A way to increase the efficiency of straw spreaders

Abstract

The use of high-quality bedding is important for the health of farm animals. Straw is an excellent material for bedding, but before use it must be crushed to particles no larger than 100 mm, which will achieve optimal moisture and gas absorption capacity, as well as simplify the mechanization of application and cleaning. Centrifugal spreaders, belt conveyors and blow spreaders are used to apply litter. The paper considers some types of litter spreaders used in farms in the north-West. It is revealed that, along with the obvious advantages, the considered machines have disadvantages. The main one is the uneven distribution of the litter when it is applied. This, in turn, leads to the need for manual labor when leveling the straw layer after its introduction in a mechanized way. A new design of the spreader-blower is proposed aimed at ensuring the uniformity of the litter layer during application. The calculation of optimization of some parameters of the new installation is described. In addition to the calculated value of the straw particle velocity, the angle of inclination of the front wall of the discharge duct is also determined.