Bioresource and Agricultural Engineering Commons^™

Field Obstacle Identification For Autonomous Tractor Applications, Caleb Lindhorst

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

New technologies are being developed to meet the growing demand for agricultural products. Autonomous tractors are one of the many solutions to address this demand. Obstacle detection and avoidance is an important consideration for safe operation of any autonomous machine. Three field obstacles were chosen to be identified in this thesis work: tractors, round bales, and center pivots. Limited research work was found on the identification of center pivot detection.

Feasibility of using low cost LIDARs was considered for the detection of tractors, bales, and agricultural center pivots. Performance of LIDARs in different lighting conditions, different colors of obstacles, accuracy …

Wheat Strip Effects On Microbial Transport Following Variable Applications Of Beef Cattle Manure, Lisa M. Durso, John E. Gilley, David B. Marx, Chance A. Thayer, Bryan L. Woodbury

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Vegetative filter strips (VFS) consisting of perennial vegetation have been successfully used to reduce the transport of contaminants in runoff from land application areas. The effectiveness of a winter wheat strip, which may be more acceptable to producers, in reducing microbial transport was examined in this study. A 1.4 m wheat strip was used to allow direct comparison with experimental results obtained in previous studies. Beef cattle manure was applied to 0.75 m wide by 4.0 m long plots established on an Aksarben silty clay loam located in southeast Nebraska. Manure was added at rates required to meet the 0- …

Design Of A Portable Biogas Purification And Storage System, Anikumar Kosna, Bade Shrestha

Faculty Research and Creative Activities Award (FRACAA)

The objective of this study is to propose and design a commercial portable purification and storage system to commercialize biogas (which mainly consists of 45 - 75 % of methane and 15 - 16% of carbon dioxide), produced from household/non-commercial biogas plants. The selection of purification process is based on the portability of the purification system.

Improving The Distribution And Use Of Biogas By Conversion To Methanol, Zachary Christman

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

In this technology review, the process of turning an average biogas into methanol will be presented. The purpose is to find a better method of transporting the energy contained within biogas so that it may be used in industry as a value added product. The first step is removal of hydrogen sulfide, a corrosive chemical that can breakdown mechanical parts. The second step is carbon capture and conversion of the biogas into hydrogen. The final step is the hydrogenation of carbon dioxide into methanol using a copper catalyst and an alcohol co-catalyst.

Variable Frequency Drive (Vfd) Specifications For Irrigation District Pumps, Charles M. Burt, Kyle Feist, Gary Wilson

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

This information was compiled by ITRC and includes specifications for standards, warranties, submittals, VFD size, and other technical details to aid districts in the selection and implementation of VFD system.

Variable Frequency Drive (Vfd) Specifications For On-Farm Pumps, Charles M. Burt, Kyle Feist, Gary Wilson

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

This document applies to Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) system installations meeting all of the following criteria:

The project owner or authorized representative is applying to participate in the "PG&E Agricultural Pumping VFD Incentive Program," which involves a rebate for a complete VFD system, rather than components.

This project involves a VFD system designed to control the speed of a 60 Hz alternating current motor that is rated for:

• 480VAC or less
• 600 HP or less
• The VFD-controlled motor will be used specifically for pumping agricultural irrigation water into a pressurized irrigation system.

Evaluation Of Selected Watershed Characteristics To Identify Best Management Practices To Reduce Nebraskan Nitrate Loads From Nebraska To The Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin, Aaron R. Mittelstet, Troy E. Gilmore, Tiffany Messer, Daran Rudnick, Thomas Heatherly

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Nebraskan streams contribute excess nitrogen to the Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin and Gulf of Mexico, which results in major water-quality impairments. Reducing the amount of nitrogen (N) exported in these streams requires the use of best management practices (BMPs) within the landscape. However, proper BMP utilization has rarely been statistically connected to potential controls of N export within watersheds, particularly precipitation and soil characteristics. In this study, 19 watershed variables were evaluated in five categories (hydrological, physiographic, point sources, land use, and soil properties) to determine the characteristics that influenced variable nitrate nitrogen (NO₃-N) concentrations in 17 Nebraska watersheds …

