Innovative technology of harvesting and preparation of tobacco leaves to drying

Abstract

Post-harvest preparation of tobacco leaves for drying is a time-consuming process, which includes the delivery of leaves by bundles from the field, sheet layouts for preliminary withering, collecting leaves in packs and feeding them for fastening to cassettes, cords. The problem is to reduce the complexity of the process. The aim of the research is to develop a new technology for harvesting and post-harvest preparation of tobacco for drying, to determine the effectiveness of its use. The technology is based on the method of harvesting tobacco leaves in tiers with oriented packing in the breathable roll collector, transportation and temporary storage of leaves in the drive for the purpose of their withering directly in the collector. The effect of withering time of leaves in the collector on the quality of the dried raw materials was studied. Methods of visual analysis of commercial quality, instrumental studies of the chemical composition of raw materials and its technological properties were used. The technology was studied on the leaves of petiolar and sessile-leaved varieties of tobacco. Technology of preparing leaves for drying on the basis of a roll collector reduces the labor-intensity of post-harvest processing, increases productivity by 3-10 times, depending on the method of drying, has the prospect of using it on various tobacco variety.

Keywords

• tobacco leaves
• harvesting tier
• roll collector
• withering
• quality of raw materials