Modification and Performance Evaluation of Soil Loosening System of a Cassava Harvester

Abstract

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) provides food and income to approximately 500 million farmers, but the most significant barrier to commercial production is the harvesting of cassava, hence this research aimed to investigate the impact of disc properties on the performance of a cassava harvester's soil loosening system. The materials used for the modification entail a double chain system, P30 bearing, two shafts of 40mm diameter and 2ft in length. The cassava harvester was attached to a tractor using the 3-point linkage system and 4 turns were carried out on the field (sandy-clay soil) both on cassava planted on a ridge and flat manual clearing using TMS 419 and TMC 419 cassava varieties at an angle of 30°, 45°, 60°, and 90° at depth of 10 cm, 20 cm, and 30 cm. The best results were seen in field testing utilizing the cassava harvester/soil loosening device on manual ridging, which have greater tuber yields and root tuber orientation with little or no damage to cassava tubers than flat manual clearing. Due to its bunchy form, TMS 419 was found to adapt itself more easily to mechanized harvesting than TMC 419 cassava variety. The cassava harvester performed best in fields with little trash or weeds and relatively dry soils with a moisture content of 13.57 % and a penetration depth of 20 cm. With a tractor speed of 4.2 km/h, soil bulk density of 1.36 g/cm, and a field capacity of 1.9 to 2.5 h/ha, the best harvesting performance was achieved. The field is left plowed after mechanized harvesting, conserving fuel, time, and money. However, to select acceptable regions for mechanical harvesting and to promote widespread adoption, it is advised that the harvester be tested on the field in all agroecological zones and under a variety of soil moisture regimes.

Keywords

• Design
• disc
• fabricated
• impact
• investigate
• properties
• properties

References

1. [1] FAO (Food Agriculture Organization), Towards 2030/2050 – Interim Report – Prospects for Food, Nutrition, Agriculture and Majors Commodity Groups. Online. http://www.un.org/ waterforlifedecade/food_security.shtml (Accessed on July 2013), 2006.
2. [2] B. Keating, P. Carberry, and J. Dixon, “Sustainable intensification and the food security challenge”. In (Conference Abstracts) Challenges and Opportunities to the Agricultural Intensification of the Humid Highland Systems of Sub-Saharan Africa, p. 7. CIALCA International Conference, October 24–28, 2011, Kigali, 2011.
3. [3] P. Sarr, S. Saraki, and E. Njukwe, “Interactions Between Cassava Varieties and Soil Characteristics in Crop Production in Eastern”. African study monographs, 34(4): 187–202, 2013.
4. [4] B. O. Patiño, M. García, and C. Alcalde, “Mechanized Systems for Planting and Harvesting Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz)”. Cassava in the Third Millennium, 374–394, 2002.
5. [5] FAO, “Production Yearbook. FAOSTAT DataBase”. http://app.fao.org/cgi-bin/nph-db.pl. (Accessed on October 2013), 1999.
6. [6] M. T. Dahniya, M. N. Akoroda, P. M. Alvarez, J. Kaindaneh, J. E. Ambe-Tumanteh, E. Okeke, and A. Jalloh, “Development and dissemination of appropriate root crop packages to farmers in Africa. In (F. Ofori, F., & Hahn, S. K. eds.)” Proceedings of the Ninth Symposium of the International Society of Tropical Root and Crops, pp. 2–9. 20–26 October 1991. IS- TRC, Wageningen, 1991.
7. [7] R. H. Howeler and L. F. Cadavid, “Short-and long-term fertility trials in Colombia to determine the nutrient requirements of cassava”. Fertility Research, 26: 61–80, 1990.
8. [8] A. A. C. Alves, “Cassava botany and physiology”. In (Hillocks, R. J. Thresh, J. M., and Bel- Lotti, A. eds.) Cassava: Botany, Production and Utilization, pp. 67–89. CABI Publishing, Aberystwyth.

