See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/287608404

Grain Moisture Measuring Techniques - A Review

Article · February 2015

CITATIONS READS

0 5,245

1 author:

Md Shafiq Alam
Punjab Agricultural University
69 PUBLICATIONS   404 CITATIONS   

SEE PROFILE

Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:

Post harvest processing machinery and value chain View project

All content following this page was uploaded by Md Shafiq Alam on 21 December 2015.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

AGRICULTURAL
ENGINEERING
TODAY

ISSN : 0970-2962 Vol. 39(2)

April-June, 2015

Indian Society of Agricultural Engineers

 Agricultural Engineering Today
Editorial board
Chief Editor
Prof. Surendra Singh
Farm Machinery Processing, Dairy and Soil and Water Energy and other
and Power Food Engineering Engineering Areas

Editors
Dr. S P Singh Dr. Ravindra Naik Dr. B C Mal Dr. N S Chauhan
Dr T Senthilkumar Dr. S I Anwar Dr. Atul Arvind Atre

Ex-officio Members:
President : Dr. N C Patel
Immediate Past President : Prof. V M Mayande
Patron : Prof. Gajendra Singh
Vice President (Technical Council) : Dr. R K Gupta
Vice President (Activity Council) : Dr. N K Das
Secretary General : Dr. Indra Mani Mishra
Secretary : Dr. Abhijit Kar
Treasurer : Dr. P K Sahoo
Publication Enquiries
Agricultural Engineering Today is a publication of the Indian Society of Agricultural Engineers.
(Telefax: 011-25849003; E-mail: isae1960@gmail.com; Website: www.isae.in)
All communications regarding this publication should be addressed to:
Chief Editor (AET), Indian Society of Agricultural Engineers, Plot No. B-37, B U Bhandari Greens Coop.
Housing Society, Survey No. 15, Dhanori, Pune-411015, Email: ssingh5119@gmail.com
The opinion and views expressed by the authors are not necessarily those of Agricultural Engineering
Today or ISAE
Subscription details:
Inland Foreign
Annual subscription Rs. 1000.00 US$ 200.00
Per copy Rs. 300.00 US$ 75.00
Additional postage & handling charges
Full year Rs. 200.00 US$ 30.00
One copy Rs. 75.00 US$ 15.00
For payment, cheque/draft including bank charges may be drawn in favour of “Indian Society of Agricultural
Engineers” payable at New Delhi and sent to Secretary General, “INDIAN SOCIETY OF AGRICULTURAL
ENGINEERS”, G-4, A-Block, (Ground Floor), National Agricultural Science Centre Complex, Dev Prakash
Shastri Marg, Pusa Campus, New Delhi – 110012, India.
 Vol. 39(2), 2015

Optimizing Process Parameters for Foam Mat Drying of Papaya

Pulp (Carica Papaa L.)
Syed Mazar Ali1 (AM-100120-8), Shamshad Begum2, Lata R Kulkarni1, S C Ranganatha1,
and K H Nagraj1
1
Krishi Vigyan, Kendra, Ramanagara, Karnataka-562120
2
Bakery Training Unit, University of Agriculture Sciences, Bangalore
Email: majru12@gmail.com
Manuscript received: March 26, 2014 Revised manuscript accepted: February 7, 2015

ABSTRACT
Current study aims to examine the possibility of commercial production of high quality
papaya powder using foam mat drying techniques. Foaming of papaya pulp (CO-5) was
done by adding egg white (5, 10 and 15%) and stabilized with methyl cellulose (0.5%). It
was dried at three drying temperatures viz. 60, 70 and 80°C in a tray dryer. From the drying
study, it was observed that, the drying time required for foamed papaya pulp was lower
than non-foamed pulp at all selected temperatures. The results of biochemical analysis
showed a significant reduction in ascorbic acid and β-carotene content in the papaya powder
obtained at higher temperatures when compared to the pulp dried at lower temperature
of 60°C. The values for rehydration ratio and water activity decreased with increase in
temperature but with increase in egg white concentration the values increased for both
the parameters. Increase in pH values were observed with increase in temperature as well
as with increase in egg white concentration. From this drying study, it was concluded that
the papaya pulp treated with 10% egg white and 0.5% methyl cellulose and dried at 60°C
retained significantly higher quality traits than that of other foaming and drying treatments.
 Key words: Papaya, Foam mat drying, Methyl cellulose, Egg albumin, Moisture content

INTRODUCTION source of beta-carotene, which helps to prevent

Papaya with the scientific name, Carica papaya is
a common fruit to be found in tropical countries.
Papaya fruit is sweet in taste, with an agreeable
musky tang, which is more pronounced in some
varieties and in some climates than in others (Ida
Idayu Binti Muhamad., 2005). The size, shape,
smooth skin, and absence of blemishes are major
quality characteristics for papaya. Small dry brown-
black “freckles” on the skin are non-pathogenic and
do not detract from ripening or flavor (Lewicki, 1998).
Different types of enzymes are present in papaya.
Protease enzyme, also known as papain is a
protein-digesting enzyme. Papaya when consumed
regularly will ensure a good supply of vitamin A
and C. It also contains vitamins B, D, E, K and
minerals such as magnesium, sodium, iron, calcium,
phosphorus and potassium. Papaya is a good
damage by free radical, which may otherwise lead
to some forms of cancer. Papaya is a low calorie fruit
compared to others. 100 g of ripe papaya contains
only 32 kcal. It will be more convenient if papaya
fruit is processed as drinks that can be included in
our regular daily meals.
Drying is a process in which water is removed
to halt or slow down the growth of spoilage
microorganisms, as well as the occurrence of
chemical reaction. Drying is usually defined as
the removal of moisture until equilibrium with the
environment, while the removal of moisture to a
very low moisture content, nearly bone-dry condition
is called dehydration (Stuchly and Stuchly, 1983).
Drying technology has evolved from the simple use
of solar energy to current technology that includes,
among others, kiln drying, tray drying, tunnel

1
Agricultural Engineering Today
drying, spray drying, freeze dehydration, osmotic
dehydration, extrusion, fluidization, and the use of
microwaves, radio frequency, refractance window
and hurdle technology. Foaming of liquid and semi-
liquid materials has long been recognized as one
of the methods to shorten  drying  time. Over the
past decade, this relatively old technology, known
as  foam-mat  drying, received renewed attention
because of its added ability to process hard-to-dry
materials, obtain products of desired properties
(e.g., favourable rehydration, controlled density),
and retain volatiles that otherwise would be lost
during the drying of non-foamed materials.
MATERIAL AND METHODS
The operation involved elimination of dirt and
excess pesticide residues from the material before
use. Washing was performed by spraying water
and brushing to eliminate adhering soil. Removal
of skin from fruit was done by manual peeling
method using a sharp knife. The fruit was cut into
two halves using a knife and the unwanted non
edible portion i.e. seeds were removed. The fruit
was cut into small pieces with the help of a knife to
achieve easy grinding. The cut pieces were pulped
using the laboratory mixer-grinder, and the fresh
papaya pulp was obtained. Foaming and stabilizing
agents were used within the limits stipulated in the
Prevention of Food Adulteration Act (1955) and also
based on the preliminary foaming tests conducted.
The food foaming and stabilizing agents such as
egg white (5, 10 and 15%) with methyl cellulose
(0.5%) were selected and used for the foaming.
For foaming and stabilizing the papaya pulp, egg
white and methyl cellulose were incorporated
subsequently during whipping. The foamed as well
as the non foamed samples were dried at different
temperatures viz. 60, 70 and 80°C in a batch type
tray dryer. The homogeneous foamed papaya pulp
was evenly spread on the food grade stainless steel
trays of size (80 x 40 x 3 cm). The temperature
inside the drying chamber was measured by using
thermometer. At every 30 min interval, the trays
were taken out of the drying chamber for moisture
loss determination. The drying was ceased when
the mass of the samples recorded constant weight.
The moisture in the sample was determined by hot
air oven method (Ranganna, 1999). The pH was
measured with a digital glass electrode pH meter
2
(CD 175 E), which was calibrated prior to sample
pH measurement using buffer solutions of pH 4.0
& 7.0. The rehydration ratio of papaya powder was
determined as the ratio of rehydrated mass to the
initial dehydrated mass, which gives a measure of
the ability of papaya powder to reabsorb water. One
part of papaya powder was dissolved in 10 parts
of 1% NaCl solution and boiled for 20 min in a test
tube. It was then cooled at room temperature for 45
min. The water activity of papaya powder obtained
was measured at room temperature (28.5±1°C)
using a water activity meter (Aqua Lab, Model
Series 3TE, USA). A mean of three measurements
were reported. The colour of various papaya and
papaya powder fractions were measured by using
colorimeter with colour measuring attachment
(Colourquest XE, Hunter lab colorimeter, Software
– QC). The colorimeter was calibrated using a
white tile thereafter colour values (L, a, b) of the
samples were measured. Among colour component
L represents the value (lightness) of colour and it
is larger for lighter colour, a is negative for green
and positive for red while b is negative for blue and
positive for yellow. Ascorbic acid was calculated
by 2,6-dichlorophenol indophenols visual titration
method using standard procedure. β-Carotene in the
papaya powder was determined by recording optical
density by 452 nm using petroleum ether as blank
(Ranganna, 1999). Drying of foamed papaya pulp
was carried out using egg white as foaming agent
in concentrations of 5%, 10% and 15%, with methyl
cellulose (0.5 %) as foam stabilizer (Rajkumar
and Kailappn, 2006) and at three different drying
temperatures of 60, 70 and 80°C. Drying  studies
was performed at constant  drying conditions of
temperature, velocity and humidity using a thin layer
of sample. Basically, constant condition batch thin
layer drying experiments consists of measurement
of moisture loss with time. The plot of moisture
content against time is known as the drying curve.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The mean value of physical parameters such as
weight, diameter and length of papaya fruit was
1.24 kg, 10.74 cm and 19.62 cm, respectively.
Physicochemical characteristics of papaya pulp
such as moisture content, pH, TSS, Ascorbic Acid
and β-Carotene was 91.67% wb, 4.20, 5.30o Brix,
71 mg, 2496 µg respectively. The colour values
 Vol. 39(2), 2015

Table 1: pH of dried papaya powder and Water activity of papaya powder

Temperature pH of dried papaya powder Water activity of dried papaya powder
(°C) Egg white concentration (%) Egg white concentration (%)
5 10 15 5 10 15
60 °C 5.08 5.27 5.37 0.617 0.715 0.775
70 °C 5.26 5.37 5.43 0.464 0.479 0.488
80 °C 5.45 5.49 5.71 0.467 0.470 0.473

Table 2: Colour values of papaya pulp at different Egg white concentration

Colour Egg white concentration (%)
Parameters 0 5 10 15
L* 39.27 42.32 44.33 44.58
a* 21.86 23.22 23.82 24.23
b* 21.66 25.77 26.20 27.35

Table 3: Colour values of papaya powder at different temperature and Egg white concentration
Temperature Egg white (%) Colour
L* a* b*
5 61.96 16.12 26.06
60°C 10 58.85 16.54 26.19
15 51.85 16.61 27.52
5 57.46 16.23 26.84
70°C 10 56.32 16.37 26.91
15 54.63 16.71 27.09
5 53.29 16.40 27.59
80°C 10 52.52 16.80 27.68
15 51.81 17.32 27.79

Table 4: Rehydration Ratio of dried papaya powder

Temperature (°C) Egg white concentration (%)
5 10 15
60 °C 5.3 5.7 6.2
70 °C 3.6 4 4.5
80 °C 2 3 3.4

Table 5: Ascorbic acid content and β-carotene content of dried papaya powder (mg/100 g)
Temperature Ascorbic acid content β-carotene content
(°C) Egg white concentration (%) Egg white concentration (%)
5 10 15 5 10 15
60 °C 13.19 14.01 14.02 1350.01 1350.05 1350.12
70 °C 10.34 10.37 10.39 854.33 854.37 854.40
80 °C 8.12 8.15 8.17 645.67 645.71 645.72

3
Agricultural Engineering Today
(L*, a* and b*) of papaya pulp was 37.6, 9.02 and
23.39 respectively. The initial moisture content of the
papaya pulp was found to be 91.67% wb. The pH
values of treated papaya powder samples and water
activity values of treated papaya powder samples
are given in Table 1. The colour values for papaya
powder are shown in Table 3 for foamed papaya pulp
dried at 60, 70 and 80°C. Changes in rehydration
ratio values of papaya powder are shown below
in Table 4. Changes in ascorbic acid content of
papaya powder and Changes in β-carotene values
of papaya powder are shown in Table 5.
It is seen from Table 6 that the time required for drying
the papaya pulp with 5% egg white concentration
and 0.5% methyl cellulose at 60, 70 and 80°C was
390, 360 and 330 min, respectively. A considerable
decrease in drying time was observed with increase
of temperature and due to foaming with 5% egg
white a gradual decrease in drying time from 420
to 390 min for 60°C, 390 to 360 min for 70°C and
360 to 330 min for 80°C. Drying time was reduced
due to foaming for every temperature. Foaming
increases the contact surface area and hence drying
time reduced. This is in accordance with results of
foamed and unfoamed mango pulp drying (Rajkumar
and Kailappan, 2006). Time required for drying the
papaya pulp with 10% egg white concentration
and 0.5% methyl cellulose at 60, 70 and 80°C was
360, 330 and 300 min, respectively. A considerable
decrease in drying time was observed with increase
of temperature and due to foaming with 10% egg
white a gradual decrease in drying time from 420 to
360 min at 60°C, 390 to 330 min for 70°C and 360
to 300 min for 80°C. Drying time reduced due to
foaming for every temperature. Also when compared
to 5% egg white concentration there a considerable
decrease in drying time for different temperatures.
Time required for drying the papaya pulp with 15%
egg white concentration and 0.5% methyl cellulose
at 60, 70 and 80°C was 360, 330 and 300 min,
Table 6: Drying time (min) at different temperature and Egg white concentration at 0.5% Methyl cellulose
Egg white
concentration (%) 60°C
Control 420
5 390
10 360
15 360
4
respectively. A considerable decrease in drying time
was observed with increase of temperature and due
to foaming with 15% egg white a gradual decrease in
drying time from 420 to 360 min for 60°C, 390 to 330
min for 70°C and 360 to 300 min for 80°C. Drying
time reduced due to foaming for every temperature.
Also when compared to 5% egg white concentration
there was a considerable decrease in drying time
for different temperatures but in comparison to 10%
concentration of egg white there were only minor
changes in drying time.
The plot of  drying rate against drying time is
called the  drying  rate curve (Fig. 1). A study of
the drying curve and drying rate curve shows that
the  drying  cycle can be described to consist of
a number of stages. The first stage represents
a “settling down” period during which the solid
surface conditions come into equilibrium with
the drying air. It is often a negligible proportion of
the overall drying cycle but in some cases it may
be significant. The second stage is known as the
CRP of drying. During this period the surface of the
solid remains saturated with liquid water by virtue
of the fact that movement of water within the solid
to the surface takes place at a rate as great as
the evaporation from the surface. The third stage
is the FRP of drying. The results show that drying
of papaya pulp for all treatments consist of one
CRP which was observed due to high moisture
content of papaya. The end of the CRP signifies
that the water has ceased to behave as if it were
at a free surface and that factors other than vapour
pressure differences are influencing the rate of
drying. Thereafter the drying rate decreases and
this is called the FRP of drying and two FRPs were
observed for all treatments. The rate controlling
factors in the FRP are complex, depending upon
diffusion through the food, and upon the changing
energy – binding pattern of the water molecules
(Earle and Earle, 1983).
Drying temperature
70°C 80°C
390 360
360 330
330 300
330 300

