Author
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Cook, Clinton |
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Submitted to: National Cotton Council Beltwide Cotton Conference
Publication Type: Proceedings Publication Acceptance Date: 1/9/2001 Publication Date: 6/1/2001 Citation: Cook, C.O. 2001. Concept evaluation of an ultrasonic mass flow sensor. National Cotton Council Beltwide Cotton Conference. Vol. 2: 1406-1410. Interpretive Summary: The U.S. cotton industry is faced with increasing production costs, a volatile market and increasing global competition. As a result, cotton farmers and ginners must use new technology and techniques to increase productivity without lowering fiber quality. Currently, computer technology is beginning to be used to monitor and influence the characteristics of cotton. New sensor technology is also beginning to be employed. However, a sensor to measure the amount of wasted cotton is still needed. Toward this end, two ultrasound transducers were tested to determine if ultrasound could be used to measure the amount of cotton waste. Results indicated a strong relationship between ultrasound and the amount of cotton waste. However, this relationship was also dependent upon the constituents of the cotton waste and the air temperature. Future work will refine the sensor, which may then be used to minimize wasted cotton and increase cotton value. Technical Abstract: Two experiments were conducted in an effort to determine the relationship between ultrasound attenuation and lint cleaner waste density. The first experiment indicated that there was a strong correlation between ultrasound attenuation and cotton fiber density. The experiment also demonstrated a temperature dependence of ultrasound attenuation and no significant humidity influence. The second experiment developed the relationship between lint cleaner waste components and ultrasound attenuation. This investigation revealed that waste composed of mote trash attenuated ultrasound approximately two times greater than waste consisting of stick or leaf trash. |