A Theoretical Model Of Underground Dipole Antennas For Communications In Internet Of Underground Things, Abdul Salam, Mehmet C. Vuran, Xin Dong, Christos Argyropoulos, Suat Irmak

Faculty Publications

The realization of Internet of Underground Things (IOUT) relies on the establishment of reliable communication links, where the antenna becomes a major design component due to the significant impacts of soil. In this paper, a theoretical model is developed to capture the impacts of change of soil moisture on the return loss, resonant frequency, and bandwidth of a buried dipole antenna. Experiments are conducted in silty clay loam, sandy, and silt loam soil, to characterize the effects of soil, in an indoor testbed and field testbeds. It is shown that at subsurface burial depths (0.1-0.4m), change in soil moisture impacts …

Barn Considerations For Cash Hay Operations, Morgan D. Hayes

Kentucky Alfalfa and Stored Forage Conference

A well designed and built a barn can be invaluable for cash hay operation. Barn provide opportunity to reduce losses in dry matter and help maintain quality throughout the winter. There are numerous styles of barns that hay producers can purchase or build themselves. Wood frame structures, often with metal roofs and metal sides, are fairly common. You can also build barns with a steel structure with or without metal siding on the walls. Hoop barns are another common hay storage structure - particularly common with round bale storage. All, however, provide valuable storage for hay. There are four areas …

Quantifying And Correcting For Clay Content Effects On Soil Water Measurement By Reflectometers, Jasreman Singh, Tsz Him Lo, Daran Rudnick, Suat Irmak, Humberto Blanco-Canqui

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

The presence of clay particles increases the specific surface area of a soil and can affect the calibration of electromagnetic soil water sensors including reflectometers. To quantify and correct for this effect in two relatively new reflectometers, three TDR315 and three CS655 sensors were installed in each of five soils with clay content ranging from 5 to 49%. As the soils were dried in a temperature controlled room, sensor reported soil volumetric water content (θ_v) according to the factory calibration was compared against reference θ_v determined by weighing the soils. Sensor reported θ_v was similar to …

Aesthetics, Ethics, And Lose-Lose Dilemmas In The Anthropocen, Adam Liska

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Anthropogenic climate change will cause violence to increase globally, and nonlinear increases in sea level could cause a major escalation in global conflict. After 2100, a 22-meter sea-level rise is estimated here to dislocate two billion people from coastal areas. These impending civilization-changing events require us to again reevaluate our prevalent aesthetic preferences for luxury that produce a significant fraction of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. Due to industrial inertia, a central dilemma discussed here is the contradictions between the goals and impacts of aesthetics and ethics. Either we lose our own well-being (a loss of high-emission aesthetics) for the benefit …

Optimization Of Processing Parameters Of Nanocomposite Film For Fresh Sliced Okra Packaging, Adeshina Fadeyibi Phd, Zinash Delebo Osunde Phd, Professor, Mohammed Gana Yisa Professor

Journal of Applied Packaging Research

Nanocomposite film can be regarded as an active packaging material which is capable of curtailing microbial growth and keeping food for an extended life. In this research, the optimum processing parameters of cassava starch-zinc nanocomposite film was determined for packaging fresh-sliced okra. Samples of the films, with thickness ranging between 15– 17µm, were developed from the blends of 24g of cassava starch, 0–2 % zinc nanoparticles (NP) and 45–55 % glycerol in 600 ml distilled water. The ideal film was determined by optimizing the film processing parameters using Box-Behnken Design in Surface Response Methodology. It was subsequently used to package …

Potential Economic Impacts Of Allocating More Land For Bioenergy Biomass Production In Virginia, Thomas O. Ochuodho, Janaki R. R. Alavalapati, Pankaj Lal, Domena A. Agyeman, Bernabas Wolde, Pralhad Burli

