This trial is to use an innovative spiral rotor tiller for tillage heavy and dry clay soil texture. Efficiency of cutting and loosening soil layer indices soil pulverization, tillage profile, specific resistance (N/m 2) of spiral rotor share and power requirements (kW) are identified to evaluate the performance of spiral rotor tiller. The studied variables are four setting angles with direction line of zero, 25  , 50  and 75  , three tilling angles of 25  , 30  , and 35  and four forward speeds of 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, and 2.5 km/h in heavy and dry clay soil. The results related that increasing setting angle from 0 to 75 the MWD decreased by about 48%, and also both of the specific resistance of the spiral rotor share and power requirement decreased by 45.8 and 39.8% respectively, while the tillage width increased by about 50% at forward speed 1.5 km/h and tilling angle 25.

This research aimed to determine the change of cutting knives decision depending on knife wear phenomena, and its effect on hammer mill productivity and product quality. It can be done by tracing the knives wear stages and determine its safe time range to replace the knives. The experiments were done in El-Serw village Damietta Governorate from 2014 to 2016, by grinding both of corn ear and dough as popular agricultural productive using the traditional hammer mill. The studied variables also are four concaves hole diameters (2.5, 4.0, 8.0 and 12.0 mm), five operating hours of new knife, 150, 200, 250 and 300 h for corn ear. While, for dough, are used two concaves hole diameters (2.5 and 4.0 mm) and operating hours of new knife, 200, 400, 600 and 800 h. The measurement includes specifications of knives, product quality and hammer mill performance. The research recommended that the hammer mill knives must replacement after 220 operating hours to grind corn ear and 600 operating hours to grind dough which represents the safe limit time to keep product quantity and quality in accepted state.

No abstract

Fruit branch pruning is still done manually, resulting in high labor costs, ergonomic hazards, and low efficiency and productivity. Furthermore, there are some limitations with imported agricultural machines because of their high prices and inappropriate local conditions. Hence, the present study aims to manufacture a local device for fruit branch pruning based on validating the correct stem-cutting position using a branch guide. The manufactured device comprises a 60 W electric motor, a formed base, a teethed pruning disc, a telescopic tube made up of the picker-cutting mechanism of the device, and a 12–Volt rechargeable dry battery. The device was made from local and light materials to allow a telescopic tube to reach the high position of the citrus fruit branches and consider ergonomic aspects. Field trials were executed on sour oranges trees to assess the pruning device’s performance as a function of change in cutting disc speeds (9.81, 13.74, 17.66, and 21.59 m/s), cutting disc teeth numbers (60, 80, and 100 teeth), different groups of branches diameters {A (from 5 mm to less than 10 mm), B (10 mm to less than 20 mm), C (from 20 mm to less than 30 mm) and D (from 30 mm to less than 40 mm)}. The manufactured device was assessed in terms of device productivity, pruning efficiency, pruning damage, power requirements, specific energy, and operating cost. The results indicated that the highest device productivity and pruning efficiency were 780, 218, 100 and 65 branch/h; and 96.0, 94.0, 92.0 and 90.5%, while the lowest pruning branch damage were 4.0, 6.0, 8.0 and 9.5%, specific energy were 0.0447, 0.1645, 0.4050 and 0.700 Wh per branch, for the groups of branches diameters A, B, C, and D respectively. The current investigation recommended that the optimal operational conditions were using the manufactured device for pruning citrus trees at 17.66 m/s pruning disc speed with a pruning disc teeth number of 60 teeth.