Fig. 1: Moisture reduction curve of papaya pulp at
different temperatures
pH values of treated samples got increase in value
such as 5.71, 5.43 and 5.37 for 60, 70 and 80°C
of 15% egg white added samples respectively in
comparison with papaya pulp of 4.87 (Table 1).
Similar trend was observed for all the treatments.
This may be due to decrease in acid content with
increase in drying temperature. As the acidity is
mainly due to ascorbic acid content and it being heat
sensitive may have faced some loss and so rise in
pH was observed. Also increase in pH value was
observed with increased egg white percentage. The
reason may be due to addition of egg white which is
having pH of 8.6, also pH naturally rises in egg white
over time (Stuchly and Stuchly, 1983). Water activity
(aW) is defined as the ratio of water in a food to the
saturated vapour pressure of water at the same
temperature (Kaminski and Kundra, 2000). Water
activity of papaya powder was determined using
digital water activity meter. It was observed that
there was a gradual decrease in the water activity
with increase of temperature. The reason is that at
higher temperatures the bound water is lost even
more. An increase was observed in water activity
with increase in egg white concentration which
could be due to moistening property of egg white.
It was observed that for foam pulped the ‘L’ value
was slightly increased i.e. lightness of pulp was
increased. It is clear from the results that there was
a little reduction in the colour of the pulp due to the
incorporation of egg albumen and methylcellulose
as the ‘a’ and ‘b’ values decreased when compared
to the fresh pulp. Similar trend was observed
for foam mat drying of totapuri mango pulp. For
papaya powder it was observed that the lightness
reduced with increase of temperature. It could be
because of browning of powder due to the chemical
reaction between reducing sugars and amino acids
5
Vol. 39(2), 2015
at elevated temperatures i.e. by Maillard reaction
(Maskan, 2001). Also the formation of dehydro-
ascorbic acid and di-ketogluconic acids from
ascorbic acid is thought to occur during final stages
of the drying process and is capable of interacting
with the free amino acids, non enzymatically,
producing the red to brown discoloration. This
reaction may involve Strecker degradation. The
increases in egg white concentration lead to the
more darkening of the papaya powder this is
because more foaming caused more porosity or
more exposure area to heat and so more loss
of colour (Lewicki, 1998). It was observed that
increasing the drying temperature increased the
final a* and b* values for papaya powder also with
increase in egg white concentration increase in both
a* and b* values was observed.
The rehydration ratio of dried papaya was determined
as the ratio of rehydrated mass to the initial
dehydrated mass, which gives a measure of the
ability of papaya powder to reabsorb water. It was
observed that values for rehydration ratio decreased
with increase of drying temperature. Rehydration is
maximized when cellular and structural disruptions
such as shrinkage are minimized. Also, the
variation in the rehydration ratio values might be
influenced by the drying temperature, soaking
time, air displacement, pH and ionic strength.
And since due to increase in temperature there
would be more shrinkage and cellular disruptions
(Fenemma, 1975), the variation in values was
observed. With increase in egg white concentration
it was observed that there was a gradual increase
in values of rehydration ratio. The reason could
be the increased porosity of the papaya powder.
Porosity can be developed by whipping or foaming
a food liquid or puree prior to drying the porous
product has the advantages of quick solubility or
reconstitution and greater volume appearance.
Ascorbic acid was estimated by titration method in
which papaya powder solution in oxalic acid was
titrated against 2, 6 di-chloro indophenol dye. It was
observed that with increase in drying temperature
the ascorbic acid content reduced considerably as
ascorbic acid is heat sensitive, another reason could
be ascorbic acid oxidation. The loss of ascorbic acid
was in range of 70.87 - 81.57% for 60°C, 74.94 -
85.44% for 70°C and 79.92 - 88.44% for 80°C. With
increase of egg white concentration the ascorbic
Agricultural Engineering Today
acid content has increased slightly. This is because
egg white contains small amount of ascorbic acid
and so increase in its concentration lead to a slight
increase in ascorbic acid content. The β-carotene
content of papaya powder significantly decreased. A
gradual decrease in the amount of β-carotene was
observed with increase in drying temperatures. The
decline in amounts of β-carotene could be due to the
thermo labile and photosensitive nature of carotenes
(Hoover, 1973; Mir and Nath, 1993). With increase
of egg white concentration negligible amounts of
variations in β-carotene values were observed.
It was observed that the time needed for getting
powder was 390, 360 and 360 min at 60°C for 5%,
10% and 15% of added egg white, respectively.
For 70°C and 80°C for 5%, 10% and 15%, the time
required was 360, 330 and 330 min and 330, 330
and 300 min, respectively. The retention of ascorbic
acid and β-carotene was observed comparatively
higher for 10% egg white at 60°C. Rehydration ratio
also observed high in case of 60°C for 10% egg
white. Thus the optimum condition for producing
papaya powder was drying at 60°C with addition of
10% egg white.
CONCLUSION
Time required to dry the foamed papaya pulp
was less than that of unfoamed pulp and drying
time also reduced with increase of egg white
concentration. Best quality papaya powder could be
produced by foam mat drying with 10% egg white
and 0.5% methyl cellulose concentration at 60°C.
Colour retention, rehydration ratio, ascorbic acid
and β-carotene retention were higher in sample
containing 10% egg white and 0.5% methyl cellulose
which was dried at 60°C
6
REFERENCES
Earle R L; Earle M D. 1983. Unit operations in food
processing. NZIFST (Inc.). New Zealand. Chap.7.
Fenemma O R. 1975. Principles of Food Science.
Marcel Dekker Inc.New York.
Hoover M W. 1973. A process for producing dehydrated
pumpkin flakes. J. of Food Sci. 38: 96-98.
Ida Idayu Binti Muhammad. 2005. Effect of various
processing parameters on the quality of papaya
fruit tea. Bioprocess engineering department.
Research management centre. Final report vol
75146.
Kaminski W; Kudra T. 2000. Equlibrium moisture
relations for foods and bio materials. Drying
Technology in Agriculture and Food Science.
Science Publishers, Inc. Enfield, NH. pp.313.
Lewicki P. 1998. Some remarks on rehydration of dried
foods. J. of Food Engg. 36: 81-87.
Maskan M. 2001.Kinetics of colour change of kiwifruits
during hot air and microwave drying.J. of Food
Engg. 48: 169-175.
Mir M A; Nath N. 1993. Storage changes in fortified
mango bar. Journal of Food Science & Technol.
30: 279-282.
Rajkumar P; Kailappan R. 2006. Optimizing the
process parameters for Foam Mat Drying of
Totapuri Mango Pulp. Madras Agric. J. 93(1-6):
86-98.
Ranganna S. 1999. Handbook of analysis and quality
control for fruit and vegetable product (II edition).
Tata Mc-Graw Hill Publishing Company Limited.
New Delhi.
Stuchly S S: Stuchly M A. 1983. Microwave Drying:
Potential and Limitations. Advances in Drying,
Volume II, Washington, New York, London:
Hemisphere Publishing Corporation, pp.53-71.
 Vol. 39(2), 2015

Draughability Studies Using Crossbred Bullocks for Different

Unit Operations in Terraces –A Case Study in Sikkim
R K Tiwari (LM-9504)
CAEPHT (CAU), Ranipool-Sikkim
Email- rk96tiwari@gmail.com
Manuscript received: April 22, 2014 Revised manuscript accepted: March 23, 2015

ABSTRACT
In Sikkim there are 58,700 bullocks mostly used for cultivation operations in valley and
terraces. The bullocks power availability in Sikkim has been estimated to be 13501 kW
considering output of one pair of Sikkim bullocks as 0.46 kW. The bullocks power availability
per unit food crop area is 0.12 kW/ha. The crossbred bullock pair of Holstein Friesen breed
(weight: 645 kg) could sustain a draught load of 8.72% of the body weight in ploughing
with improved wedge plough for 4 hours, 6.82% in clod crushing and leveling operation up
to 5 hours and 6.30% for 4 hours in sowing operation with two row improved seed drill in
terrace condition. In the field condition, the pulse and respiration rate increased at faster
rate in the first hour and subsequently the rise was at decreasing rate. The average values
of power output for improved wedge plough, clod crusher-leveler, helical blade puddler and
two row seed drill were 0.365, 0.332,0.327and 0.348 kW respectively.
Key words: Draughtability, fatigue, crossbred, draught load, helical blade puddler

INTRODUCTION with indigenous plough followed by 94 beats /minute

The draught power of animal depends on the
breed, sex, size, body weight, nutrition and health,
environment, its training for work and terrain
conditions. The amount of work, an animal or team
of animals perform on sustainable basis is referred
as work performance (draughtability) of animal. The
workoutput of animal varied as per the draft, speed
and duration of work. Therefore, draughtability
of animals is determined by recording the draft,
speed and duration of work without being fatigued.
Physiological norms for continuous working of
animals without undue fatigue are not studied in
terrace farming conditions in all the seven states of
northern hilly region. As a result animals (28,000 pair
of bullocks) are subjected to drudgery in terraces
during performing different agricultural operations
in Sikkim.
The pulse rate and respiration rate of bullocks
increased with increase in duration of work during
draughtbility studies performed on non-descriptive
type breed of bullocks at Raipur in Chhattisgarh. The
highest pulse rate was recorded as 96 beats/minute
with disc harrow and 88 beats / minute with blade
puddler whereas the lowest pulse rate was recorded
as 86 beats/ minute with zigzag paddy puddler
after the four hours of continuous work. Similarly,
the maximum respiration rate was recorded as 95
blows/ minute with Indigenous plough followed by
92 blows/minute with disc harrow and 83 blows/
minute with blade puddler whereas it was minimum
with zigzag paddy puddler (81 blows/ minute)
after four hours of continuous work. Considering
the different physiological parameters and visual
observations the maximum fatigue score 21 was
observed with indigenous plough followed by disc
harrow and blade puddler whereas it was minimum
16 with zigzag paddy puddler after the four hours of
continuous work. At the end of four hours of work
the maximum power output was recorded as 0.47
kW with zigzag paddy puddler followed by 0.46 kW
with blade puddler and 0.44 kW with disc harrow
whereas the minimum power output was 0.41 kW
with Indigenous plough (Anonymous, 2008). Malvi,
Nagouri, Khillari, Harianvi breeds of bullocks were

7
Agricultural Engineering Today
able to exert draught in sustained working (7-8 h
day in two sessions) equivalent to 12% of its body
weight during summer and 14% during winter using
local yoke. With improved three padded collar
harness they were able to exert 14% and 16% load
during summer and winter seasons respectively
(Maheshwari and Chaturvedi, 1997). Maurya and
Devadttam (1986) have also reported significant
increase in pulse and respiration rate due to draught.
There was a significant (P < 0.01) effect of duration
of work and draught on body temperature of the
bullocks. Body temperature increased significantly
with increase in duration of work and draught from
the initial level. It was due to the heat generated
during the work as a result of muscles contraction
(Garg et al., 1981 and Anonymous, 1993).
The draughtability studies with work rest cycle for
equines under arid conditions were performed by
National Research Centre on Equines, Bikaner. In
the experiment, three exotic female donkeys were
used in carting with 600, 800 and 1000 kg of load
under continuous work. They were also offered 2
kg concentrate mixture (oat, gram and wheat bran)
daily. The average body weight of female donkey
was 345 kg. The changes in physiological indices
during carting load of 600 and 800 kg after 2 hour
work were monitored which showed no specific
change in hematological value (Hb, PCU,TEC,TLC)
after work. However under 1000 kg load the animal
was fully fatigued within one hour of work. NRC on
Equines centre, Bikaner also studied work efficiency
of donkeys in agricultural operation with different
implements and reported that the donkeys were
capable of exerting a darught equivalent to 24 to
32% of their body weight which is higher than the
other livestock. The average body weight was 298
kg and the draught capacity of donkey matched with
single animal drawn plough (Anonymous, 2010).
Mishra et al., (2013) evaluated four crossbred
bullocks, aged between 5 to 8 years for draught
performance. The draughtability of the bullocks
was measured by estimating Overall Draught Ability
(ODA) using modified single animal pneumatic-tyred
cart (for carting ability) and single animal plough (for
ploughing ability).
MATERIAL AND METHODS
The field experiment was conducted for ploughing,
8
clod crushing-cum-leveling, puddling and sowing
operations by using the improved wedge plough,
clod crusher-leveler, helical blade puddler and two
row seed drill by All India Coordinated Research
Project on Utilization of Animal Energy Centre
located at College of Agricultural Engineering and
Post Harvest Technology, Ranipool (Sikkim). The
equipment selected was modified for size and
weight reduction suiting to the needs of farmers on
terraces. This equipment was manufactured as per
the feedback from farmers during draught animal’s
survey in all the four districts. The physiological
responses were recorded before completion of
test trials. The draft requirement was measured
and its equivalence in percentage body weight was
determined using spring dynamometer and load cell
after calibration in laboratory. The soil parameters
such as bulk density, cone index before and after
test, puddling index, performance index were
determined during puddling test trials. The cone
penetrometer, turbidity meter, wet/dry soil sieve
apparatus, measuring tap, digital stop watch, digital
thermometer were used for determination of values
of different parameters. For sowing test trial soil and
crop and machine parameters were recorded which
included soil moisture content, row spacing, speed
of operation, depth of sowing, seed rate, working
width, and time losses. The soil moisture content
of soil was determined using oven dry method and
calibration was performed using portable electronic
weighing balance. The effective field capacity, field
efficiency, net savings in inputs, cost of operation,
labour and time were worked out to compare
economic benefits over traditional practice. The pair
weight of crossbreed bullocks (Holstein Friesen) of
3 years age was measured at electronic weighing
platform which was 645 kg.
The speed of the bullocks was measured by taking
the time to cover 20 m distance. Ten observations
were taken at different period within an hour to
determine the average hourly speed. The fatigue
score of the bullocks was observed by using the
fatigue score card developed by Rao and Upadhyay
(1987). The power output at different draughts were
determined by the following formula:
Power output (kW) = Draft (N) x Speed (m/s)
1000
 Vol. 39(2), 2015

The physiological responses like pulse rate, (weight : 17.7 kg, size : 700 mm) provided effective
respiration rate and body temperature were field capacity of 0.139 ha/h and net saving of Rs.
measured at hourly interval by counting beats/min, 2150/ha as compared to traditional equipment
blows/min and rectal temperature inserting digital (Dande). The helical blade puddler (weight : 14.5
thermometer. The ambient temperature and relative kg, size : 630 mm) was operated at speed of 2.48
humidity were recorded every half an hour interval km/h at depth of operation of 52 mm. There was a
using digital thermometer and relative humidity net saving of Rs. 1980/ha over traditional practice
meter under field condition. of puddling by traditional plough. The two row
improved seed drill was used at row spacing of 36
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION mm and depth of operation of 38 mm for sowing
The light weight equipment (< 20 kg) suitable for black gram. The seed drill provided effective field
different unit operations on terraces were able to capacity of 0.070 ha/h and labour requirement was
deliver effective higher field capacity and turning at 14.28 man-h/ha. There was a net saving of Rs. 1330/
headlands caused no problem due to appropriate ha over traditional practice of manual broadcasting
size of equipment (< 20 kg). The test trials of of seeds followed by single operation of planking
improved wedge plough (weight :10.2 kg, size : 210 (Table 1).The draught of the improved wedge plough
mm) was operated for seedbed preparation at speed was recorded through spring dynamometer showing
of 2.25 km/h and effective field capacity was 0.030 average value of 56 kg (546 N) that is equivalent
ha/h. The net saving of Rs. 1800/ha was found by the to 8.72% of the body weight. Similarly the draught
use of improved plough as compared to ploughing values of improved clod crusher-cum-leveler and
by traditional plough. The clod crusher-cum-leveler improved helical blade puddler were found to be
Table 1: Performance results of animal drawn improved equipment used for seedbed preparation and sowing
operations during draughtbility studies
Parameters Values
Improved Clod crusher Improved helical Two row improved
wedge plough cum leveler blade puddler seed drill
Soil type Sandy loam Sandy loam Sandy loam Sandy loam
Soil moisture content (w.b), % 22.60 20.82 - 18.80
Depth of standing water, mm - - 65 -
Depth of operation, mm 92 45 52 38
Working width, mm 210 700 630 720
Speed of operation, km/h 2.25 2.36 2.48 1.90
Draft, N 546.36 429.67 397.30 467.93
- -
Effective field capacity, Sq.m/h 300 1390 820 700
Field efficiency, % 64.4 84.2 52.50 51.20
Labour requirement, man-h/ha 34 7.20 12.20 14.28
Net saving in cost of operation, 1800 2150 1980 1330
Rs/ha
Reduction in mean soil clod 69.24 75.77 - -
diameter, %
Puddling index, % - - 7.38 -
Performance index, % 8.25

9
Agricultural Engineering Today

43.8 kg (430 N) and 40.5 kg (397 N) respectively body temperature might be due to more heat set
which were equivalent to 6.82% and 6.30% of the free and account of increased lactic acid production
body weight respectively. The draught values of by the muscles.
other equipment namely animal drawn improved
The fatigue score increased with duration at all
two row seed drill was 47.7 kg (468 N) which is
draughts in field condition. At 8.72% (549 N) after
equivalent to 8.72% of the body weight.
4 hours the scorecard was 18 in the field condition
The pulse rate and respiration rate increased with during dry tillage using improved wedge plough. At
duration at all draught in the field condition (Table 6.82% draught (430 N) after 5 h, the fatigue score
2). It was observed that the rise in pulse rate was 17 in the field condition during clod crushing and
increased by 52% in ploughing whereas increase leveling using improved clod crusher cum leveler.
in values were 45% in clod crushing-cum-leveling At 6.30% draught (397 N) after 5 hours the fatigue
and puddling. The pulse rate in sowing operation score was 16 in the field condition during puddling
increased by 48.6% after first hour of operation. using improved helical blade puddler. At 7.43%
The body temperature was found to increase with draught (468 N) after 4 hours the fatigue score was
duration at all draughts in the field. Sudden rise of 17 in the field condition during sowing using animal
both PR and RR might be to meet the immediate drawn improved two row seed drill. The speed of
energy need to carry out the work. The increase in bullocks decreased appreciably as the duration of
Table 2: Physiological responses and ambient condition during field experiment
Operation Duration h Pulse Respiration Body Ambient Relative
(Draught, % of rate, rate, Temp.°C Temp.ºC humidity,%
body weight) beats/min breath/min
Ploughing (8.72%) Initial 58 19 38.0 19.1 74
1 84 38 38.7 19.3 75
2 92 46 38.8 19.6 73
3 97 61 39.3 20.4 73
4 105 77 39.6 20.6 70
Average (1 to 4 h) 95 56 39.1 19.9 72.75
Clod crushing cum Initial 56 18 38.0 18.1 73
leveling (6.82%) 1 81 32 38.7 18.3 72
2 96 39 38.9 18.7 72
3 103 43 39.4 18.8 80
4 110 48 39.8 19.8 80
5 115 54 39.8 19.8 76
Average 101 44 39.3 19.0 76
Puddling (6.30%) Initial 58 18 38.0 18.2 75
1 68 34 38.5 18.5 71
2 84 46 38.8 19.1 72
3 93 53 39.4 20.2 69
4 98 62 39.6 20.8 69
5 103 72 39.8 20.9 68
Average 101 54 39.2 19.9 70
Sowing (7.43%) Initial 55 20 39.3 18.2 73
1 68 38 39.5 18.3 74
2 74 48 39.8 18.3 74
3 78 54 40.0 18.6 72
4 79 60 40.4 18.7 72
Average 69 55 39.8 18.5 73

10
 Vol. 39(2), 2015

Table 3: Working speed, Power output and fatigue score during field experiment
Draught % of body weight Duration, h Working speed, Km/h Power output, kW Fatigue score
Ploughing (8.72%) 1 2.1 0.384 7
2 2.04 0.375 10
3 1.98 0.357 14
4 1.90 0.342 17
Average 2.0 0.365 12
Clod crushing & leveling 1 2.96 0.345 7
(6.82%) 2 2.90 0.333 12
3 2.87 0.330 14
4 2.85 0.328 16
5 2.83 0.326 12
Average 2.88 0.332
Puddling (6.30%) 1 2.40 0.355 7
2 2.28 0.332 10
3 2.23 0.326 14
4 2.20 0.322 17
5 2.17 0.300 12
Average 2.25 0.327
Sowing (7.43%) 1 2.1 0.363 8
2 2.28 0.350 12
3 2.32 0.342 14
4 2.35 0.340 17
Average 2.26 0.348 13

work increased in all field condition. Decrease in CONCLUSIONS

speed was more pronounced in puddling. Similar
to the speed, power output decreased with duration
at all draughts (Table 3). The average power output
at 8.72% draught was 0.365 kW in ploughing; and
at 6.82% draught 0.332 kW in leveling operation.
For improved helical blade puddler, the power
output was 0.327 kW in puddling operation at
6.30% draught. The average power output at 7.43%
draught was 0.348 kW in sowing operation using
two row seed drill. The pulse rate, respiration rate
and body temperature of bullocks increased with the
increase in duration of work and draught levelwhich
is conformity of studies performed by Rao and
Upadhyay (1984), and Kumar et al. (1996). Increase
in pulse rate and respiration with duration of work
and draught (P < 0.01) were due to higher metabolic
rate and thermal stress to supply more energy to
muscles and dissipate the heat load
The crossbred bullocks pair of Holstein Friesen
breed could sustain a draught load of 8.72%
of the body weight in ploughing with improved
wedge plough for 4 hours of continuous work
in the terrace condition; 6.82% of body weight
in clod crushing and leveling operation up to
5 hours in the terrace condition; 6.30% of the
body weight for 4 hours in sowing operation with
two row improved seed drill in terrace condition.
In the field condition, the pulse and respiration
rate increased at faster rate in the first hour and
subsequently the rise was at decreasing rate
at all draughts. The effective field capacity of
improved wedge plough, improved clod crusher
cum leveler, improved helical blade puddler and
improved two row seed drill were 300,1390, 820
and 700 sq.m/h respectively.