Forestry and Natural Resources Faculty Publications

The growing attention to renewable energy and rural development has created greater demand for production of biomass feedstock for bioenergy. However, forest growth rates and the amount of land in most existing forests may not be sufficient to sustainably supply the forest biomass required to support existing forest products industries and the expanding bioenergy industry. Additionally, concerns about agricultural land use competition have dampened expansion of biomass production on agricultural land base. One of the ways to meet the growing forest biomass feedstock demand for bioenergy production is by allocating currently marginal non-forested land for growing bioenergy feedstocks. In Virginia, …

Applying A Revised Approach Of Fuzzy Cognitive Maps On A Hybrid Electrical Energy System, Ekavi Antoniou, Eleni S. Vergini, Peter P. Groumpos

International Journal of Business and Technology

Complex systems modeling is a rapidly developing research field which incorporates various scientific sectors from bio medicine and energy to economic and social sciences. However, as the systems’ complexity increases pure mathematical modeling techniques prove to be a rather laborious task which demands wasting many resources and in many occasions, could not lead to the desired system response. This realization led researchers turn their attention into the field of computational intelligence; Neural Networks and Fuzzy Logic etc. In this way scientists were able to provide a model of a system which is strongly characterized by fuzziness and uncertainties. Fuzzy Cognitive …

Soil And Plant Moisture Monitoring Systems: Irrigation Consumer Bill Of Rights, Charles M. Burt

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Cal Poly ITRC, together with various irrigation industry leaders and the Irrigation Dealers Association of California, plus with assistance from the California Energy Commission and Pacific Gas & Electric Co., developed the Irrigation Consumer Bill of Rights (ICBR) in 1994.

General: Irrigation Bill Of Consumer Rights, Charles M. Burt

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Cal Poly ITRC, together with various irrigation industry leaders and the Irrigation Dealers Association of California, plus with assistance from the California Energy Commission and Pacific Gas & Electric Co., developed the Irrigation Consumer Bill of Rights (ICBR) in 1994.

Drip/Micro Irrigation: Irrigation Consumer Bill Of Rights, Charles M. Burt

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Cal Poly ITRC, together with various irrigation industry leaders and the Irrigation Dealers Association of California, plus with assistance from the California Energy Commission and Pacific Gas & Electric Co., developed the Irrigation Consumer Bill of Rights (ICBR) in 1994.

Oiler For Vertical Pump Lineshaft Lubrication, Charles M. Burt

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

This document provides technical advice for controlling the dripping of oil for oil-lubricated vertical lineshaft pumps for irrigation.

Deficit Irrigation Management Of Maize In The High Plains Aquifer Region: A Review, Daran Rudnick, Sibel Irmak, C. West, J.L. Chavez, I. Kisekka, T.H. Marek, J.P. Schneekloth, D. Mitchell Mccallister, V. Sharma, K. Djaman, J. Aguilar, M.E. Schipanski, D.H. Rogers, A. Schlegel

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Irrigated agriculture is a major economic contributor of the High Plains Region and it primarily relies on the High Plains Aquifer as a source of water. Over time, areas of the High Plains Aquifer have experienced drawdowns limiting its ability to supply sufficient water to sustain fully irrigated crop production. This among other reasons, including variable climatic factors and differences in state water policy, has resulted in some areas adopting and practicing deficit irrigation management. Considerable research has been conducted across the High Plains Aquifer region to identify locally appropriate deficit irrigation strategies. This review summarizes and discusses research conducted …

Effect Of Limited Water Supplies On Center Pivot Performance, Derrel Martin, Derek M. Heeren, Steve Melvin, Troy Ingram

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Presentations and White Papers

When appropriately designed and operated, center pivot irrigation systems can efficiently irrigate many crops grown on diverse soil and terrain conditions. However, a significant number of pivots are not supplied with an adequate water to operate as envisioned.