9. [9] P. Silvestre, “Cassava”. Macmillan Publishers, London, 2002.
10. [10] S. K. Amponsah, E.Y. H. Bobobee, W. A. Agyare, J. B. Okyere, J. Aveyire, S. R. King, and J. Sarkodie-Addo, “Mechanical Cassava harvesting is influenced by seedbed preparation and cassava variety”. Applied Engineering in Agriculture. 30(3):391-403.Doi 10.13031/aea.30.10495, 2014.
11. [11] S. K. Amponsah, A. Addo, and B. Gangadharan, “Review of Various Harvesting Options for Cassava”. https://doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.71350, 2018.
12. [12] S. K. Amponsah, “Performance evaluation of the Tek mechanical cassava harvester in three selected locations in Ghana”. M.Sc thesis, Agricultural Engineering Dept., Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi. 2011. Available at: http://dspace.knust.edu.gh:8080/jspui/bitstream/123456789/3960/1/Final.pdf. (Accessed: October 14, 2014), 2011.
13. [13] K. M. DeAngelis, “Measurement of Soil Moisture Content by Gravimetric Method”. Available online: http://www.cnr.berkeley.edu/soilmicro/methods /Soil moisturcontent.pdf. Date accessed: 28th October 2013, 2007.
14. [14] P. Crossley, and J. Kilgour, “Small farm Mechanization for Developing Countries”. John Wiley and Sons, 1983.
15. [15] P. J. C. Payne, “The relationship between the mechanical properties of soils and the performance of simple cultivation implements”. Journal of Agricultural Engineering Research, 1: 23–50, 1956.
16. [16] R. J. Godwin, and G. Spoor, “Soil failure with narrow tines”. Journal of Agricultural Engineering Research, 22: 213–218, 1977.
17. [17] PSG College of Technology, “Design data”. Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Coimbatore, India, 1982.
18. [18] AISC (American Institute of Steel Construction), “Manual of Steel Construction”. Pp 1-59, 1-111, 1973.
19. [19] T. Baumeister, E. A. Avallone, and I. T. Baumiester, “Mark's Standard Handbook for Mechanical Engineers”. Mc Graw - Hill Book Company. Pp 5-31, 1978.
20. [20] American Society of Agricultural Engineering, “Three-point free link attachment for hitching implements to agricultural wheel tractors”. ASAE Standards. S217.10. Pp 73-74, 1989.
21. [21] S. A. Ennin, E. Otoo, and F. M. Tetteh, “Ridging, a Mechanized Alternative to Mounding for Yam and Cassava Production”. West African Journal of Applied Ecology, 15: 1-8, 2009.
22. [22] E. U. Odigboh, and C. A. Moreira, “Development of a Complete Cassava Harvester Conceptualization”. Journal of Agricultural Mechanization in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, 4 (33): 1-7, 2002.
23. [23] J. Sam, and H. Dapaah, “The baseline survey report”, West African Agricultural Productivity Programme (WAAPP). Ghana, Retrieved from http://waapp.coraf.org/documents/WAAPP/Rapports/Final%20WAAPP%20Baseline%20Survey%20Report%20Ghana.pdf, 2009.
24. [24] E. Y. H. Bobobee, J. B. Okyere, and E. Asare, “Mechanical Cassava Harvesting Technique”: Final Report. National Agricultural Research Project (NARP), Council for Industrial and Scientific Research (CSIR), 2000.
25. [25] P. O. Kolawole, L. A. S. Agbetoye, and S. A. Ogunlowo, “Sustaining World Food Security with improved Cassava processing Technology”: The Nigerian experience, http://www.mdpi.com/2071/1050/2/12/3681/pdf, Accessed: 10 May 2014, 2010.
26. [26] B. R. Jahn, and D. S. Hamburg, “A Tractor-Mounted Device for Measurement of In-situ Soil Strength Properties”. An ASAE/CSAE Meeting Presentation, Paper No: MBSK 02-308, Niles Road, St. Joseph, MI 49085-9659 USA, 2002.
27. [27] M. Hanna, “Estimating Field Capacity of Field Machines”. Cooperative Extension Service, Iowa State University of Science and Technology, PM 696, pp 14, 2001.
28. [28] D. K. Cassel, H. D. Bowen, and L. A. Nelson, “An Evaluation of Mechanical Impedance for Three Tillage Treatments on Norfolk Sandy Loam”. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 42(1),116– doi:10.2136/sssaj1978.0361599500420001002, 1978.
29. [29] W. U. Ehlers, F. KÖpke,, Hesse., and W. BÖhm, “Penetration resistance and root growth of oats in tilled and untilled loess soil”. Soil Tillage Research 3, 261–275, 1983.
30. [30] R. I. Hill, “Long-term conventional and no-tillage effects on selected soil physical properties”. Soil Sci. Sot. Am. J., 54: 161-166, 1990.
31. [31] S. K. Upadhyaya, K. Sakai, and J. K. Glancey, “Instrumentation for In-field Measurement of Soil Crust Strength”. Transactions of the ASAE, 38(1), 39–44. doi:10.13031/2013.27809, 1995.
32. [32] O. D. Isinkaye, O. O. Koyenikan, and T. Osadare, “Development of a Cassava harvester,” International Journal of Mechanical and Civil Engineering, vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 12–21, Nov. 2021, doi: 10.52589/ijmce-twfgvkx1.
33. [33] B. Ospino, L. F. Cadavid, M. Garcia, and C. Alcalde, "Mechanisation of Cassava Production in Columbia," Latin American and Caribbean Consortium to Support Cassava Research and Development (CLAYUCA), CIAT, Apartado Aereo 67-13, Cali, Colombia, 2007.
34. [34] D. Thangdee and S. Wongpichet, “Development of cassava digger and conveyor units,” American Journal of Experimental Agriculture, vol. 2, no. 3, pp. 458–469, Jan. 2012, doi: 10.9734/ajea/2012/1395.
35. [35] L.A.S Agbetoye, J Kilgour, and J Dyson. “Performance evaluation of three pre-lift soil loosening devices for cassava root harvesting,” Soil and Tillage Research, vol. 48, no. 4, pp. 297-302, 1998.