Author
 |
Martin, Charles |
|
Steele, James - Jim |
|
Submitted to: Transactions of the ASAE
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal Publication Acceptance Date: 4/1/1996 Publication Date: N/A Citation: N/A Interpretive Summary: The Federal Grain Inspection Service (FGIS) selected the experimental Single Kernel Wheat Characterization System developed at the Grain Marketing and Production Research Center as the method to be developed to test wheat hardness, a measure of end use quality. Improvements were necessary before the experimental crushing method would meet FGIS requirements for objective hardness assessment, classification and mixture estimates in field office operations. Implementation of an objective wheat classification method by FGIS would serve as a standard for the wheat industry from plant breeder to consumer. Technical Abstract: Alternative designs of an experiential hardness tester were studied to evaluate its ability to classify single wheat kernels as hard or soft. Test variables included the effect of adding guide channels to control kernel orientation, five rotor speeds and five rotor tooth designs. The addition of guide channels to the crescent had the greatest benefit, increasing the CI from 1.2 to 1.6. Hence, the decision to keep the channels in place while testing rotor speed and tooth design. Data showed that the system was not sensitive to rotor speeds in the range between 15 and 480 rpm with the classification index (CI) remaining about 1.6 for all but the highest speed. Since the system was designed to operate at 120 rpm, the decision was made to use only 120 rpm in the tooth design test. This study showed that decreasing the amount of material removed to fabricate a given tooth pattern increased the CI. A sawtooth and shallow pattern had similar CI, close to 1.6. The sawtooth pattern was selected for two reasons; first, the hardness sensitivity was more uniform; second, the sawtooth pattern was a simpler machining operation. |