We simulated the hydraulics of a center pivot irrigation system, including the pump curve, flow rate, pipeline hydraulics, pressure regulators, nozzle flow rate, and irrigation application uniformity. This was used to analyse the performance of a center pivot for a sloping field for both adequate and inadequate water flow rate. The performance was simulated for a range of inlet pressures when pressure …

Biomaterial Substrate Modifications That Influence Cell-Material Interactions To Prime Cellular Responses To Nonviral Gene Delivery, Amy Mantz, Angela K. Pannier

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Gene delivery is the transfer of exogenous genetic material into somatic cells to modify their gene expression, with applications including tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, sensors and diagnostics, and gene therapy. Viral vectors are considered the most effective system to deliver nucleic acids, yet safety concerns and many other disadvantages have resulted in investigations into an alternative option, i.e. nonviral gene delivery. Chemical nonviral gene delivery is typically accomplished by electrostatically complexing cationic lipids or polymers with negatively charged nucleic acids. Unfortunately, nonviral gene delivery suffers from low efficiency due to barriers that impede transfection success, including intracellular processes such as …

Meaningful Learner Information For Mooc Instructors Examined Through A Contextualized Evaluation Framework, Kerrie Douglas, Mitch Zielinski, Hillary Merzdorf, Heidi Diefes-Dux, Peter Bermel

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Improving STEM MOOC evaluation requires an understanding of the current state of STEM MOOC evaluation, as perceived by all stakeholders. To this end, we investigated what kinds of information STEM MOOC instructors currently use to evaluate their courses and what kinds of information they feel would be valuable for that purpose. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 14 faculty members from a variety of fields and research institutions who had taught STEM MOOCs on edX, Coursera, or Udacity. Four major themes emerged related to instructors’ desires: (1) to informally assess learners as an instructor might in a traditional classroom, (2) to …

Choosing The Proper Material To Optimize The Front Axle Of The Tractor Mf285 Using Finite Element, Razieh Pourdarbani, Javad Tarighi

Emirates Journal for Engineering Research

The tractor axle must have sufficient mechanical strength due to its dynamic and static forces during operation. Before fabrication, mechanical strength can be checked by selecting different materials through engineering software to select the most suitable material. In this paper, three types of material, namely St37, Cm45 and St52 were proposed in order to optimize the front axle of tractor MF285. The mechanical strength of each material was investigated by engineering software. Solid Work software was used for the analysis of 3D modeling of the axle and ANSYS software was used for finite element analysis. In the maximum static loading …

Scada Preventative Maintenance: Reducing The Potential Of Unexpected Failures, Kyle Feist, Zachary Markow, Charles M. Burt

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Irrigation district infrastructure utilizing Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems can perform a critical service to irrigators, but also present the risk of damage to nearby property and humans in certain failure scenarios. It is therefore prudent to minimize the scope, frequency, and duration of SCADA component failure. However, it is typical for irrigation districts to focus on corrective (post-failure) SCADA maintenance activities, instead of investing in preventive maintenance.

Preventive SCADA maintenance requires budget and labor investment. However, it is anticipated that it is possible to balance the effectiveness and expenses of a preventative maintenance program with some strategic …

A Review On High Catalytic Efficiency Of Solid Acid Catalysts For Lignin Valorization, Weixiang Guan, Chi-Wing Tsang, Carol Sze Ki Lin, Christophe Len, Haoquan Hu, Changhai Liang

Faculty of Science & Technology (THEi)

It is imminent to develop renewable resources to replace fossil-derived energies as fossil resources are on the brink of exhaustion. Lignin is one of the major components of lignocellulosic biomass, which is a natural amorphous three-dimensional polymer with abundant C-O bonds and aromatic structure. Hence, valorization of lignin into high value-added liquid fuels and chemicals is regarded as a promising strategy to mitigate fossil resource shortages. Solid acid catalysts are extensively studied due to environmentally friendly in terms of the ease of separation, recovery and reduced amount of wastes. Hence, this review focuses on summarizing the recent progress of catalytic …

Separation Of Unburned Carbon From Coal Conversion Ash: Development And Assessment Of A Dry Method, Charlotte J. Badenhorst, Nicola J. Wagner, Bruno R.V. Valentim, Karel S. Viljoen, Ana C. Santos, Alexandra Guedes

