Presented paper investigates the application of a line voltage changer to an installation for pre-sowing seed treatment by pulsed electric field (PEF) in order to increase the sowing quality of seeds and to suppress pathogenic microflora. The installation comprises an AC voltage regulator, a high voltage source, a voltage inverter, a working chamber for seed treatment, a control unit, and current and voltage sensors. The proposed installation differs from the existing apparatuses as it automatically provides the transformation of the pulsed electric field parameters by constant monitoring of power processes in a layer of treated seeds and feedback sending to the control unit. Seed treatment efficiency depends on the dose being determined by the parameters of electric field, namely, intensity in the seed layer, pulse duration, pulse repetition frequency, and seed treatment time. The parameters of rational treatment were determined, and the minimum treatment dose was calculated on the basis of results from the laboratory tests on the effect of pulsed electric field on sowing qualities of winter wheat seeds. It was experimentally confirmed that the proposed installation provides automatic transformation of electric field parameters depending on the changes taking place in the seed layer on the example of seeds with different moisture content maintaining the necessary treatment dose, ensuring the stability and repeatability of results.

Wheat grain is one of the most valuable crops, as it is rich in gluten proteins and other valuable substances. Currently, the food industry and the grain market place high demands on the quality of wheat grain. However, individual batches of grain have toxic properties as a result of the content of heavy metals, harmful mycoflora. Grain mixtures can be even more toxic due to their fine structure. In this regard, the search for effective ways to reduce the overall toxicity of grain and grain mixtures is of scientific and practical interest. One of the most environmentally promising methods of grain disinfection is ozonization. A number of experiments on the effects of ozone on the toxicity of grain and grain mixtures have been conducted at the Stavropol State Agrarian University. To determine the objective picture of the state of grain and feed in the research laboratory using biotesting, 40 samples of wheat grain and 94 samples of grain mixtures from different agroclimatic zones of Russia were examined for general toxicity. As a result, it was found that nineteen samples of forty grains had moderate and high toxicity. Thus, the assumption was confirmed about the need to find ways to reduce the toxicity of grain and forage in order to ensure the safety of feeding animals and poultry. To accomplish this goal, we conducted a series of experiments on disinfection of wheat grain and grain mixtures with ozone in various modes. The ozone concentration was determined using a Cyclone-5.41 gas analyzer. The processing of wheat and grain mixtures was carried out with an ozone generator "Ozone-60P" with a plant capacity of 60 g•h-1. As a result of the research, the effect of ozone on the reduction of the toxicity of wheat grain and grain mixtures was found. The article presents the optimal modes of disinfection of wheat and grain mixtures with ozone to reduce the overall toxicity.

В работе экспериментально определены оптимальные технологические режимы предпосевной обработки семян моркови импульсным электрическим полем для стимуляции посевных свойств семян. На основе дисперсионного анализа проверялась "нулевая гипотеза" о принадлежности отдельных выборок (серий) экспериментальных данных генеральной совокупности и последующая селекция этих выборок по критерию "наименьшей существенной разности".

No abstract

This article presents an installation for producing ozone. Ozonators have found widespread use in agricultural production. The most efficient means of ozone production today are ozonators using electric discharge. They are simple in design and have high ozone yield in comparison with other methods. The ozonator is designed with the use of discrete elements, CMOS logic elements of medium integration, and operational amplifiers of medium accuracy. The design elements have galvanic connection to the 220/380 V network. The device consists of the following main functional elements: a master oscillator, a signal conditioning device, a display device, an amplifier, a high-voltage output stage and power supplies. This ozonator is intended for use in agricultural production, in particular for the treatment of crops. Experimental trials of the laboratory ozonator were carried out concerning treatment of winter wheat seeds with ozone to improve their sowing qualities. Particularly, winter wheat seeds were subjected to ozone treatment with ozone concentrations of 2.5, 35.0 and 55.0 mg/m3. At these concentrations, the dependence of germination energy of winter wheat seeds on the exposure and settling time from the moment of treatment to seed germination was determined. As a result of research, energy of germination increased by 17.0 % in comparison with the control, germinating capacity in the best variant changed from 77.0 % to 95.0 %.