• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
• /
• v.22 no.1
• /
• pp.1-10
• /
• 1995

All agricultural crops and products should be cultured, harvested, handled and processed by the proper mechanical methods in the mechanized farming systems. Agricultural crops might be injured or deformed through various working stages due to static or dynamic forces of machines. Mechanical forces had to be applied with proper degrees to the agricultural crops in incoincidence with properties of crops without any damage of crops so as to increase the work efficiency qualitatively. Knowledges of mechanical properties of agricultural materials are essential to prevent of agricultural crops in relation with mechanical farming system. This study was carried out to examine and analyze the creep behavior of the rice stalk on growing and harvesting periods by mechanical model with computer measurement system in radial directional compressive force and bending force. The creep behavior of the rice stalk could be predicted precisely and its results approached closely to the measured values. The creep behaviors were increased greatly with increase of compressive force, namely, the steady state creep behavior occurred at the force less then 25N and the logarithmic creep behavior at the force bigger than 30N. The instantaneous elastic modulus $E_o$ and the retardation time ${\tau}_K$ were increased together with increase of applied forces, meanwhile the retarded elastic modulus $E_r$ and viscosity ${\eta}_v$ were decreased with increase of applied forces in mechanical model being expected the creep behavior in relation with the level of applied forces, which was well explained that the rice stalk might be visvo-elastic material. In the creep test along the stalk portion with compressive force and bending force, the intermediate portion showed greatest values and also the lower portion showed the least values, which implied that the intermediate portions of rice stalk were very weak. The steady state creep behavior occured at the intermediate portion and the upper portion in the rice stalk at the compressive force larger than 25.0N, which showed the possibility of injury due to external forces.