Coal Combustion and Gasification Products Journal Archive

Unburned carbon found in coal conversion ash has the potential to be used in a variety of value-added applications. However, it is first necessary to separate the unburned carbon from the rest of the ash phases. This poses challenges due to the relatively low starting carbon-in-ash values (0.4 to 7.8 wt% reported for South African sources), and the high carbon grades (ideally ∼90 wt% carbon) and recoveries that need to be achieved. In this study a dry method for the separation of unburned carbon from coal ash was developed and assessed using fly, bottom, and gasification ash samples obtained from …

Conditioning Of Velocity Profiles In Pipelines, Charles M. Burt, Pascal Hellmann, Zachary Markow

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

This paper reports on the testing of a relatively simple flow conditioner for pipelines. This research found that a pipeline velocity flow conditioner that is constructed with an internal cone, having an inside diameter of 80 percent of the pipeline ID, provided the best results. It provided good velocity conditioning at a distance of two diameters downstream of an obstruction. The minor loss is equal to the velocity head of the flow in the original pipeline diameter.

Recent Advancement In Lignin Biorefinery: With Special Focus On Enzymatic Degradation And Valorization, Chong Li, Chao Chen, Xiaofen Wu, Chi-Wing Tsang, Jinhua Mou, Yun Liu, Carol Sze Ki Lin

Faculty of Science & Technology (THEi)

With the intensive development of lignocellulosic biorefineries to produce fuels and chemicals from biomass-derived carbohydrates, lignin was generated at a large quantity every year. Therefore, lignin has received increasing attention as an abundant aromatics resource in terms of research and development efforts for value-added chemicals production. In this review, studies about lignin degradation especially the crucial enzymes involved and the reaction mechanism were substantially discussed, which provided the molecular basis of lignin biodegradation. Then, the latest improvements in lignin valorization by biological methods were summarized and case studies about value-added compounds from lignin were introduced. Afterwards, challenges, opportunities and prospects …

Grain Yield, Crop And Basal Evapotranspiration, Production Functions And Water Productivity Response Of Drought-Tolerant And Non-Drought-Tolerant Maize Hybrids Under Different Irrigation Levels, Population Densities And Environments: Part Ii. In South-Central And Northeast Nebraska's Transition Zone And Sub-Humid Environments, Suat Irmak, Ali T. Mohammed, William Kranz

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Information and data on newer drought-tolerant maize hybrid response to water in different climates are extremely scarce. This research quantified the performance of non-drought-tolerant (NDT) (H1) and drought-tolerant (DT) (H2, H3, and H4) maize (Zea mays L.) hybrids response to grain yield, crop evapotranspiration (ETc), basal evapotranspiration (ETb), ETc-yield production functions (ETYPF), and crop water use efficiency (CWUE) at three irrigation levels and two plant population densities (PPDs) at two locations (transition zone between sub-humid and semiarid climates at Clay Center (SCAL), Nebraska, in 2010 and 2012; and in a sub-humid climate at Concord (HAL), Nebraska, in 2010, 2011, and …

Use Of Ponded And Fresh Ashes From China For The Production Of Portland/Calcium Sulfoaluminate Clinkers, Tristana Y. Duvallet, Robert B. Jewell, Anne E. Oberlink, Thomas L. Robl, David Harris

Coal Combustion and Gasification Products Journal Archive

This article summarizes the use of two fly ashes in the synthesis of Portland/calcium sulfoaluminate (OPC/CSA or A/CSA) clinkers. They are from the Shentou second power plant located in the Shanxi Province and from the Zhungeer power plant located in Inner Mongolia, China. The Zhungeer ash was collected dry, and the Shentou ash is from a pond. Their chemical compositions differ highly, especially the SiO2 and Al2O3 contents. The high contents of silica and alumina make both ashes candidates as a partial or total substitute for bauxite, an expensive source of alumina, in the production of OPC/CSA clinkers. These particular …