11
Agricultural Engineering Today
REFERENCES
Anonymous. 1993. Biennial Report of All India
coordinated Research Project on Increased
Utilization of Animal Energy with Enhanced system
efficiency. KrishiVigyan Kendra, Rewari, Haryana,
India.pp : 75-79.
Anonymous. 2010. Biennial Report of All India
coordinated Research Project on Increased
Utilization of Animal Energy with Enhanced system
efficiency centre, NRC on Equines, Bikaner. p:10.
Garg S K; Singh N; Nangia O P. 1981. Effect of exercise
on physiological reaction, blood electrolysis and
body water distribution in buffalo male calves.
Indian Journal of Dairy Science.34 (3): 224-227.
Kumar B; Arora D N; Singh B; Batabyal A K. 1996.
Physical changes in crossbred and Haryana
12
bullocks during work. Indian Journal of Animal
Production Management. 12 (1): 40-44.
Mishra A K; Singh Brijesh; Nanavati S. 2013. Study on
the draughtability of physiological, haematological
changes during work performance. International
Journal of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary
Medicines. 1 (3):1-3.
Maurya N L; Devdattam D S K. 1986. Comparative
study of physiological changes of crossbred and
local bullocks during work. Indian Journal of Dairy
Science. 39 (3): 337-340.
Maheshwari R C; Chaturvedi Pradeep.1997. Bio-
energy for Rural Energisation.p:214
Rao H V; Upadhyay R C. 1984. Work performance of
crossbred bullocks. Indian Veterinary Journal. 61
(2):50-54.
 Vol. 39(2), 2015

Grain Moisture Measuring Techniques - A Review

Usman Ahmed1, Mahesh Kumar1, Salamdin2, BVC Mahajan3 and M S Alam1 (LM 9341)
1
Department of Processing and Food Engineering
2
Department of Computer science and Electrical Engineering
3
Punjab Horticultural Postharvest Technology Center
Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, India.
Email: Mahesh@pau.edu
Manuscript received: April 24, 2014 Revised manuscript accepted: March 27, 2015

ABSTRACT
Moisture is the single most important characteristics for most agricultural products which
influence all the stages of its handling and processing starting from harvesting, threshing,
marketing, storage, milling and distribution. Accurate estimation of this moisture is of vital
importance for all in the supply chain. Today various methods are available for the estimation
of the moisture content of grains however few are used commercially. The oven method
is still considered to be the ultimate and most accurate way of assessing the moisture
of the grains. During procurement season (twice in a year), there is a greater interest by
various agencies involved in purchase of grain about accurate and consistent evaluation
of moisture content in the grains. This paper intends to review the available methods of
moisture measurements, its principles and sources of inaccuracies. Relevant properties
of cereal grain are also studied with their effect on moisture content, temperature, density
and humidity.
Key words: Moisture content, dielectric properties, cereal grains, oven method

INTRODUCTION oven methods that are regarded as practical

Accurate measurement of grain moisture content
is important during harvesting, drying, storage
and processing operations. The accuracy of
the moisture meters in measuring the moisture
content of the grains is very important to ensure
fair trade between farmers and buyers. Electrical
moisture meters cannot measure the moisture
content of a commodity accurately due to a variety
of reasons. The parameters of measurements of
these moisture meters are affected not only by
the moisture content but also by the sample size,
shape, temperature and physical and chemical
constitution of the commodity. It is therefore
essential to test and calibrate the relationship
between electrical reading and the actual moisture
content, determined by standard oven method.
An air oven method was adopted as the standard
method in moisture determination of grains and
seeds (ASAE, 2003) and method outlined by the
International Organization for Standard (ISO) (Anon
2001) have been used to standardize simplified
working methods.
During procurement there is now available an
inexpensive method of sufficient accuracy used
generally by farmers for determining grain or/and
forage moisture content. In most cases, the farmer
relies upon his experience to estimate the moisture
content. For grain, this might entail biting, rattling,
feeling, and observation but officially there is always
need for rapid moisture measurement and so the
electrical instruments have been developed. As long
as the grain moisture-sample level is not too high,
such instruments have been relatively satisfactory.
At moisture content above 20-25%, however the
consistency and reliability of measurement with
existing moisture meter begins to deteriorate.
Over the past 50 years, numerous instruments
have been developed for measuring grain moisture
content by electrical means. Instruments that
sensed the dielectric properties then became more
popular because dry outer layer of the kernels

13
Agricultural Engineering Today
did not degrade their reliability as much. The
dielectric properties of grains were also studied in
connection with radiofrequency dielectric heating
for grain drying. These electric properties of grain
have long been utilized by electric and electronic
grain moisture meters, which sense the electric
conductivity or dielectric properties of grain and are
calibrated to read moisture content. The knowledge
about electric properties of grain is also useful in
designing of equipment for electro treatment of
grain, i.e., dielectric drying, electrostatic cleaning
and sorting, disinsectization, and also electrical
stimulation (Datta et al, 1995). Consequently, there
is a need for development of instruments with better
accuracy, consistency and reliability for rapidly
measuring the moisture content of high moisture
grain. This paper deals with the principles of grain
moisture measurement with various methods and
an attempt is made for the new information needed
to determine the moisture measurement methods
that may use the electrical properties of grain.
METHODS OF MEASUREMENT
The methods of determining the moisture content
of products may be divided into two broad
classifications: (1) direct measurement and (2)
indirect measurement methods.
Direct measurement methods: With the direct
method, the amount of moisture weighed or
measured is related to the amount of dry material
present or to the original amount of material. Thus,
the moisture content can be expressed in either the
wet basis or dry basis. The direct methods may not
be any more accurate than the indirect methods but
are usually accepted as standards for calibration and
comparison for the indirect methods.
Air oven heating: A sample is dried by means of hot
circulating air. To tighten up the drying conditions or
to protect thermally unstable substances, drying is
frequently performed under vacuum. The moisture
content is determined by a differential weighing
before and after drying. It has been examined by
Singh et al. (2003) that if an oven was overloaded
or unable to reach the correct temperature it would
result in less moisture removal and therefore higher
oven moistures. Moisture meters are, of course,
calibrated to the oven-dry standard. When someone
doubts their readings, we often get a few samples
to oven-dry.
14
According to ASAE (2003) standards S352- Heating
times chosen so as to give the best agreement with
the Karl Fischer method of moisture determination.
For shelled corn, soybeans, and edible beans,
103°C and 72 hours are specified. A temperature
of 130°C is used for wheat, oats, rye, sorghum and
sunflower. The heating times are, respectively, 19
h, 22 h, 16 h, 18 h, and 3 h. Note that larger seeds
require longer heating times. The standard does not
specify the number of replicate samples which are
to be tested; at least 2 and preferably 3 replicates
should be used. The moistures for each replicate
should agree to within 0.2%. If three replicates are
tested and two of the three agree to within 0.2%, the
third should be discarded. If none of the replicates
agree within 0.2%, then the results should be
discarded and the test repeated.
Scale requirements also play an important role for
the accuracy which depends upon the size of the
sample and the accuracy to which moisture content
is to be determined. Let us suppose an example of
paddy with 20.2 gm initial weight and 15.6gm final
weight after being oven dried. If the scale is only
accurate the nearest gram, the
MC =
If the scale is accurate to the nearest 0.1 g, then
MC =
So, in general the scale should read to 1 part in
1000 for the oven dry weight of the sample to give
accuracy to the nearest 0.1% moisture content. The
range or weighing capacity of the scale needs to be
adequate to hold the samples. This often creates a
problem because scales with large enough for big
samples do not have the required accuracy to do
small samples.
Infra red radiation technique: This method uses
direct infrared radiation instead of hot circulating air
to dry the sample. The infrared rays are absorbed
by the sample and the absorbed energy causes the
desired heating of the substance. Afzal and Abe,
(1997) reported in their study that the use of far
infra red energy to dry rough rice resulted in much
faster drying than by convection. Rapid moisture
measurements by near infrared procedures were

almost as accurate as 105ºC drying. Owens et al
(2006) evaluated that capacitance-conductance
measurements were slightly less accurate than 105
ºC estimates, particularly for samples that contained
more moisture. Study conducted by Pan et al. (2011)
showed that the rice moisture removal during IR
heating increased with the increased heating time
and radiation intensity under a specific drying bed
thickness and IMC and also have a high heating
rate and rapid moisture removal for drying of freshly
harvested rice can be achieved with a relatively
short heating time by using a catalytic IR emitter
with different drying bed thicknesses.
Microwave radiation technique: Both microwave
and infrared energies are used to evaporate the
water in a grain sample. Moisture based on either
type requires the use of ground samples. This
method is based on the absorption of microwave
radiation by the water molecules of the sample. This
absorption generates heat and leads to vaporization
of the volatile components. Measured variable is
also the total amount of volatile components. This
is determined by weighing before and after drying.
An attempt has been made by Anwar (2010) to
use microwave oven for drying of bagasse. It took
about 20 to 25 minutes for the determination as
compared to 8-10 hours in conventional hot air
drying method and the results were comparable
to the values obtained from hot air drying method.
Nelson et al. (1998) reported some result in their
study that showed the measurement techniques
for density-independent moisture sensing in grain
should provide a sound basis for development of
microwave moisture meters for on-line applications.
The density-independent microwave measurement
technique should, therefore, be helpful in developing
practical, reliable instruments for sensing moisture
content of grain in on-line applications.
Distillation: With the distillation methods, moisture
is removed by heating the grain in oil and determining
the volume or weight of water removed from the grain
in condensed vapor or from the loss of weight of the
sample. The Brown-Duvel distillation method was
one of the early accepted methods for determining
moisture content of grain. The whole grain is heated
in oil, the weighed sample heated, and the vaporized
moisture condensed and measured in a graduated
cylinder. The procedure for different grains varies,
15
Vol. 39(2), 2015
and it is necessary to follow the recommended
procedures for different grains.
Indirect measurement methods: It involves the
measurement of a property of the material which
depends upon the moisture content. One of the
direct means is required to calibrate the indirect
method. The moisture content is usually expressed
on a wet basis for the indirect methods. The moisture
content is measured by specially designed moisture
meters, which are of following two types.
Capacitance methods: In its most simple form, a
capacitor is comprised of two oppositely charged,
conductive plates separated by an insulator called a
dielectric. The grain to be tested is placed between
the capacitor plates as the dielectric. The region
between the plates occupied by the dielectric
contains an electric field. Currently, electrical-
capacitance-type moisture meters are the most
common method for determining moisture content
of grain. These devices sense a capacitance
change when a static sample of granular material is
introduced. McLendon et al. (1993) studied that this
change is caused by the dielectric properties of the
material, which vary with both the moisture content
and the bulk density of the sample. The electrical
properties of Indian wheat with moisture content
range of 14.3% to 29.38% were characterized by
Thakur et al. (2011) to develop a moisture prediction
model. It was observed that Conductance (G)
and capacitance (C) show the maximum variation
with moisture. The capacitance increases with
the temperature as the moisture content is held
constant. The same trends were observed by Bessa
et al. (2013) for soybeans and soybean flour. The
capacitive measurements tend to have a linear
relationship for temperatures below 45 °C. The
development of an electronic instrument to measure
the moisture content of seeds, nuts and grains
was reported by Kandala et al. (2007). Empirical
equations for calculating the moisture content were
determined for capacitive measurements carried out
at frequencies between 1 and 5 MHz. The results
indicated that such measurements are in reasonable
agreement with the traditional air-oven method, with
precision errors of less than 1%.
Resistance methods: This type of a moisture meter
Agricultural Engineering Today
uses the electrical resistance or conductivity of a
material to determine indirectly its moisture content.
The principle of operation involves two plates
(electrodes) that measures the electrical resistance
of the grain placed between them. The electrical
resistance or conductivity of a material depends
upon the moisture content and this property can be
used for the rapid determine the moisture content.
This principle is used as a basis for a number of
moisture meters. In wheat it has been found that
there is a linear relationship between the moisture
content and the logarithm of its electrical resistance
from approximately 11 to 16 percent moisture. These
meters must be calibrated for each grain against a
standard method.
Major food grains crop in the State of Punjab are
wheat & paddy and these crops are procured from
farmers through Artiyas at Minimum Support Price
(MSP). During procurement season (twice in a
year), a survey was carried out by the researcher
Fig. 1: Different activities (1-4) carried out before moisture determination in the mandi’s of Punjab.
16
that how the farmers carried their crop in the mandis
and what are the different essential steps carried
out before sampling and moisture measurement.
The pictures of these are shown below in the Fig.
1. As it is well known that the moisture content of
the grains is very important to ensure fair trade
between farmers and buyers, there is a greater
interest by various agencies involved in purchase
of grain about accurate and consistent evaluation of
moisture content in the grains. The currently used
electrical moisture meters for quick determination
of moisture in the mandis of Punjab are also shown
in Fig. 2 which are easy to handle and carry from
heap to heap during procurement.
CONCLUSION
Apparently a systematic study has never been
conducted over a wide range of moisture in grains
by conditioning or drying to the range of different
grain moisture meters and various characteristics
of grain that contribute to variability in dielectric

Fig. 2: Currently used digital grain moisture meters in the mandis of Punjab.
properties. In addition there should be more study
conducted on the how the physical properties of
grains influence the final moisture content during
procurement, storage and processing. The best
dielectric properties and best frequency ranges
should be selected while designing the instrument for
quick moisture determination. The proper selection
and use of circuits is as important as to design the
sample holder capacity for different commodities.
The other important requirements for grain moisture
measuring instrument include the ease of use,
accuracy, consistency, precision, reliability and light
weight so that one can easily carry the instrument
from heap to heap during procurement season.
Finally there is another problem which deals with the
indirect methods for measuring moisture in grains
and that is the “standard moisture determination
method” to which all the measured electrical data
must be referred. Usually dry oven method is to
be considered as the direct method by which the
indirect moisture meters are calibrated.
REFERENCES
Anonymous. 2001 Cereals and cereal products:
Determination of moisture content- Routine
reference method. Pp 1-7. Published by Ethiopian
Standards Agency, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Afzal T M; Abe T. 1997 Modeling far infra red drying
of rough rice. Journal of microwave power and
electromagnetic energy vol. 32 (2): 880-86.
17
Vol. 39(2), 2015
Anwar S I. 2010. Determination of moisture content
of bagasse of jaggery unit using microwave oven.
Journal of Engineering Science and Technology
Vol. 5 (4): 472–478.
ASAE Standards. 2003 Moisture measurement-
unground grain and seeds, S352.2. The society:
st. Joseph, MI, USA.
Datta A K; Sun E; Solis A. 1995 Food dielectric property
data and their composition- based prediction in
Engineering properties of foods, 2nd ed.; Rao,
M.A., Rizvi, S.S.H.; Eds. Marcel Dekker Inc. New
York. Pp 457–494.
Nelson S O; Trabelsi S; Kraszewski A W. 1998
Advances in sensing grain moisture content by
microwave measurements. Trans ASAE, 41:
483-87.
Singh M; Paulsen M R; Colbrook S A. 2003 Corn
Moisture Meter Comparisons to the Air Oven in
Illinois. The society of engineering in agriculture,
food and biological system Sponsored by ASAE,
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. Pp 1-20.
Owens F; Soderlund S; Hi-Bred P; Business A D P.
2006 Methods for measuring moisture content of
grains and implications for research and industry.
In Proceedings of the Oklahoma state university
cattle grain processing symposium. Oklahoma
state university, Tulsa, OK, pp. 238-44.
Pan Z; Khir R; Bett-Garber K L; Champagne E T;
Thompson J F; Salim A; Hartsough B R Mohamed
S. 2011 Drying characteristics and quality of rough
Agricultural Engineering Today
rice under infrared radiation heating. Transactions
of the ASABE Vol. 54(1): 203-210.
McLendon B D; Branch B G; Thompson A; Kraszewski
A; Nelson S O. 1993 Density independent
microwave measurement of moisture content
in static and flowing grain. American Society of
Agricultural Engineers 36(3): 827-835.
Thakur R; Chatterji R; Kumar A; Bansod B S. 2011
Studies on electrical properties of wheat as a
function of moisture content. Quality Assurance
and Safety of Crops & Foods 3: 198–204.
18
Bessa W S; Ribeiro E P; Bonfim M C; Leandro G
V; and Errera M R. 2013 Analysis of capacitive
measurements at low frequencies for moisture
content determination in soybeans. Brazilian
journal of instrumentation and control. 1 (1): 29-34.
Kandala C V K; Butts C L; Nelson S O. 2007
determination of moisture content of in-shell
peanuts by parallel plate impedance measurements
in cylindrical sample holder. Sens. And instrument.
Food qual. (1): 72-78.
 Vol. 39(2), 2015

