md 0.133  0.004 0.146  0.007 0.107  0.005
value was recorded in the Mincane variety (0.160). When static
12 mS 0.245  0.006 0.265  0.007 0.215  0.006 coefficients of friction were compared from the perspective of
md 0.167  0.006 0.177  0.005 0.129  0.006
16 mS 0.271  0.009 0.289  0.007 0.249  0.006
md 0.180  0.004 0.215  0.008 0.151  0.004 Table 7
20 mS 0.310  0.010 0.349  0.006 0.278  0.005 Regression equations related to dynamic coefficients of friction of hazelnut varieties.
md 0.228  0.008 0.242  0.007 0.167  0.005
Surface Hazelnut Regression equations
Çakıldak 8 mS 0.232  0.006 0.249  0.006 0.204  0.010 varieties
md 0.133  0.005 0.157  0.006 0.111  0.009
Wood Tombul m ¼ 0.078 þ 0.0079Mc (R2 ¼ 0.99)
12 mS 0.284  0.005 0.324  0.005 0.246  0.006
Badem m ¼ 0.049 þ 0.0120Mc (R2 ¼ 0.96)
md 0.154  0.003 0.184  0.006 0.144  0.005
Mincane m ¼ 0.072 þ 0.0075Mc (R2 ¼ 0.95)
16 mS 0.296  0.006 0.351  0.003 0.283  0.006
Çakıldak m ¼ 0.075 þ 0.0071Mc (R2 ¼ 0.96)
md 0.199  0.004 0.214  0.005 0.165  0.004
Sivri m ¼ 0.075 þ 0.0068Mc (R2 ¼ 0.96)
20 mS 0.331  0.003 0.372  0.005 0.323  0.005
md 0.213  0.005 0.233  0.004 0.202  0.007 Concrete (C30) Tombul m ¼ 0.084 þ 0.0080Mc (R2 ¼ 0.99)
Badem m ¼ 0.077 þ 0.0108Mc (R2 ¼ 0.97)
Sivri 8 mS 0.215  0.004 0.234  0.004 0.185  0.007
Mincane m ¼ 0.080 þ 0.0082Mc (R2 ¼ 0.99)
md 0.131  0.005 0.149  0.004 0.093  0.008
Çakıldak m ¼ 0.106 þ 0.0065Mc (R2 ¼ 0.99)
12 mS 0.234  0.005 0.278  0.007 0.229  0.007
Sivri m ¼ 0.093 þ 0.0069Mc (R2 ¼ 0.99)
md 0.160  0.002 0.173  0.005 0.135  0.006
16 mS 0.298  0.007 0.316  0.006 0.278  0.009 Galvanized Tombul m ¼ 0.074 þ 0.0067Mc (R2 ¼ 0.97)
md 0.175  0.005 0.207  0.006 0.159  0.005 steel Badem m ¼ 0.044 þ 0.0092Mc (R2 ¼ 0.98)
20 mS 0.316  0.006 0.338  0.006 0.301  0.010 Mincane m ¼ 0.067 þ 0.0051Mc (R2 ¼ 0.99)
md 0.217  0.004 0.229  0.006 0.186  0.004 Çakıldak m ¼ 0.052 þ 0.0073Mc (R2 ¼ 0.99)
Sivri m ¼ 0.037 þ 0.0076Mc (R2 ¼ 0.98)
mS: Static coefficient of friction, md: Dynamic coefficient of friction.
18 H. Kibar, T. Öztürk / Journal of Stored Products Research 45 (2009) 14–18
friction surface, the highest average value was observed for the
concrete surface (0.308), and the lowest average value was
observed for the steel surface (0.257). Similarly, the highest
value for the dynamic coefficient of friction was recorded in the
Badem variety at 20% moisture content and with a concrete
surface (0.287), and the lowest value for the dynamic coeffi-
cient of friction was recorded in the Sivri variety at 8% moisture
content and with a galvanized steel surface (0.093). Thus, for
each variety and surface an increase in moisture content
resulted in an increase of both the static and dynamic coeffi-
cient of friction.
For hazelnuts and other commodities it can be seen that
increased moisture content causes notable increases of pressure
on silo walls. Because the increase of pressure requires an increase
in the thickness of silo construction materials, costs of construc-
tion increase. Also, flow problems in silos such as arching, rat-
holing, irregular flow and segregation occur with increased
moisture content. When arching or rat-holing occurs, much of the
stored product flows at the center only, leaving some remaining
behind in dead zones of the silo for long periods. Aflatoxin
formation in hazelnuts which remain in the silo for a long time
under such conditions is inevitable and thus causes storage
failure. Therefore, moisture content of the nuts and the resulting
bulk density, true density, angle of internal friction and coeffi-
cients of friction have to been taken into consideration in the
design of silos.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the Ondokuz Mayıs University
Scientific Research Fund Directorate for supporting this project
(Z – 456), and Gregory Thomas Sullivan of Ondokuz Mayıs
University for his considerable assistance in editing.
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