Theory and practice of feed silage in containers made of airtight film

Abstract

The article provides a brief analysis of research results in the field of preparation and storage of silage feed. A brief description of the innovative energy – resource saving technology for the preparation and storage of silage in vacuum-processed containers made from an airtight film is given. The theory of compaction of feed in a container due to its self-weight of the silage and vacuum pressure is presented. It is shown that only vacuum gauge pressure acts on the top of a container, and the difference between the gauge pressure and the lateral and axial pressure, respectively act on the side and bottom of it. The practice of using vacuum-processed containers during silage has shown that a compacted layer is formed over the entire surface of the obtained monolith, which prevents the exit of juice and air from silage. With the porosity of the mass approaching zero, the density of grinded mass of plants approaches the density of their stems and further compaction of silage is senseless. Sufficient vacuum for silage is 60–70 kPa. The density of the compressed silage monoliths in this case is 700–800 kg/m3.