Development and Performance Evaluation of Pneumatic

Plucking System for Knapsack Type Cotton Plucker
N A Patil, Y C Bhatt (LM-2473), G S Tiwari, Shashi Kant Pawar and Sachin Wandkar
Department of Farm Machinery and Power Engineering,
College of Technology and Engineering, MPUA&T, Udaipur
Email: drycbhatt@hotmail.com
Manuscript received: July 20, 2014 Revised manuscript accepted: April 5, 2015

ABSTRACT
India today is the second largest producer of cotton in the world. In India almost entire
cotton is handpicked by human labour. Manual picking of cotton is labour intensive, requiring
1560 man-hours per hectare. In view of this a knapsack type cotton plucker was developed
to suit for farmers cultivating cotton on small scale. The major components of the cotton
plucker were prime mover, blower, filter, pick-up pipe and collection drum. A polypropylene
container of 50 liter capacity was fixed on the frame to collect cotton. Filter was used inside
collection drum to restrict the entry of cotton inside the aspirator. Two lightweight aluminum
pipe of 50 mm diameter were used as the pick-up pipe. Total length of suction pipe and
pick-up pipe was kept as 1580 mm. The performance of developed knapsack type cotton
plucker was tested in a laboratory in terms of fuel consumption, picking efficiency, trash
content and output capacity for three different type of drum (A, B and C model) and four
different speed of blower (4200, 4700, 5200 and 5700 rpm). Results indicate that the fuel
consumption ranged from 0.270 to 0.702 l/h, picking efficiency from 91 to 96 per cent; trash
content from 2.07 to 8.03 per cent and output capacity from 4.75 to 9.78 kg/h. On the basis
of laboratory results B type drum was selected for field evaluation at 5200 rpm speed of
blower. The average fuel consumption (l/h), picking efficiency (per cent), trash content (per
cent) and output capacity (kg/h) was observed as 0.603, 94.79, 5.77 and 8.84 respectively.
Key words: Cotton, pneumatic picker, picking efficiency, output capacity, India

INTRODUCTION for cotton i.e. 11.70 million hectares representing 27

‘Cotton’ is one of the most important commercial
crop for India and the share of cotton is about 70
per cent in the Indian textile industry (Anonymous,
1997). In general, the conditions required for
cultivation of cotton are met within the seasonally dry
tropics and subtropics in the Northern and Southern
hemispheres, but a large proportion of the cotton
grown today is cultivated in areas with less rainfall.
Research on cotton improvement in the country was
conducted mainly under AICRP located at CICR
Nagpur and Regional Station, Coimbatore, which
indicate that the yield of crop in our country is 552 kg/
ha as compared to 927 kg/ha in USA, 1403 kg/ha in
China, 2025 kg/ha in Australia, 1415 kg/ha in Brazil
and 697 kg/ha in Pakistan (Varma, 2012). India
stands first in the world in terms of cultivated area
per cent of the world coverage of cotton area and
contributed 21 per cent to global cotton production
in 2012‐13.
Now a day’s self-propelled mechanical cotton
harvesters are commonly used for cotton harvesting
in developed countries. Two basic types of
mechanical harvesters are available to farmer
viz, picker and stripper type. The picker harvests
only the open bolls of seed cotton whereas green,
unopened bolls are left on the plant to mature for
later picking. Stripper is non-selective type; it strips
off the entire plant i.e. both opened and unopened
bolls. However, both the machine requires very
high initial investment. These machines pull the
cotton bolls from the plant with rollers, steel fingers,
brushes or other devices. The mechanized cotton

19
Agricultural Engineering Today

picking system is helpful in achieving timeliness of 320 and 530 mm, respectively. A polypropylene
operation and also useful in minimizing the drudgery container of 50 liter capacity was used as a collection
involved in hand picking. Australia, Israel and USA drum and it was fixed on the frame and the bottom
are the only countries where cotton is totally picked of the collection drum was attached to the eye of
by machine but the picking cost greatly varies impeller. Suction pipe was made of lightweight PVC
among countries. hose pipe. One end of suction pipe was attached
to collection drum and other end was attached to
In India entire cotton is almost handpicked by human
the pick-up pipe. The length and diameter of the
labour. Manual picking of cotton is labour intensive,
suction pipe along with pick up pipe was kept as
requiring 1560 man-hours per hectare (Sandhar,
1580 and 63 mm respectively. Two pick-up pipes
1999). In India cotton is grown by farmers having
made of lightweight aluminum sheet were fabricated
small land holdings beside cultivated on large
and attached to suction pipe with the help of holding
farms. Mechanical cotton harvesters available in
clips. The length of pick-up pipe was kept as 380
developed countries are not considered suitable
mm, inner diameter of pick-up pipe at suction pipe
for Indian condition, considering the cultural and
end was kept as 63 mm and at outer end as 50 mm.
agronomic practices and the staggered blooming
characteristics of Indian cotton plant. In India,
very few research studies have been done on
knapsack type cotton plucker. A possible solution
is the pneumatic system of picking which has been
addressed in this investigation. Attempts have been
made to pick cotton using a vacuum created by
knapsack engine operated blower. Different designs
of Chinese make battery operated and pneumatic
cotton pluckers are available in market but in all the
pluckers cotton boll passes through blower which
crushes the trash and seed thus reducing quality of
harvested product. Therefore, emphasis was done
to pluck the boll and directly transfer it to collection
drum without going through the blower. Review
have shown that pneumatic type cotton picker
require about five minutes to harvest cotton from Fig. 1: Developed knapsack type cotton plucker
plant and that picking with pneumatic type cotton
Laboratory evaluation of knapsack type cotton
picker resulted in 38 per cent reduction in labour
plucker: Performance of developed knapsack type
requirement over manual picking (Varma, 2012).
cotton plucker was evaluated in the laboratory for
MATERIAL AND METHODS three different types of drum i.e., B and C types (Fig.
2) and at four different speed of blower i.e. 4200,
Development of Knapsack type kcotton plucker: 4700, 5200 and 5700 rpm to study their effect on
The major components of the cotton plucker were fuel consumption, picking efficiency, trash content,
prime mover, blower, cotton filter, cotton collection and output capacity. Type A drum was translucent
drum, suction pipe and pick-up pipe (Fig. 1). The polypropylene container of 50 liter capacity fixed on
prime mover was a petrol engine of 1.8 kW, mounted the frame. Model A is the circular cotton filter type
with aspirator. The blower was used to suck the 80 mm in diameter and 530 mm height made of
picked cotton ball through the suction pipe and pass nylon mesh fixed inside at the center of collection
it on to collection drum. A filter screen was mounted drum, vertically, on a suitable flange to restrict the
to restrict the entry of cotton into the blower and entry of cotton inside the aspirator (Fig. 2). Model
to allow only air to pass into the blower with less B is the circular filter type 320 mm in diameter
resistance between the collection drum and the and 530 mm height made of wire-mesh was fixed
blower. The diameter and height of the filter was along inner periphery of collection drum vertically,

20

Fig. 2: Type of collection drum, model A, B and C
on a suitable flange to restrict the entry of cotton
inside the aspirator. Model C is the circular filter
type in which model A and model B filter combine
arrangements was used inside the collection drum,
vertically, on a suitable flange to restrict the entry of
cotton inside the aspirator.
Experimental set up: Healthy cotton plants of
Veer guard (BT) variety with matured cotton bolls
were brought from field to the laboratory. They were
tightly fitted in the plastic pot. It was ensured that
the plant remains steady during picking of the cotton
bolls (Fig. 3). Before start of experiment fuel tank
was filled up to full mark. For selected combination
of drum and blower speed, knapsack type cotton
plucker was operated to pick the cotton from plant.
During the experiment blower speed was measured
by engine pulse tachometer. The start and end time
of experiment were recorded and subsequently
time required for operation was determined. Fuel
consumption, picking efficiency, output capacity and
trash content were determined. Fuel consumption
of the knapsack type cotton plucker was measured
21
Vol. 39(2), 2015
at different speeds of blower. It was measured in
liter per hour by top up method by operating the
cotton plucker for known time. The number of bolls
in the plot was counted before and after picking for
determining picking efficiency. The picking efficiency
was determined using expression (Rangasamy et
al., 2006)
Where,
Ƞp = picking efficiency, per cent
n1 = number of bolls present before
picking, and
n2 = number of bolls present after picking
The trash content was determined by manually
separating the trash from the harvested cotton
sample using equation (Rangasamy et al., 2006)
T = (W1/W2) x 100
Agricultural Engineering Today

Fig. 3: Laboratory and field evaluation of developed knapsack type cotton plucker

Where, RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

T = trash content, per cent Effect of type of drum and speed of blower on
fuel consumption The fuel consumption increased
W1 = weight of trash separated, g and with increase of blower speed from 4200 to 5700
W2 = weight of cotton received in drum, g rpm for all type of drums (Fig. 4). Minimum fuel
consumption was observed with type B drum and
The output capacity was obtained by the ratio of maximum fuel consumption was observed with
the weight of seed cotton picked by the machine type A drum for all selected blower speeds. Type
to the time taken to pick the cotton (Sharma et of drum and blower speed had significant effect on
al., 2011) fuel consumption. Linear relationship was observed
between blower speed and fuel consumption for all
OC = Wmc / tmc
three types of collection drums.
Where,
OC = output capacity, kg/h
Wmc = weight of seed cotton, kg and
tmc = time, h
Same procedure was followed for other combination
of selected parameters. Each experiment was
replicated three times for more accurate data.
Statistical analysis of data was conducted to
study the effect of type of drum and blower speed
on selected dependent variable. Field evaluation
of developed knapsack type cotton plucker was
conducted at the best combination of drum and
blower speed obtained from laboratory evaluation.
Fig. 4: Effect of drum and speed on fuel consumption
For field evaluation, 23×3 m plots were randomly
selected from cotton field. For the measurement Effect of type of drum and speed of blower on
of output capacity, picking efficiency, trash content picking efficiency: The picking efficiency increased
and fuel consumption same procedure as explained with increase of blower speed from 4200 to 5700
in the laboratory evaluation was followed. rpm for all type of drums (Fig. 5). Maximum picking

22

efficiency was observed with type B drum and
minimum picking efficiency was observed with
type C drum for all selected blower speeds. Type
of collection drums had non-significant effect on
picking efficiency and blower speed had significant
effect on picking efficiency. Linear relationship
was observed between blower speeds and picking
efficiency for all types of drums.
Fig. 5: Effect of drum and speed on picking efficiency
Effect of type of drum and speed of blower on
trash content: The trash content increased with
increase of blower speed from 4200 to 5700 rpm
for all type of drums (Fig. 6). Minimum trash content
was observed with type B drum and maximum trash
content was observed with type A drum. Type of
drums and blower speed had significant effect on
trash content. Linear relationship was observed
between blower speed and trash content for all
types of drums.
Fig. 6: Effect of drum and speed on trash content
23
Vol. 39(2), 2015
Effect of type of drum and speed of blower on
output capacity: The output capacity increased
with increase of blower speed from 4200 to 5700
rpm for all type of drums (Fig. 7). Maximum output
capacity was observed with type B drum and
minimum output capacity was observed with type A
drum for all selected blower speeds. Type of drum
and blower speed had significant effect on output
capacity. Linear relationship was observed between
blower speed and output capacity for all types of
drums.
Fig. 7: Effect of drum and speed on output capacity
Field performance evaluation of knapsack type
cotton plucker: From the laboratory performance
of knapsack type cotton plucker results with respect
to output capacity, picking efficiency, trash content
and fuel consumption through statistical analysis
it was found that type B drum at blower speed of
5200 rpm gave better performance. Therefore,
these parameters were selected for field evaluation
of knapsack type cotton plucker. The machine on
an average picked about 8.84 kg/h or 70 kg/day
(Table 1). Output capacity of knapsack type cotton
plucker was observed about twice as compared to
manual picking. The average picking efficiency of
the cotton plucker was observed as 94.79 per cent.
Trash content ranged from 5.6 to 6.2 per cent with
different operators. Fuel consumption of cotton
plucker ranged from 0.58 to 0.63 l/h.
Agricultural Engineering Today

Table 1: Mean value of fuel consumption, picking efficiency, trash content and output capacity for type B drum
and speed of blower at 5200 rpm during field evaluation
Machine operator Fuel consumption Picking efficiency Trash content Output capacity
(l/h) (per cent) (per cent) (kg/h)
Operator I 0.58 94.12 5.6 8.74
Operator II 0.63 94.23 5.5 8.83
Operator III 0.60 96.01 6.2 8.96
Average 0.603 94.79 5.77 8.84

CONCLUSIONS
A knapsack type pneumatic cotton plucker was
developed and evaluated for its performance in
the laboratory and field. During the laboratory
experiments, output capacity, picking efficiency,
trash content and fuel consumption increased with
the increase in speed of blower. The type of drum
has significant effect on output capacity, trash
content and fuel consumption. The speed of blower
has significant effect on output capacity, picking
efficiency, trash content and fuel consumption.
During field evaluation of knapsack type cotton
plucker, average output capacity, picking efficiency,
trash content and fuel consumption were found as
8.84 kg/h, 94.79 per cent, 5.77 per cent and 0.603
l/h respectively at 5200 rpm with type B of collection
drum.
REFERENCES
Anonymous 1997; Vision-2020-Central Institute for
Research in Cotton Technology
Perspective Plan, Indian Council of Agricultural
Research, p 29.
Rangasamy K; Selvan M Muthamil; Durairaj C Divaker.
2006. Optimization of Machine Parameters of
Pneumatic Knapsack Cotton Picker. Agricultural
Mechanization in Asia, Africa and Latin America
vol.37 no.3.
Sandhar N S. 1999. Mechanized Picking of Cotton in
Punjab. Agricultural Engineering Today, vol. 23
(5-6).
Varma V K. 2012. Performance Evaluation of
Knapsack Type Portable Engine Operated Cotton
Picker. Unpublished Thesis, ME (Agril. Engg.),
CTAE, MPUAT, Udaipur.

24
 Vol. 39(2), 2015

Performance Evaluation of Farm Machine Banks in Bihar

through Field, Economic and User’s Response Analysis
Subhash Chandra1 (LM-10728) and Anjani Kumar Nathani2
1. College of Agricultural Engineering, Rajendra Agricultural University,
Pusa (Samastipur)-848125; India
2. Principal, Muzaffarpur Institute of Technology, Muzaffarpur (Bihar)
E mail: chandra_rau@yahoo.com
Manuscript received: September 28, 2014 Revised manuscript accepted: April 5, 2015

ABSTRACT
Mechanization growth, technology adoption and net income of Farm Machine Banks were
evaluated as performance indicator after three years of establishment. Mechanization
growth in Dumara block of Sitamarhi district was maximum (30.56%) followed by Sakara
of Muzaffarpur (26.57%), Benipur of Darbhanga (22.66%) and Madhwapur of Madhubani
district (11.37%). Technology adoption was maximum in Farm Machine Bank, Madhubani
(80%) followed by Sitamarhi (71.43%) and Darbhanga/Muzaffarpur (50.0%). Net income from
operation of machine was maximum in Farm Machine Bank, Madhubani (Rs. 3,01,894.00)
followed by Darbhanga (Rs. 2,35,123.00) and Sitamarhi (Rs. 1,46,679.00). Among various
performance affecting parameters of Farm Machine Bank, ‘Poor involvement of farmers in
machine operation’ was the prominent one with 90.3% scoring followed by ‘Non-provision
of remuneration to office bearers of bank’ and ‘Essentiality of tractor with bank as power
source’ with 87.3% and 80.5% scoring respectively. ‘Dispute among member farmers’ was
reported to be the least dominant factor with 52.3% scoring followed by ‘Non-credit facility
to users in custom hiring’ (62.5%) and ‘Poor maintenance of machine’ (63.8%). Besides
above factors, ‘Need of trained machine operators’ as well as ‘Unavailability of machine
to user’s during peak period’ need to be addressed properly for better functioning of Farm
Machine Banks.
Key words: Mechanization growth, Custom hiring, Farm Machine Banks, Mechanization
response analysis, Technological adoption

INTRODUCTION 2014). The Farm Machine Banks constituted with

In present era, with increase in number of families,
land holdings are decreasing day by day and
therefore, individual ownership of farm machines
is becoming unprofitable. High cost of machines
with associated low annual utilization has been the
bottleneck behind their large scale adoption (Singh
et al., 2006; Chandra, 2012). Thus, the custom hiring
of high cost efficient machines is gaining popularity
day by day resulting into rapid mechanization of
agriculture besides being it cost-effective (Dadhich
et al., 2009; Edward, 2009; Singh, 2013). The Farm
Machine Banks established in participatory mode
had been found income generating and effective
in promotion of mechanization (Chandra et al.,
a group of farmers with one of the major objectives,
to provide the client farmers a cheapest ways of
effective mechanization, need to be evaluated
for their performance in terms of mechanization
growth, technology adoption and income to banks
from operation of machine on custom hiring. Since,
the Farm Machine Banks are supposed to work
as an institution having its own mandates and
objectives, response analysis of clients farmers
becomes essential for suggesting corrective
measures for future course of action in promotion of
mechanization through custom hiring of agricultural
machines by way of establishment of Farm Machine
Banks in villages as per guidelines of Sub-mission

25
Agricultural Engineering Today
on Agricultural Mechanization (SMAM) proposed
by the Government of India under twelfth plan and
accordingly, the experiment was carried out.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Farm Machine Bank is an organization having
20-25 farmers as members. The banks have been
established in participatory mode with capital share
between the Government and farmers in the ratio
70:30. The objectives of the banks are to promote
farm mechanization, income generation from
operation of machine on custom hiring as well as
creation of technical manpower in villages by way
of practical training and demonstration related to
agricultural machines. Out of earnings of bank,
60 percent amount is distributed among member
farmers as return of their capital and rest 40 percent
amount remains with the bank as capital for repair
and maintenance of existing machines or purchase
of new machines.
The performance of bank was evaluated in terms
of mechanization growth, net income as well as
adoption of technology. The response of farmers
as users of machinery was also taken into account
based on various performance affecting parameters
in order to find out the practical feasibility of bank
against set objectives. The following methods were
adopted for evaluation of above said parameters:
Determination of mechanization growth rate:
For calculation of mechanization growth rate,
mechanization percentage before and after
establishment of bank were worked out for identified
blocks of selected districts named Madhubani,
Darbhanga, Muzaffarpur and Sitamarhi. For finding
out the mechanization percentage, eight villages
of each identified block were selected for survey.
The mechanization percentage and mechanization
growth rate were calculated by using formulas
Mechanization percentage = No. of mechanized
farm family in sample village / total number of
farm family in sample village × 100
Mechanization growth rate (%) = Mechanization
percentage after survey – Mechanization
percentage before survey / Mechanization
percentage before survey × 100
Determination of technology adoption score (%):
26
Every Farm Machine Bank was subjected to various
machines for intervention of latest technologies.
After three years, it was found that few technologies
out of the intervention were adopted by the farmers.
The technology adoption score in percentage was
calculated by the formula:
Technology adoption score (%) = No. of adopted
technology by farmers / No. of technological
intervention × 100
Net income of Farm Machine Banks: The incomes
of Farm Machine Banks were very fluctuating from
one crop season to another as well as one year to
another due to various parameters having weather
as the prime one. The total net earning of Farm
Machine Banks after three years was calculated
after getting the sum of the net incomes of Rabi and
Kharif season for all years including the previous
and the present. The net income was calculated on
the basis of gross income earned from operation
of machines and expenditure incurred on various
accounts including cost of fuel, operator’s and labour
wage, repair and maintenance etc. by formula
Net income = Gross income – expenditure
Factor scoring of performance affecting
parameters: Based on experience related to
machine operation and management in different
Farm Machine Banks, some performance affecting
parameters were listed as the indicator. From each
bank, 100 (hundred) beneficiaries farmers were
interviewed for their views on different parameters,
which in their opinion are responsible for the
performance of banks against various set objectives.
The factor scoring was worked out by formula
Factor scoring of parameters (%) = No. of
farmers with positive response to the interviewed
cause / No. of interviewed farmers × 100
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The results obtained with regards to performance of
Farm Machine Bank on various parameters such as
mechanization growth, net income of Farm Machine
Bank, technological adoption by farmers as well as
user’s response are presented below:
Determination of mechanization growth rate:
From observation of data in Table 1, it is evident
that there was a rising trend in mechanization
 Vol. 39(2), 2015

Table 1: Impact of Farm Machine Bank on mechanization growth rate

Name of Mechanization percentage Percentage mechanization
district/ block growth
Before After 18 After 36 After first 18 After 36
establishment months of months of months of months of
of bank establishment establishment establishment establishment
of bank of bank of bank of bank
Darbhanga
Benipur* 4.81 5.27 5.90 9.56 22.66
Alinagar 3.96 4.20 4.59 6.06 15.91
Madhubani
Benipatti 14.53 14.87 15.66 2.34 7.78
Madhwapur* 10.99 11.42 12.24 3.91 11.37
Muzaffarpur
Sakara* 3.99 4.26 5.05 6.77 26.57
Muraul 9.72 10.07 10.62 3.60 9.26
Sitamarhi
Dumara* 5.04 5.85 6.58 16.07 30.56
Runni Saidpur 11.35 12.12 13.05 6.78 14.98
* Native block of Farm Machine Bank of concerned district

percentage and percentage mechanization growth
for all the blocks of identified districts after 18 and
36 months of bench mark survey, had higher value
in native block of Farm Machine Banks than their
counter part blocks of the same districts. Among
blocks having Farm Machine Bank, Dumara of
Sitamarhi district registered highest percentage
mechanization growth (16.07, 30.56) both at 18
and 36 months respectively. The percentage
mechanization growth in Benipur of Darbhanga
district was higher (9.56) than Sakara of Muzaffarpur
district (6.77) at 18 months interval however after 36
month Sakara block (26.57) exceeded the Benipur
block of Darbhanga in percentage mechanization
growth (22.66). The Madhwapur block of Madhubani
district lagged far behind the other blocks in respect
of mechanization growth both at 18 and 36 months of
establishment of bank. The value of mechanization
growth after 36 months in Dumara, Sakara as
compared to Benipur and Madhwapur might be
because of the direct connectivity of the banks
site from district headquarter by main road and
having better opportunity for other farmers to see
the on-going activities related to machine operation
in those banks, which indeed has direct bearing
on mechanization process. However, Benipur
of Darbhanga district lagged in mechanization
growth from Sakara of Muzaffarpur district probably
because of the area of bank having with only rice-
wheat cropping system as compared to the Sakara
block where vegetables and cash crop like tobacco
are also grown besides rice and wheat and thereby
having more opportunities for the farmers to opt
mechanization.
Area covered, beneficiaries and net income
of Farm Machine Banks: From perusal of data
of net income of Farm Machine Banks for three
years after establishment as presented in Table 2,
it was found that net income of all banks for the
initial year of establishment i.e. 2011-12 except
Farm Machine Bank, Sitamarhi was highest as
compared to other financial years 2012-13 and
2013-14. In Farm Machine Bank, Sitamarhi, net
income for financial year 2012-13 (Rs. 90,206/-)
was highest as compared to 2011-12 (Rs.28,177/-)
and 2013-14 (Rs. 28,296/-). This was probably
due to the fact that there was no paddy crop in

27
Agricultural Engineering Today

Table 2: Area covered, beneficiaries and total net income of Farm Machine Banks (FMB) for three years after
establishment
Name of FMB No. of Area Net Income (Rs.) Total Net
beneficiaries Covered (ha) 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 Income (Rs.)
FMB, Darbhanga 106 59.0 1,21,655.00 82,816.00 30,652.00 2,35,123.00
FMB, Madhubani 155 185.0 1,66,989.00 95,309.00 39,596.00 3,01,894.00
FMB, Muzaffarpur 118 140.0 70,258.00 34,208.00 37,459.00 1,41,925.00
FMB, Sitamarhi 127 168.0 28,177.00 90,206.00 28,296.00 1,46,679.00

Table 3: Technological intervention and adoption in different Farm Machine Bank (FMB)
S. Farm Machine Technology intervention Technology adoption Adoption
No. Bank (FMB) Name of machine No. Name of machine No. score (%)
FMB, • Drum seeder 06 • Rotavator 03 50
Darbhanga • Reaper-cum-binder • Reaper-cum-binder
• Paddy thresher • Paddy thresher
• Disc Harrow
• Rotavator
• Zero till seed drill
FMB, • Sugarcane cutter planter 05 • Paddy thresher 04 80
Madhubani • Zero till seed drill • Reaper-cum-binder
• Power weeder, • Zero till seed drill
• Reaper-cum-binder • Drum seeder
• Paddy thresher

FMB, • Zero till seed drill 06 • Reaper-cum-binder 03 50

Muzaffarpur • Bed planter • Zero till seed drill
• Drum Seeder • Paddy thresher
• Reaper-cum-binder
• S/p Reaper
• Paddy thresher
FMB, Sitamarhi • Potato planter 07 • Rotavator 05 71.43
• Zero till seed drill • Zero till seed drill
• Drum seeder • Maize thresher
• Reaper-cum-binder • Drum seeder
• S/p reaper • Reaper-cum-binder
• Rotavator
• Maize thresher

2011-12 in working domain of Farm Machine Bank,
Sitamarhi because of severe flood and in fact the
machines were operative only for Rabi crops. The
reason behind decrease in income in different Farm
Machine Banks with passes of time may be due to
various performance affecting parameters including
the poor maintenance of machine, lack of interest
in work of office bearers, dispute among members
etc. With respect to number of beneficiaries and area
covered, data under Table 2 demonstrates that total
net income of Farm Machine Bank, Madhubani was
highest (Rs. 3,01,894/-) because the machines were
operated for maximum area (185.0 ha) targeting the
maximum client farmers (155). The Farm Machine
Bank, Darbhanga registered second maximum
total net income (Rs.2,35,123/-) covering 59.0 ha
area and 106 client farmers. The data indicates
that the bank targeted for operation of only highly

28

remunerative machines like reaper-cum-binder,
threshers and rotavator that too in fields of small
farmers having small holdings. The Farm Machine
Bank, Sitamarhi had total net income of Rs.
1,46,679/- due to operation of machines in 168.0
ha area by addressing 127 farmers followed by
the Farm Machine Bank, Muzaffarpur with total net
income Rs. 1,41,925/- from operation of machines
in fields of 118 farmers by covering a total area of
140.0 ha.
Determination of technology adoption score
(%): Table 3 presents the technological intervention
and percentage technology adoption score of
different Farm Machine Banks. From observation
of data presented in Table 3, it appears that out of
six newly introduced machines/ technology, Farm
Machine Bank, Darbhanga adopted three highly
remunerative machines only with 50% adoption
score. These machines were rotavator, reaper-
cum-binder and paddy thresher. Obviously, the
Farm Machine Bank, Darbhanga had concentrated
upon only its earnings rather than demonstration
and popularization of new technology of direct
seeded rice cultivation with drum seeder and use
of zero till seed drill for wheat cultivation. Farm
Machine Bank, Madhubani adopted four innovative
machines out of introduced five machines with 80%
adoption score. The bank created a balance in use
of machines for its enhancing income as well as
providing benefits to the farmers by introducing
and popularizing the new technology of paddy and
wheat cultivation i.e. the drum seeder and zero till
seed drill.
A similar trend in use of machine was found in Farm
Machine Bank, Sitamarhi where the adoption score
was 71.43% as five new technologies/ machines
were adopted out of seven seven introductions. The
Farm Machine Bank, Muzaffarpur registered 50%
adoption score as three machines were adopted
out of introduced six. The new intervention was
only zero till seed drill for wheat cultivation. All
the banks intensively used rotavator for tillage.
This machine was already under adoption by the
people in working domain of Farm Machine Bank,
Madhubani and Muzaffarpur and therefore, it was
excluded from the list of technological intervention
from those banks.
29
Vol. 39(2), 2015
Factor scoring of performance affecting
parameters: The data in respect of response
of farmers to different performance affecting
parameters in different Farm Machine Banks is
presented in Table 4. The data clearly indicates
that the parameters ‘Poor involvement of farmers
in machine operation’ had registered factor scoring
varying from 83% minimum value in Farm Machine
Bank, Sitamarhi and 97% in Farm Machine
Bank, Muzaffarpur with average score of 90.3%.
Farmers of all banks expressed the ‘Non-provision
of remuneration to office bearers of bank’ as the
major performance affecting parameters with
87.3% average overall scoring, as in absence
of remuneration, the Secretary and President of
Farm Machine Banks were reported to be taking
least interest in public work, leading to the poor
performance of different banks. Among other
parameters, ‘Essentiality of tractor with bank as
power source’ with 80.5% overall average score
and ‘Need of trained machine operator’ with 73.5%
overall average score were also reported to be
vital. ‘Dispute among member farmers’ were the
least damaging cause with 52.3% overall average
score followed by ‘Non-credit facility to users in
custom hiring’ and ‘Poor maintenance of machine
having 62.5% and 63.8% overall average score
respectively.
CONCLUSION
From above studies, it was found that the
establishment of Farm Machine Bank had
direct bearing on mechanization growth. Higher
mechanization growth was registered in native
blocks of Farm Machine Bank as compared to
their counter part blocks of the same district. All
the Farm Machine Banks were found generating
income from operation of machine in spite of
variation in income from one year to another.
The total net income of banks was dependent on
area covered and number of beneficiaries. The
technological adoption in some of the banks were
high because of their focus on new machines
representing new technologies, however, others
only paid attention on custom hiring of well
adopted machines for income generation. Various
performance effecting parameters were scrutinized
based on their scoring. Some parameters such as
‘Poor involvement of farmers in machine operation”
Agricultural Engineering Today

Table 4: Factor scoring of different performance affecting parameters in different Farm Machine Banks
S. Performance Sample Factor Scoring of parameters in different Farm Average
No. affecting Size Machine Bank (%) score
parameters (Farmers)
FMB, FMB, FMB, FMB,
(Nos.)
Darbhanga Madhubani Muzaffarpur Sitamarhi
Unavailability 100 46.0 67.0 64.0 83.0 65.0
of machine to
users during peak
period

Need of trained 100 72.0 81.0 77.0 64.0 73.5

machine
operators

Poor involvement 100 88.0 93.0 97.0 83.0 90.3

of farmers
in machine
operation

Non-credit 100 64.0 78.0 47.0 61.0 62.5

facilities to users
in custom hiring

Poor 100 77.0 66.0 47.0 65.0 63.8

maintenance of
machine

Essentially of 100 66.0 84.0 75.0 97.0 80.5

tractor with bank
as power source

Dispute among 100 65.0 44.0 37.0 63.0 52.3

member farmers

Non-provision of 100 95.0 87.0 76.0 91.0 87.3

remuneration to
office bearers of
bank

and ‘Non-provision of remuneration to office REFERENCES

bearers of bank’ were found more damaging as
compared to others. The ‘Dispute among farmers’
and ‘Non-credit facility to users in custom hiring’
were identified as least damaging factors in
smooth functioning of Farm Machine Banks. Thus,
various performance affecting parameters of Farm
Machine Banks need to be addressed properly
for making the Farm Machine Banks effective and
economically viable.
Chandra P. 2012. Renaissance of Farm Mechanization-
an Interview, Agriculture To-day, November 2012.
Chandra S; Prasad D. 2014. Farm Machine Banks:
its impact on Mechanization Process and
Socio-economic Condition of Member Farmers,
Agricultural Engineering Today. 38 (2): 33-38.
Dadhich H; Poudel KR; Tikaram B. 2009. Economics
of custom hiring of tractor and tractor driven
farm implements in the Sunsari District of Nepal.

30

Proceedings of the 10th International Agricultural
Engineering Conference on the theme “Role of
agricultural engineering in advent of changing
global landscape”, Bangkok, Thailand, December
7-10, 2009.
Edwards W. 2009. Acquiring Farm Machinery
Services. Ag Decision Maker, Iowa State
University, Extension Online Store, File A3-
21, pp 1-4.
31
Vol. 39(2), 2015
Singh R S. 2013. Custom hiring and scope of
entrepreneurship development in farm machinery.
Agricultural mechanization in Asia, Africa and Latin
America. 44 (2): 26-32.
Singh V V; Singh R S; Saha K P; Babu V. 2006.
Impact assessment of farm mechanization inputs
in Madhya Pradesh agriculture, unpublished final
project report. Central Institute of Agricultural
Engineering, Bhopal.
Agricultural Engineering Today

Energy Analysis during Domestic Dried Maize Cooking

Rahman Akinoso, Ademola K Aremu and Akeem A Salam
Faculty of Technology, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria;
E-mail: akinoso2002@yahoo.com
Manuscript received: May 11, 2014 Revised manuscript accepted: April 14, 2015

ABSTRACT
Long duration of cooking and high energy demand discouraged consumption of cooked
dried maize. Methods of cooking and heat sources determine energy cost. Therefore, the
research was designed to quantify energy input in dried maize cooking using different energy
sources and methods. De-hulled and whole maize were soaked at ambient (29±2oC) and
cooking temperature (100oC) to determine hydration behaviour. Experiments were conducted
using aluminium and pressure cooking pots. Efficiency of cooking was evaluated using
four different cooking appliances (kerosene, liquefied petroleum gas, electric and charcoal
stoves). Normal and control cooking were done. Energy requirements, water evaporation
and cost of cooking were determined using standard procedures. Data were analysed using
ANOVA at p=0.05. Initial moisture content of de-hull and whole maize were 9.6 and 10.2%
respectively. At ambient condition, this moisture content increased with soaking duration
until 120 minutes. At this point de-hulled and whole moisture contents were 48.8 and 42.7%
respectively. Cooking increased the moisture content of de-hulled and whole dried maize
from 9.6 to 79.3 % and 10.2 to 66.2% after 210 minutes heating duration respectively. It
was generally observed that soaking, de-hulling, control and pressure cooking reduced
energy demand and cost. Liquefied petroleum gas was found to be the most efficient and
cost effective while kerosene stove was least. Energy and time consumption in controlled
cooking was most effective in electric stove. Control cooking is not desirable for charcoal
stove. There was correlation between energy demand and water evaporation.
Key words: Dried maize, cooking methods, energy demand, water evaporation, cooking cost

INTRODUCTION accepted that the current rate of energy generation

Energy and foods are concerns of developing
countries, because chains of food production
consume a lot of energy. Energy is the prime mover
of any economy and engine of growth around
which all sectors of economy revolve. Therefore,
improvement on energy generation, estimation
and conservation is important for the development
of industries and nation at large (Akinoso, et al.,
2013). Effective energy utilization and energy
source management in food processing facilities are
desirable for reducing processing costs, conserving
non-renewable energy resources, and reducing
environmental impact (Akinoso and Omolola, 2011).
In recent time, there has been a greater awareness
of the energy problems facing the world than at any
other period in history (Wang, 2009). It is now widely
and supply cannot match the rapid growth in energy
consumption rate (Akinoso, et al., 2013). In order
to reduce the operating and maintenance costs
to a minimum, the cost of energy consumption,
which is the prime factor under operating cost in
industries must be monitored (Wang, 2009). Roy et
al., (2004) reported that the household sectors utilize
a large portion of energy in developing countries
and more than half of that amount is being used in
domestic cooking. With energy efficiency practices
and products, large proportion of present energy
consumption can be conserved. Profiling energy
utilization data and developing energy conservation
processing methods will improve sustainability in
the food processing industry (Mohammed, 2009).
Maize (Zea mays L. Poaceae) grain is a widely

32

consumed food that contains 80% carbohydrate,
10% protein, 3.5% fiber and 2% mineral (IITA,
2001). At post harvest, it is usually preserved (into
dried form) to prevent loss and wastage. Dried
maize is rich in fibre (Osei, et al., 1999). However,
the starch structure of dried maize grain is dense
thus making the cooking of dried maize energy
and time consuming. Past research has indicated
that presoaking and controlled energy input can
conserve the energy and time utilized for cooking
(Das et al., 2006). Long duration of cooking and
high energy demand discouraged consumption of
cooked dried maize. Methods of cooking and heat
sources determine energy cost. Therefore, the
research was designed to quantify energy input in
dried maize cooking using different energy sources
and methods.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Hydration behaviour at ambient temperature:
White maize (TZE COMP3 DT) was used for
the study. De-hull and whole maize (150g each)
were separately soaked in excess water at room
temperature (29± 2oC) and samples were drawn at
different time periods (at intervals of 15 min up to
2 h, and at intervals of 30 min from 2 h to 5 h) to
determine moisture content using oven-dry method
as reported by ASABE (2008). Hydration curves
were obtained by plotting the moisture content (%
w.b.) of the maize against soaking time. In addition,
rates of water absorption were determined using
equation 1. These data were used to determine
appropriate soaking duration.
(1)
Hydration behaviour at cooking temperature: A
known quantity of water (3.50kg) was heated in an
aluminium pot (3 mm thick) over a kerosene stove.
At boiling temperature (100oC), known quantity
(0.29585 kg) of dried maize was added. At 10
minutes interval of cooking, samples were drawn
out periodically for assessment of cooking stage and
determination of moisture content. The process was
repeated for pre-soak de-hulled; pre-soak whole,
un-soak whole and un-soak de-hulled dried maize.
Cooking in domestic appliances: Experiments
were conducted using aluminium pot (3mm
33
Vol. 39(2), 2015
thickness) and pressure cooking pots (Model: 15
psi Marlex appliance, India). Efficiency of cooking
were evaluated using four different appliances which
were kerosene, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG),
electric (Model: ES-1020; 1000W) and charcoal
stoves. Normal and control cooking were done.
The normal cooking experiments were performed
using recommended guidelines of the appliance
manufacturer and according to the general practice
of continuous heating until the food is satisfactory
cooked. While controlled cooking experiments
were conducted to achieve energy savings by
controlling the energy input to closely match the
actual energy required for cooking. Temperature was
monitored and the heat input was cut off at boiling
temperature (1000C) and was resumed whenever
the temperature fell below 900C. The process was
repeated for pre-soak de-hulled, pre-soak whole,
un-soak whole and un-soak de-hulled dried maize.
Pre-Soaking duration for all applicable samples was
90 minutes.
Cooking test: The end point of cooking was
identified by using parallel glass plate method as
proposed by Akinoso et al., 2013. A trial experiment
was first carried out to get approximate cooking
time. After which, samples of the boiling maize
were examined at 5 minutes interval by pressing
it in-between two small glass plates. At close of
cooking time, assessment period was reduced to 3
minutes interval. This was continued until no more
white core was observed. Duration of cooking was
monitored using stop watch.
Determination of energy requirements: Equation
2 was used to quantify energy input using kerosene,
Liquefied Petroleum Gas and charcoal source.
While equation 3 was used for estimation amount
of electricity required. Caloric values of kerosene,
LPG, and charcoal were 45,000 kJ/kg, 47,700 kJ/kg
and 14,500 kJ/kg respectively (www.lpgforyou.com).
E = (Q1- Q2) ×C (2)
E = p × t (3)
Where,
E = energy consumed (kJ)
Q1 = weight of fuel used before cooking (kg)
Q2 = weight of fuel used after cooking (kg)
Agricultural Engineering Today
C = calorific value of the specific fuel used (kJ/kg)
p = power rating of the cooker (W)
t = duration of cooking (s)
Determination of water evaporation: Known
quantity of maize and water was satisfactorily
cooked. The cooked sample was drained to
remove excess water using sieve. This was left
to stand for about 30 minute to equilibrate with
ambient temperature 29±2 oC (Akinoso, et al.,
2012). Equation 4 was applied to calculate water
evaporation. Difference in initial and final weights
of the contents was recorded as water loss due to
evaporation.
H = W1 – W2 (4)
Where,
H = water loss, g
W1 = weight of the contents before cooking, g
W2 = weight of the contents after cooking, g
Cost analysis: The price of energy depends on
sources and locations. The cost of energy within
the frame of this research was based on what was
obtainable at the time the research done in Ibadan,
southwest region of Nigeria around April, 2013.
Kerosene was 0.93 USD/kg, LPG (1.66 USD/kg),
charcoal (0.33 USD/kg) and electricity was 0.08
USD/kWh. The cost of cooking dried maize was
calculated by multiply the quantity of fuel used by
the corresponding prices obtainable in the market
(Equation 5). For electricity, energy consumed was
multiply by power rating.
(5)
Statistical analysis: All determinations reported
in this study were carried out in triplicates. In each
case, a mean value and standard deviation were
calculated. Analysis of variance was also performed
and means were separated using Duncan’s multiple
range test at p<0.05. Statistical Package for Social
Sciences (SPSS) software, version 16.0 was
employed for the analysis.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Hydration behaviour at ambient condition: The
34
initial moisture content of de-hull and whole maize
were 9.6 and 10.2% respectively. For both samples,
hydration curves exhibited the characteristic moisture
absorption curves (Figs. 1 & 2). Moisture contents
of the maize increased with soaking duration until
120 minutes when noticeable differences were
not recorded (Fig. 1). At this point de-hulled and
whole moisture contents were 48.8 and 42.7%
respectively. Variation in moisture absorption of the
two samples suggested dependence of maize grain
moisture absorption on hull. Prolonged soaking of
grains enhances microbial fermentation and odour
development (Gunasekara and Dharmasena, 2011).
Change in water colour was noticed, this may be due
to leaching of some soluble components. All these
caution against un-control soaking of dried maize
before cooking. Sowbhagya and Ali (1991) reported
that pre-soaking at room temperature for 15 min for
raw rice and 2–3 hours for parboiled rice reduced the
cooking time by 50% for raw rice and 25–40% for
parboiled rice compared to un-soaked rice. Swelling
upon hydration is a characteristic property common
to starches and proteins. A solid swells when it
takes up a liquid and at the same time it does not
lose its apparent (microscopic) homogeneity, its
dimensions are enlarged, its cohesion is diminished,
and it becomes soft and flexible (Das et al., 2006).
Maize, whose nitrogen-free extract is mostly
starch, therefore, has the ability to imbibe water.
Moreover, if starch granules are soaked for some
time before heating, gelatinization begins at a lower
temperature. Hydration is an important determinant
of cooking quality. Grains with good hydration and
lower cooking time are generally preferred for
cooking purposes. Good hydration usually indicates
good cooking quality in terms of reduced cooking
time and better cook ability.
Hydration behaviour at cooking temperature:
Cooking increased the moisture content of de-
hulled and whole dried maize from 9.6 to 79.3% and
10.2 to 66.2% after 210 minutes heating duration
respectively (Fig. 3). Cooking led to fissures on the
grains surface facilitating easy access of additional
water. This explains obtained results. For de-hulled
maize constant moisture content of 79.43% was
attained at 220 minutes cooking duration while
73.9% moisture content was the equilibrium for
whole maize which was recorded at 250 minutes
 Vol. 39(2), 2015

Fig. 1: Plot of moisture content against duration at ambient condition

Fig. 2: Plot of water absorption rate against duration at ambient condition

Fig. 3: Plot of moisture content against cooking duration

35
Agricultural Engineering Today

cooking duration. Whole maize is coated with layer, the four parameters varied significantly (p<0.05) with
which probably reduces the heat and mass transfer cooking methods (Table 1). Das et al. (2006) and
into the grains. At high temperature, there was water Lakshmi et al., (2007) reported similar observations
absorption, swelling of seed and resultant reduction for rice cooking. This may be due to the uniformity of
in strength (Akinoso and El-Alawa, 2013). heat and mass transfer during cooking of pre-soaked
grains as reported by Chakkaravarthi et al. (2008).
Energy requirements
Charcoal: Least energy used for cooking 0.296 kg
Kerosene stove: Energy used for cooking 0.296 kg
of dried maize (16,402±4.93 kJ) using charcoal was
of dried maize, water evaporation, cooking duration
recorded when pre-soaked – de-hulled dried maize
and cost of energy ranged from 17,393±3.46
was pressure cooked (Table 2). The method also
to 27,325±2.31 kJ, 2.5±0.01 to 3.14±0.01 kg,
conserved water, save time and cost. Statistical
174±0.58 to 247±1.15 minutes and 0.45 to 0.69
inference is as shown (Table 2). Energy, water
USD respectively (Table 1). Pre-soaked – controlled
evaporation, cooking duration and cost of energy
pressure cooking of de-hulled dried maize consumed
source ranged from 16,402±4.93 to 17,400±1.15 kJ,
least energy (17,393±3.41 kJ), cost (0.44 USD) and
1.22±0.01 to 1.34±0.01 kg, 121±1.15 to 183±0.58
water. However, duration of pre-soaked – pressure
minutes and 0.17 to 0.18 USD respectively (Table 2).
cooking of de-hulled dried maize was shortest. All
It is advantageous to use charcoal stove for long
Table 1: Cooking parameters for whole and dehull maize using kerosene stove
Treatments Energy (kJ) Evaporation (kg) Duration (min) Cost (USD)
Pre-soaked-de-hull 20,716±1.00f 2.700±0.01d 198±0.58e 0.53
Pre-soaked-de-hull-pressure 18,252±1.53b 2.538±0.02b 174±0.58a 0.47
Pre-soaked-whole 25,100±0.58k 3.138±0.01f 232±0.58i 0.69
Pre-soaked-whole-pressure 21,143±1.53g 2.585±0.02b 181±0.58b 0.57
Pre-soaked-control-de-hull 19,721±1.15d 2.650±0.01c 212±0.58g 0.50
Pre-soaked-control-de-hull-pressure 17,393±3.46a 2.519±0.01a 192±0.58d 0.45
Pre-soaked-control-whole 23,309±2.00h 3.060±0.01e 247±1.15k 0.59
Pre-soaked-control-whole-pressure 19,000±1.15c 2.580±0.02b 200±0.58f 0.48
Normal-de-hull 23,723±12.12i 2.650±0.01cd 201±0.58f 0.61
Normal-de-hull-pressure 19,767±0.00e 2.500±0.01a 188±0.58c 0.50
Normal-whole 27,325±2.31l 3.143±0.01f 243±1.15j 0.70
Normal-whole-pressure 24,046±1.00j 3.100±0.01f 213±0.00h 0.61
Values with different superscript along the column are significantly different (p<0.05)

Table 2: Cooking parameters for whole and dehull maize using charcoal stove
Treatments Energy (kJ) Evaporation (kg) Duration (min) Cost (USD)
Pre-soaked-de-hull 16,509±5.32b 1.302±0.01c 140±0.58c 0.17
Pre-soaked-de-hull-pressure 16,402±4.93a 1.220±0.01a 121±1.15a 0.17
Pre-soaked-whole 17,000±1.00d 1.332±0.02c 170±0.58g 0.18
Pre-soaked-whole-pressure 16,520±6.08b 1.319±0.01c 154±0.58d 0.17
Normal-de-hull 16,532±6.35b 1.321±0.01c 158±0.58e 0.17
Normal-de-hull-pressure 16,500±1.15b 1.285±0.01b 136±0.58b 0.17
Normal-whole 17,400±1.15e 1.342±0.01d 183±0.58h 0.18
Normal-whole-pressure 16,670±1.15c 1.330±0.01cd 166±0.58f 0.17
Values with different superscript along the column are significantly different (p<0.05)

36
 Vol. 39(2), 2015

cooking duration due to marginal differences in cost.
In addition, control cooking was not practicable due
to difficulty in regulating charcoal stove.
Electrical coil stove Energy requirements, water
evaporation, duration of cooking and cost of cooking
de-hulled and whole dried maize (0.296 kg) using
different cooking methods and electricity as source
of heat is presented as Table 3. The parameters
vary significantly with cooking methods. Normal-
whole cooking consumed highest amount of energy
(10,210±0.58 kJ), water evaporation (1.098±0.01
kg), duration (170±1.0 minutes) and cost (0.24 USD)
(Table 3). It was generally observed that soaking,
de-hulling, control and pressure cooking reduced
energy demand and cost. Cooking under pressure
reduces energy and cooking time as the cooking
carried out at an elevated temperature (Akinoso et
al., 2011). It saved energy as it was operated as a
closed system minimizing the rate of evaporation
loss.
LPG stove: Lowest and highest energy input, water
evaporation, cooking duration and cost of cooking of

Table 3: Cooking parameters for whole and dehull maize using electrical coil stove
Treatments Energy (kJ) Evaporation (kg) Duration (min) Cost (USD)
Pre-soaked-de-hull 6,900±1.00d 0.712±0.01d 115±1.00d 0.16
Pre-soaked-de-hull-pressure 6,000±0.58c 0.692±0.01c 100±0.58c 0.14
Pre-soaked-whole 9,240±0.58j 0.824±0.01g 154±1.15i 0.21
Pre-soaked-whole-pressure 8,460±1.15h 0.783±0.04f 141±1.00h 0.20
Pre-soaked-control-de-hull 5,520±1.00b 0.534±0.01b 92±1.00b 0.13
Pre-soaked-control-de-hull-pressure 5,280±1.15a 0.496±0.01a 88±0.58a 0.12
Pre-soaked-control-whole 8,700±5.77i 0.818±0.01g 145±1.53h 0.20
Pre-soaked-control-whole-pressure 8,160±1.73g 0.762±0.01e 136±1.53g 0.15
Normal-de-hull 7,860±0.58f 0.722±0.01e 131±0.58f 0.18
Normal-de-hull-pressure 7,320±0.58e 0.709±0.01d 122±1.00e 0.17
Normal-whole 10,200±0.58l 1.098±0.01h 170±1.00k 0.24
Normal-whole-pressure 9,540±0.58k 0.840±0.01g 159±1.00j 0.22
Values with different superscript along the column are significantly different (p<0.05)

Table 4: Cooking parameters for whole and de-hull maize using LPG stove
Treatments Energy (kJ) Evaporation (kg) Duration (min) Cost (USD)
Pre-soaked-de-hull 4,046±0.58 f
0.439±0.02 b
148±0.58 d
0.13
Pre-soaked-de-hull-pressure 3,788±0.58 b
0.422±0.01 a
116±0.00 a
0.12
Pre-soaked-whole 4,179±1.15 j
0.456±0.01 b
158±0.58 g
0.15
Pre-soaked-whole-pressure 4,068±1.53 g
0.450±0.01 b
140±0.58 b
0.14
Pre-soaked-controlled-de-hull 4,020±1.00d 0.428±0.01a 166±1.00i 0.14
Pre-soaked-control-de-hull-pressure 3,645±1.53a 0.412±0.01a 149±1.00e 0.13
Pre-soaked-control-whole 4,072±0.58h 0.442±0.02a 171±0.58j 0.14
Pre-soaked-control-whole-pressure 4,040±1.00 e
0.436±0.01 a
167±0.58 i
0.14
Normal-de-hull 4,098±1.00 i
0.458±0.01 b
155±0.58 f
0.14
Normal-de-hull-pressure 4,014±1.53 c
0.424±0.01 a
142±0.58 c
0.14
Normal-whole 4,593±1.73 l
0.486±0.01 c
165±0.58 h
0.17
Normal-whole-pressure 4,288±1.15 k
0.470±0.01 b
150±1.00 e
0.15
Values with different superscript along the column are significantly different (p<0.05)

37
Agricultural Engineering Today

0.296 kg of dried maize using LPG as heat source
were 3645±1.53 and 4593±1.73 kJ, 0.412±0.01 and
0.470±0.01 kg, 116±0.00 and 167±0.58 minutes,
and 0.12 and 0.17 USD respectively (Table 4).
Among the cooking methods, pre-soaked-control-
de-hull-pressure cooked used least energy while
pre-soak-de-hulled-pressure cooking duration and
cost were lowest. Of all the methods, normal-whole
cooking of dried maize using LPG as heat source
was not economical. Significant differences in values
were recorded (Table 4). By soaking, water replaces
air within particles of the food and this conduct
heat better which make its cooking faster and also
conserve energy (Amarasekara, 1994).
Comparative analysis of energy sources: Tables 5
and 6 summarised the energy requirements, duration
and cost of cooking de-hulled and whole dried maize
respectively using different energy sources. Similar
trend was observed for both samples. LPG was
the most efficient in term of energy demand and
cost while kerosene was least efficient. LPG as
energy source is 40-60% efficient (Amarasekara,
1994). However, electric stove cooking duration
was shortest. This is because material (ceramic)
that houses the heating element possesses low
thermal conductivity (0.25-2.0 W/mK), a potential for
retaining heat and high temperature during control
cooking. Thermal mass and insulation are the two
primary characteristics that describe an oven’s
ability to absorb and hold heat, and make it useful
for cooking (Forno, 2012). Energy conservation
of ceramic insulated oven was high (Akinoso and
Ganiu, 2011). Difference between charcoal stove
cooking cost is marginal which gave it comparative
advantage over electricity in term of long cooking
duration.
CONCLUSIONS
Initial moisture content of de-hull and whole maize
were 9.6 and 10.2% respectively. At ambient
condition, this moisture contents increased with
soaking duration until 120 minutes. At this point de-
hulled and whole moisture contents were 48.8 and
42.7% respectively. Cooking increased the moisture
content of de-hulled and whole dried maize from
9.6 to 79.3 % and 10.2 to 66.2% after 210 minutes
heating duration respectively. Controlled energy
input, cooking under pressure and soaking of dried
maize prior to cooking were three approaches which
resulted in energy saving. The type of heat source
and cooking appliance and environment where
cooking took place were also important factors
that decided energy requirements for cooking.
Combination of controlled cooking together with pre-
soaking under pressure cooking helped to minimize
the cooking energy and cost in all the heat sources
used for the study. Liquefied petroleum gas was
found to be the most efficient and cost effective
among heat sources used. Kerosene stove is least
efficient in term of energy input and cost. Energy

Table 5: Comparative analysis of the heat sources for de-hull dried maize
Energy (kJ) Duration (min) Cost (USD)
Least Highest Least Highest Least Highest
Kerosene 17393 23723 174 212 0.45 0.61
Charcoal 16402 16532 121 158 0.17 0.17
Electricity 5280 7860 88 131 0.12 0.18
Gas 3645 4593 116 166 0.12 0.14

Table 6: Comparative analysis of the heat sources for whole dried maize
Energy (kJ) Duration (min) Cost (USD)
Sources Least Highest Least Highest Least Highest
Kerosene 19000 27325 181 243 0.48 0.70
Charcoal 16520 17400 154 183 0.17 0.18
Electricity 8160 10200 136 170 0.15 0.24
Gas 4040 4593 138 171 0.14 0.17

38

and time consumption in controlled cooking was very
effective in electric stove method of cooking when
compared with other others. Control cooking is not
desirable for charcoal stove. There was correlation
between energy demand and water evaporation.
Study on sensory and chemical properties of the
cooked maize is recommended.
REFERENCES
Akinoso R; Aremu A K; Oyegunle T T 2012. Estimated
equations for time, water and energy requirements
in cooking rice. Conference Proceedings of the
Nigerian Institution of Agricultural Engineers,
33:495-499.
Akinoso R; El-alawa N E 2013. Some engineering and
chemical properties of cooked locust bean seed
(Parkia biglobosa). The West Indian Journal of
Engineering, 35: 51-57.
Akinoso R; Ganiyu I A. 2011. Estimation of energy
requirements in small-scale bread making.
LAUTECH Journal of Engineering and Technology,
6: 81-85.
Akinoso R; Lawal I A; Aremu A K 2013. Energy
requirements of size reduction of some selected
cereals using attrition mill. International Food
Research Journal, 20: 1205-1209.
Akinoso R; Omolola A O 2011. Estimating energy
requirements in cottage palm oil mill. LAUTECH
Journal of Engineering and Technology, 7: 111-115.
Amerasakara R M 1994. Integrated Development
Association (IDEA).
ASABE 2008. Moisture measurement-peanut.
American Society of Agricultural and Biological
Engineers, 679-680
Chakkaravarthi A; Lakshmi S; Subramanian R;
Hegde B 2008. Kinetics of cooking unsoaked and
39
Vol. 39(2), 2015
presoaked rice. Journal of Food Engineering, 84:
181-186.
Das T; Subramanian R; Chakkaravarthi A; Singh V; Ali
S Z; Bordoloi P K 2006. Energy conservation in
domestic rice cooking. Journal Food Engineering,
75: 156- 166.
Gunasekara K G; Dharmasena D A N. 2011. Effect
of grain shape and pre-soaking on cooking time
and cooking. Tropical Agricultural Research, 22:
194-203.
http://www.lpgforyou.com/asp/datasheet.asp.
IITA 2001. International Institute of Tropical Agriculture.
Annual Report on Maize Production.
Lakshmi S; Chakkaravarthi A; Subramanian R; Singh
V. 2007. Energy consumption in microwave
cooking of rice and its comparison with other
domestic appliances. Journal of Food Engineering,
78:715-722.
Mohammed A. 2009. Energy utilization and
environmental aspects of rice processing industries
in Bangladesh. Journal of Food Engineering, 73:
217–224.
Osei S A; Dei H K; Tuah A K. 1999. Evaluation of quality
protein maize as a feed ingredient for layer pullet.
Journal of Animal and Food Sciences, 8: 181-189.
Roy P; Shimuzu N; Kimura T. 2004. Energy conservation
in cooking of milled raw and parboiled rice”. Food
Science and Technology Research, 10: 121-126.
Sowbhagya C M; Ali S Z 1991. Effect of presoaking
on cooking time and texture of raw and parboiled
rice. Journal of Food Science and Technology,
28:76–80.
Wang L J. 2009. Energy efficiency and management
in food processing facilities. CRC Press Taylor &
Francis Group, LLC, Boca Raton, FL, USA.
Agricultural Engineering Today

Performance Evaluation of Manual Pumps in Odisha

J C Paul (LM-9166), B Panigrahi and S K Mohanty
College of Agricultural Engineering & Technology
O.U.A.T, Bhubaneswar-751003, Odisha
Email: jagadishc_paul@rediffmail.com
Manuscript received: June 30, 2014 Revised manuscript accepted: April 18, 2015

ABSTRACT
The discharge of two manual pumps popularly used in Odisha i.e. Krishak Bandhu (K.B.)
pump and Low Lift Hand (LLH) pumps were evaluated at four different suction heads i.e.
2.0, 3.5, 5.0, and 6.5 m. The command area coverage for vegetables with the measured
discharge of each pump was estimated at different seasons with various irrigation intervals.
To reduce early fatigue and tiredness, as noticed in other available manual pumps, these
two pumps were ergonomically evaluated by the female workers in the age group of 21-50
years. When the water table is up to 2.0 m below the ground surface, the area coverage
was estimated to be more for growing vegetables by the farmers during the months of rabi
season than summer. Ergonomically it is also advisable to operate both the pumps up to
2.0 m head with a command area of 0.704 ha and 1.19 ha for KB pump and LLH pump,
respectively during rabi season. At this suction head, the female operators could operate the
pump for a period of 20 minutes continuously with lower cardiac cost with little discomfort,
better efficiency and output. After that the suction head increases as the summer season
approaches. When the water table is nearer to 6.5 m, a farmer can grow 0.168 ha of
vegetables at 6 days irrigation interval to a maximum of 0.308 ha at 11 days interval by a
KB pump and 0.336 ha of vegetables at 6 days irrigation interval to a maximum of 0.616
ha at 11 days interval by a LLH Pump. Hence from these test results a farmer can decide
at what suction head and irrigation interval how much area can be covered. Accordingly
he can plan his cultivation scheduling and can grow various vegetables considering the
availability of water with lower physiological cost.
Key words: Discharge, Ergonomics, Manual Pump, Suction head

INTRODUCTION hectares can be brought under assured irrigation

Water is the key factor for crop production and is
probably the single most factor that can make or
break a crop. If water is not avaible in time and
adequately, optimum crop production may not be
possible (Wohab et al., 1999). Most of the farmers
of Odisha are poor and their socio-economic
conditions do not permit them to introduce imported
capital-intensive machinery. Much of the land in
the state is family owned and is in fragmented
small holdings, which is less than 2 ha. Small and
marginal holdings in the state are 82 per cent. These
small plots are often, worked solely by the owners
and their families. The state of Odisha has 65.6
lakh hectare of cultivable land of which 59.0 lakh
through different types of sources. More than 70 per
cent of the cultivated area in the state is covered
under paddy crop (Anonymous, 2010). Efforts are
now being made to divert paddy area to cash crops
like pulses, oil seeds, sugarcane, potato and other
vegetable crops to ensure better returns. This crop
diversification can be achieved through assured
irrigation.
The economic condition of the farmers in Odisha
does not allow them to go for the advanced type
of the irrigation pumps for their lands. Again
due to uncertainty in the electrical supply and
increased cost of fuel and electricity they cannot
afford it (Sahu et al., 2005). Only manual pumps

40

are suitable for the poor farmers for small-scale
irrigation. The manual pumps are operated by the
family members. Economically, the cost of lifting
water with human or animal power is substantially
higher than that with mechanically powered pumps.
In spite of economic disadvantage, the human
and animal powers continue to remain the major
energy source for agricultural operations for the
economically poor marginal farmers. The reason
may be attributed to their poor economic status
and the availability of human power in the family.
Presently the Government of Odisha is promoting
two types of manual pumps namely pedal operated
Krushak Bandhu Pump (KBP) and Low Lift Hand
(LLH) Pumps amongst the farmers with subsidy. The
above mentioned two types of pumps are popularly
used in coastal belts of the state where water table
varies from near the ground surface in rainy season
to 5 to 8 meters in summer season.
Manual pumps are operated by the family members
of a farmer under different age groups irrespective
of male or female, although the human factors
like tiredness and fatigue affect the efficiency of a
pump and its acceptability. Women are amongst
the biggest contributors to agricultural production
but yet are the least recognized, with little access
to and control over the income generated from
their labour (Sahu et al., 2005). Now-a-days many
female labourers are getting engaged in agricultural
operations like sowing/ transplanting, intercultural
operations, irrigation using low lift pumps and
indigenous water lifting devices, harvesting
operation etc. in the state of Odisha. Government
of Odisha is encouraging them and giving equal
wage as the male labourers. The hydraulic efficiency
of a human operated pedal pump depends on the
diameter of the suction pipe and suction lift. As the
suction lift increases the smaller size suction pipes
are found to give better hydraulic efficiency than the
bigger size suction pipes.
A study made by Bom et al. (2002) found that,
8.9 cm diameter pedal operated pump performed
better than 12.7 cm diameter pump at greater
suction depths. Women performed better in 8.9 cm
diameter pumps than 12.7 cm diameter pumps. In
the same study conducted at Northen West Bengal,
the pedal operated pump was found to yield 1 to
1.5 L/s discharge at various lifts to irrigate 0.2 ha
41
Vol. 39(2), 2015
of commercial vegetable crops. The cost of pump
was earned back within a year. Keeping the above
facts in view, in the present study it was thought
to evaluate the discharge of KB pump and LLH
pump under different heads and the command area
coverage for non-paddy crops in different seasons
with various irrigation intervals. To reduce early
fatigue and tiredness, as noticed in other available
manual pumps, these two pumps were also
ergonomically evaluated by getting them operated
by the female workers.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The two pumps used in the test were fabricated
and manufactured by Government Implement
Factory, Bhubaneswar and were tested at CAET,
OUAT, Bhubaneswar. The photographs of (1)
Pedal operated Krushak Bandhu pump (Popularly
known as K.B. pump) and (2) Low Lift Hand pump
(LLHP) are presented in Figs.1 and 2, respectively.
The performance tests of the LLH Pump and
the KB Pump were conducted at CAET, OUAT,
Bhubaneswar, Odisha. The tests for both the
manually operated pumps were done by installing
the pumps in different open wells with 4 different
suction heads of 2.0, 3.5, 5.0, and 6.5 m. Since the
female labourers are now being encouraged to get
involved in agriculture operations, in the present
study we have selected female farmers of different
age groups for undertaking irrigation operation. For
each suction head three observations of discharge
were measured and the average was calculated.
The average values of the discharges for KB pump
and LLH pump are indicated in Tables 1 and 2,
respectively. To measure the discharge of the
pumps, a plastic bucket of 25 liters capacity was
used. The bucket was allowed to fill with water
and the corresponding time required to fill the
bucket was recorded with the help of a stop watch.
The discharge was calculated using the following
equation
Q = V / t (1)
Where,
Q = Discharge of the pump in lit/s,
V = Capacity of the bucket in lit,
T = Time required to fill the bucket in s
Agricultural Engineering Today

Fig. 1: Krishak Bandhu pump Fig. 2: Low lift hand pump

Table 1: Discharge of KB pumps and command area coverage at different suction heads
Sl. Suction Average Command area coverage at different irrigation intervals (days)*, ha
No. head, discharge,
m lit/h 6 7 8 9 10 11
1 2.0 3516 0.384 0.448 0.512 0.576 0.640 0.704
2 3.5 2943 0.312 0.364 0.416 0.468 0.520 0.572
3 5.0 2465 0.264 0.308 0.352 0.396 0.440 0.484
4 6.5 1626 0.168 0.196 0.224 0.252 0.280 0.308
*Depth of water to be applied at each irrigation is 4.5 cm

Table 2: Discharge of LLH pump and command area coverage at different suction heads
Sl. Suction Average Command area coverage at different irrigation intervals (days)*, ha
No. head, m discharge,
lit/h 6 7 8 9 10 11
1 2.0 6049 0.648 0.756 0.864 0.972 1.080 1.188
2 3.5 5005 0.552 0.664 0.736 0.828 0.920 1.012
3 5.0 4531 0.480 0.560 0.640 0.720 0.800 0.880
4 6.5 3182 0.336 0.392 0.448 0.504 0.560 0.616
*Depth of water to be applied at each irrigation is 4.5 cm

42
 Vol. 39(2), 2015

It has been reported that vegetable crops require 4.5
cm depth at each irrigation operation at an irrigation
scheduling of IW : CPE = 1.2, where, IW is irrigation
water and CPE is Cumulative pan evaporation
(Anonymous, 2006). Hence assuming irrigation
depth of 4.5 cm, the command area coverage of
the pumps per day is computed as
C = 0.064 X Q (2)
Where,
C = command area coverage, ha and
Q = Discharge of the pump, lit/s.
In Eqn. (2) it is assumed that the pump operates for
8 hours per day by the labourer and the irrigation
is applied to the crops from the pump by PVC
pipe system where there is no loss of water in
conveyance. The average rate of evaporation at
Bhubaneswar ranges from 4.0 mm/day in the rabi
season (October - January month) to 6.5 mm/day
in the summer season (February to May month).
So for 4.5 cm irrigation at 1.2 IW/CPE, the irrigation
interval ranges from 10 to 6 days. So total command
area the pump can irrigate is given by:
A = n X C, (3)
Where,
A = Total command area coverage, ha
n = Irrigation interval in days,
C = Area irrigated per day, ha
For the above two pumps the total command area
was calculated for 6 to11 days irrigation interval
as pump will irrigate in rotation to all the fields
in different seasons. Accordingly this has been
calculated for different heads. For ergonomical
evaluation of pumps, nine female labourers were
randomly selected. The workers were in the age
group of 21 – 50 years. The entire sample of 9
labourers was divided into three age groups of
21-30, 31-40 and 41-50 years and each age group
had 3 labourers. Age, height and weight of each
labourer were recorded before ergonomic study
was undertaken (Table 3). All the labourers were
asked to undergo a calibration test on the treadmill
in the laboratory to determine the maximum
sustainable heart rate (HR) and maximum oxygen
consumption rate (OCR) that will be referred as
VO2 max in the text subsequently (Behera et al.,
2007). Values of HR and VO2 of the labourer at
rest i.e. before operating the pumps were also
measured and shown in Table 3. For evaluation
purposes each treatment was replicated thrice and
the average value was presented. Their HR, OCR
and blood pressure at rest and during operation
of the pump were measured using a Polar Heart
Rate Monitor, Metamax II and Spygromanometer
instrument. The average data of working heart
rate, oxygen consumption rate and blood pressure
for continuous pump operation were recorded
at different suction heads. The physiological
responses like HR and OCR were measured by
Metamax II, which is a portable gas measuring
device using mixing chamber technology with data
logger. The work load in terms of relative cost of
work load (OCR as % of VO2 max) was determined.

Table 3: Physiological parameters of female operators under study

S. Age Age, Weight, Height, Heart rate (rest) HR max VO2 VO2 max
No. Group yrs kg cm beats per bpm rest
minute(bpm) L/min L/min
1 22 54 168 82 198 0.26 2.08
2 21-30 26 47 161 74 194 0.24 2.10
3 29 44 146 71 191 0.23 1.82
4 33 52.5 149 78 187 0.24 1.96
5 31-40 35 55. 152.3 73 185 0.21 1.80
6 38 42.5 142.2 75 182 0.20 1.94
7 44 51.8 164 83 176 0.22 1.89
8 41-50 46 50.2 147.6 80 174 0.20 1.72
9 49 53.7 171 87 171 0.19 1.67

43
Agricultural Engineering Today
The energy expenditure rate (EER) was determined
by multiplying the OCR work with the calorific value
of oxygen as 20.88 kJ/l (Nag and Dutt, 1980).
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
As per the tests conducted for the performance
evaluation of the KB pump and LLH pump, the
discharge and command area coverage at different
suction heads with irrigation intervals from 6 days
to 11 days are indicated in Table 1 and Table 2,
respectively. The head discharge relationship of
the KB pump shows that when the suction head
increases the discharge decreases. It is due to the
fact that with increase in suction head the operator
gets tired and exerts less muscle power to operate
the pump. Also it is obvious that as the suction head
increases the operator has to put more pressure for
lifting of water since the head loss due to friction in
suction pipe increases. The maximum discharge
of 3516 lit/h was obtained at 2 m suction head and
the minimum discharge of 1626 lit/h was at 6.5 m
suction head. As the head is increased further (i.e.
above 6.5 m), the discharge becomes less and the
pressure required to lift water becomes too high.
Moreover if the suction head becomes less than 2
m, it becomes easy to operate the pump and the
discharge becomes more. The head-discharge
relationship of the KB pump was developed as
Q = -29.55 H2 – 158.6 H + 3928 (4)
with a very high value of co-efficient of determination
(R2) as 0.994. The developed relation will help to
find out the discharge of the pump, Q (lit/h) at any
value of suction head, H (m). Eqn. (4) works for the
suction head ranging from 2 to 6.5 m.
The head discharge relationship of LLH pump as
per the tests conducted is indicated in Table 2.
The maximum discharge is obtained as 6049 lit/h
at 2 m suction head and the minimum discharge
is 3182 lit/h for 6.5 m suction head. It is due to the
fact that as the head increases more pressure by
hand is required for lifting of water. If the head is
increased to more than 6.5 m, more hand muscle
power is required for lifting of water and accordingly
the discharge also decreases. Further if the head is
increased the operator gets tired more quickly while
operating the pump resulting in more physiological
cost in term of heart rate and oxygen consumption
44
rate. The head-discharge relationship of the LLH
pump was developed as
Q = -33.88 H2 – 816.9 H + 6746 (5)
with a very high value of co-efficient of determination
(R2) as 0.975. The developed relation will help to
find out the discharge of the pump, Q (lit/h) at any
value of suction head, H (m). Eqn. (5) works for the
suction head ranging from 2 to 6.5 m.
Command area coverage at different suction
heads with different irrigation intervals: A pump
is recognized by its command area coverage.
The command area coverages of the two pumps
at different suction heads with different irrigation
intervals have been indicated in Tables 1 and 2. The
test results show that both the pumps cover more
area at less suction head and also command area
coverage decreases as the suction head increases.
Hence it shows that the command area coverage
is a function of suction head which in turn is a
function of discharge. For the KB pump command
area coverage at different suction heads at different
irrigation intervals i.e. 6 to 11 days indicates that at
2 m suction head for 6 days irrigation interval the
command area coverage is 0.384 ha and for 11 days
irrigation interval it is maximum i.e. 0.704 ha. So in
the months in rabi season, when the ground water
table is nearer to ground level, a farmer can decide
to grow vegetable crops accordingly depending
upon the irrigation intervals. Also when the ground
water depth goes below 2 m i.e. 3.5, 5.0 and 6.5
m or nearer to it, a farmer can take up vegetable
crops covering the area indicated in Table 1 with the
help of a KB pump. At 6.5 m suction head, the area
coverage is 0.168 ha at 6 days irrigation interval
and maximum of 0.308 ha for 11 days irrigation
interval. So during the summer, a farmer can grow
vegetables in 0.0.308 ha with the help of a KB pump
at 6.5 m suction head.
As per the test results obtained for the LLH pump,
the command area coverage is more at 2.0 m
suction head which increases with the increase in
irrigation intervals. At 6 days irrigation interval at 2.0
m head area coverage is 0.648 ha and it increases
to 1.188 ha for 11 days interval. So when the water
table is 2.0 m below the ground surface, the area
coverage is more for growing vegetables by the
farmers in rabi season. However, during the summer
 Vol. 39(2), 2015

season irrigation interval becomes less as compared 0.59 l/min during pumping operation at the lowest
to rabi season. Groundwater table goes down more suction head of 2.0 m. The corresponding energy
below the ground surface; suction head increases expenditure rate (EER) was 12.3 kJ/ min, whereas
and consequently discharge of the pump decreases. the maximum OCR and EER of 0.98 l/min and 20.6
This reduces discharge of the pump covering less kJ/min were recorded at higher suction head of 6.5
command area. When the water table is close to m. The female operators could operate the pump
6.5 m, a farmer can grow 0.336 ha of vegetables below 35 per cent of VO2 max at the suction head
at 6 days irrigation interval to a maximum of 0.616 of 2.0 m suction head. But above 3.5 m suction
ha at 11 days interval by a LLH pump. Hence from head, this limit was beyond the acceptable work
these test results a farmer can know at what suction load (AWL) i.e. 35 per cent of VO2 max. As a result
head and irrigation interval how much area can be the female operators could operate the KB pump
covered and accordingly he can plan his cultivation with less drudgery up to 2.0 m suction head. While
scheduling. studying the work rest cycle, it was observed that
the operators could operate the pump continuously
Ergonomical evaluation by female operators: for a period of 20 minutes with greater ease and less
The HR at rest and at work for the operators was fatigue at suction head of 2.0 m beyond this head
measured at four different suction heads for K.B. the working time reduced to very low. The resting
pump and is presented in Table 4. The average period was 35 per cent of working time at 2.0 m
value of working heart rate (WHR) recorded was suction head but beyond this head it increases to
the maximum with a value of 127.5 beats/min 42 to 50 per cent of working time, as indicated from
(bpm) at 6.5 m suction head and the lowest of 87.9 the WHR and OCR value of the operators. The body
bpm at 2.0 m suction head. This may be due to the parts feeling discomfort were observed in the left and
extra force required to operate the pedal by foot at right foot, leg, knee and thigh of the operators. The
increasing suction heads. The mean value of OCR heart rate at rest and at work for female operators
of all three female operators was observed to be was measured at four different suction heads for
Table 4: Ergonomical evaluation of KB pump by the operators at different suction heads
Suction Age Group WHR, OCRwork, RCWL, EER, Discharge,
head, m bpm l/min (% of VO2max) kJ/min lph
21-30 83.0 0.54 27.0 11.3 3508
2.0 31-40 89.4 0.58 30.5 12.1 3522
41-50 91.2 0.64 36.3 13.4 3519
Average 87.9 0.59 31.3 12.3 3516
21-30 103.3 0.72 36.0 15.0 2938
3.5 31-40 108.1 0.83 43.7 21.7 2952
41-50 111.0 0.86 48.9 17.9 2941
Average 107.4 0.80 42.8 18.2 2943
21-30 116.0 0.88 44.0 18.4 2465
5.0 31-40 120.3 0.92 48.4 19.2 2479
41-50 123.5 0.98 56.2 20.5 2452
Average 119.9 0.92 49.5 19.3 2465
21-30 122.6 0.96 48.0 20.0 1623
6.5 31-40 128.6 0.99 52.1 20.7 1648
41-50 131.2 1.01 51.4 21.1 1609
Average 127.5 0.98 50.5 20.6 1626
RCWL = Relative Cost of Work Load ( % of VO2 max)
EER = Energy Expenditure Rate
WHR = Working Heart Rate
OCR = Oxygen Consumption Rate

45
Agricultural Engineering Today

Table 5: Ergonomical evaluation of LLH pump by the operators at different suction heads
Suction Age Group WHR, OCRwork, RCWL, EER, Discharge,
head, m bpm l/min (% of VO2max) kJ/min lph
21-30 88.6 0.62 31.0 12.9 6053
2.0 31-40 92.9 0.73 39.4 15.3 6051
41-50 100.7 0.76 43.2 15.9 6043
Average 94.0 0.70 37.8 14.7 6049
21-30 104.3 0.74 37.0 15.5 5012
3.5 31-40 109.6 0.84 44.2 17.6 5005
41-50 116.5 0.96 54.5 20.1 4998
Average 110.1 0.84 45.2 17.7 5005
21-30 118.6 0.89 44.5 18.6 4539
5.0 31-40 120.4 0.98 57.5 20.5 4531
41-50 124.9 1.03 58.5 21.5 4524
Average 121.3 0.96 53.5 20.2 4531
21-30 124.6 1.00 50.0 20.9 3156
6.5 31-40 128.7 1.09 57.4 22.8 3203
41-50 133.8 1.16 65.9 24.2 3189
Average 129.0 1.08 57.7 22.6 3182
RCWL = Relative Cost of Work Load ( % of VO2 max)
EER = Energy Expenditure Rate
WHR = Working Heart Rate
OCR = Oxygen Consumption Rate

LLH pump and is presented in Table 5. The average
value of WHR recorded was maximum with a value
of 129 bpm at 6.5 m and lowest of 94 bpm at 2.0
m suction head. This may be due to the extra force
required to operate the handle by hand at increasing
suction heads.
The mean value of OCR of all three female operators
was observed to be 0.70 l/min during pumping
operation at the lowest suction head of 2.0 m. The
corresponding EER was 14.7 kJ/ min, whereas the
maximum OCR and EER of 1.08 l/min and 22.6 kJ/
min were recorded at higher suction head of 6.5 m.
The female operators could operate the pump at
par of 35 per cent of VO2 max at the suction head of
2.0 m. But above 2.0 m suction head, this limit was
beyond the acceptable work load (AWL) i.e. 35 per
cent of VO2 max. As a result the female operators
could operate the LLH pump with less drudgery
up to 2.0 m suction head. While studying the work
rest cycle, it was observed that the operators could
operate the pump continuously for a period of 20
minutes with greater ease and less fatigue at suction
head of 2.0 m. Beyond this head the working time
reduced to very low. The resting period was 35
per cent of working time at 2.0 m suction head
but beyond this head it increases to 50 per cent
as indicated from the WHR and OCR value of the
operators. The body parts feeling discomfort were
observed in the left and right hand, shoulder and
chest of the operators.
CONCLUSIONS
When the water table is up to 2.0 m below the
ground surface the area coverage for growing
vegetables is more by the farmers during rabi
season. Ergonomically it is also advisable to operate
both the pumps up to 2.0 m head with a command
area of 0.704 ha and 1.188 ha for KB pump and LLH
pump, respectively. At this suction head the female
operators could operate the pump for a period of 20
minutes continuously with lower cardiac cost with
little discomfort, better efficiency and output. After
that the suction head increases as the summer
season approaches. When the water table is nearer
to 6.5 m, a farmer can grow 0.168 ha of vegetables
at 6 days irrigation interval and to a maximum of
0.308 ha at 11 days interval by a KB pump and

46

0.336 ha of vegetables at 6 days irrigation interval
to a maximum of 0.616 ha at 11 days interval by a
LLH pump. Hence from these test results a farmer
can know at what suction head and irrigation interval
how much area can be covered. Accordingly he can
plan his cultivation scheduling and can grow various
vegetables considering the availability of water with
lower physiological cost.
REFERENCES
Anonymous. 2006. Annual Report, 2005-06. AICRP
on Water Management, Chiplima Centre, OUAT,
Bhubaneswar.
Anonymous. 2010. Odisha Agricultural Statistics 2009-
10. Directorate of Agriculture and Food Production,
Govt. of Odisha, Bhubaneswar.
Behera B K; Swain S; Mohanty S K. 2007. Ergonomic
evaluation of push-pull type weeders with women
47
Vol. 39(2), 2015
operators. Journal of Agricultural Engineering,
ISAE, 44(3):39-43.
Bom G J; Rehman I H; Van Raalten I; Mishra R; Van
Steerburgen F. 2002. Technology innoation and
production in practice: pumps, channels and wells.
Tata Energy Research Institute (TERI), New Delhi.
Nag P K; Dutt P. 1980. Cardiorespiratory efficiency
in some agricultural work. Applied Ergonomics,
11:81-84.
Sahu A P; Sharma K N; Mohanty S K. 2005. Ergonomics
of female workers for pedal operated diaphragm
pump in Orissa. Paper presented at International
Ergonomics Conference, IIT Guwahati, December
10-12.
Wohab M A; Sattar M A; Mazed M A; Khan M F R.
1999. Development of a promising manual pump.
AMA (Japan), 30 (4): 34-36.
Agricultural Engineering Today
AGRICULTURAL ENGINEERING TODAY
Guidelines for Authors
1. NATURE OF CONTIRUBUTION
The paper should relate to policies, issues,
problems, solutions and technology status, in
Agricultural Engineering and allied disciplines and
should be interesting to the farmers, manufacturers,
sales/ service personals, scientists, and engineers
in agriculture.
2. GENERAL FORMAT OF THE MANUSCRIPT
The manuscript is to be written in English/Hindi
using short and simple sentences. It is to be typed
in MS Word using Arial 11 pt. font, double-spacing,
on one side of A-4 size paper. The first page is to
have the title of the paper, followed by the authors(s)’
names(s), Abstract (200 words approx.), a few key
words and a footnote giving the authors’ affiliation,
postal address with PIN code, e-mail address and
identifying the Corresponding author. The text of
the paper may have main and sub-heads. The
manuscript may not exceed 12 pages including the
Text, Tables and Sketches. Please ensure that only
SI units are used. The manuscript should end with
a set of crisp and clear Conclusions.
3. TABLES
Please use the Table format (Simple) and
accommodate information avoiding Landscape
layout. Include all the Tables at the end of the
manuscript after References. Each Table must have
a number and a title, typed above the Table.
4. ILLUSTRATIONS
AET is printed in black and white only. There should
48
be no coloured lines, legends, histograms etc., in
the illustrations. A Figure should not be crowded with
too many labels. The letter size of the labels should
be readable after 50% reduction. If relevant, a few
sharp colour photographs may be included, but they
will be rendered in black and white. All illustrations
may be placed after the Tables and each must
have a Figure number and caption, typed below
the illustration.
5. REFERENCES
There must be a one-to-one correspondence
between the references cited and the references
listed. Please use standard format for citing and
listing references.
6. SUBMISSION
Please submit electronic copy (soft copy) of paper to:
ssingh5119@gmail.com with a copy to society email
address i.e. isae1960@gmail.com. In the electronic
copy, Figures and Tables must be editable. Kindly
do write your ISAE membership number as it will
appear in paper.
7. PREFERENCES IN PUBLICATION
AET is primarily meant for publishing information
in any area of Agricultural Engineering and allied
fields that may be useful to technology developers
and users, manufacturers, planers and policy
makers. It discourages the authors from sending
fully research papers for which other journal are
available. However, a research paper, which has
been shown to have potential for adoption of its
findings, may be considered.
 Indian Society of Agricultural Engineers
Executive Council (2015-2018)

Patron Gajendra Singh gajendra.singh45@gmail.com

President N C Patel ncpatel1956@gmail.com

Immediate Past President V M Mayande vmmayande@yahoo.com

Vice President Nutan Kumar Dash nutunkumardash@gmail.com

(Activity Council)

Vice President R K Gupta rkguptaciphet@gmail.com

(Technical Council)

Secretary General Indra Mani maniindra99@gmail.com

Secretary Manoj Khanna mkhanna@iari.res.in

Secretary Shivmurti Srivastava Shivmurtis@gmail.com

Treasurer Susama Sudhishri susama_s@rediffmail.com

Director Deepak Vishwanath Raut dv_raut@rediffmail.com

(Membership & Public Relations)

Director Sanjay Kumar Samantrai Sanjayouat2014@gmail.com

(Awards)

Director Triveni Prasad Singh tpsingh_62@yahoo.co.in;

(Farm Machinery & Power)

Director S N Panda snp@agfe.iitkgp.ernet.in

(Soil & Water

Director Lalan K Sinha lksinha@ciae.res.in

(Processing Dairy & Food Engg.)

Director Virendra Kumar Vijay vkvijay14@hotmail.com

(Energy & Other Areas)

Director Dharmendra Saraswat dsaraswat@uaex.edu

(International Cooperation)

Director K S Reddy ksreddy.1963@gmail.com

(Education, Extension & Placement)

Director Balchandra Babu Balachandra.babu@gmail.com

(Business and Industry)
 Agricultural Engineering Today
Vol. 39 April-June 2015 No. 2

CONTENTS
Page

Optimizing Process Parameters for Foam Mat Drying of Papaya Pulp (Carica Papaa L.)
1
— Syed Mazar Ali, Shamshad Begum, Lata R Kulkarni, S C Ranganatha and K H Nagraj

Draughability Studies Using Crossbred Bullocks for Different Unit Operations in Terraces –A Case
Study in Sikkim 7
— R K Tiwari

Grain Moisture Measuring Techniques - A Review

13
— Usman Ahmed, Mahesh Kumar, Salamdin, BVC Mahajan and M S Alam

Development and Performance Evaluation of Pneumatic Plucking System for Knapsack Type Cotton
Plucker 19
— N A Patil, Y C Bhatt, G S Tiwari, Shashi Kant Pawar and Sachin Wandkar

Performance Evaluation of Farm Machine Banks in Bihar through Field, Economic and User’s Response
Analysis 25
— Subhash Chandra and Anjani Kumar Nathani

Energy Analysis during Domestic Dried Maize Cooking

32
— Rahman Akinoso, Ademola K Aremu and Akeem A Salam

Performance Evaluation of Manual Pumps in Odisha

40
— J C Paul, B Panigrahi and S K Mohanty

Guidelines for Authors

48

Printed at New United Process, A-26, Naraina Indl. Area, Ph-II, New Delhi-110028 Phone : 25709125

View publication stats