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Effect of Throttle Position and Gear Selection on Specific Energy Requirement and Power Utilization Efficiency of a Tractor Drawn Rotavator in Sandy Clay Loam Soil

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Abstract

It is essential to operate both tractor and rotavator at an optimum speed to minimize specific energy requirement and enhance fuel efficiency. This study was carried out to investigate the effect of throttle and gear selection on specific energy requirement and power utilization efficiency in two different soil conditions. Two different fields of similar soil texture were selected. In one field, crop residues were left after harvesting of wheat (FA) and other field was ploughed with mouldboard plough after harvesting (FB). Tractor drawn rotavator was used to carry out tillage in both the fields at three gear settings (viz., L1, L2 and L3) and five throttle settings (viz., 65%, 70%, 75%, 80% and 85% opening of full throttle). Specific energy requirement for carrying out tillage in field FA was significantly higher as compared to field FB. In both the fields, specific energy requirement was minimum when tillage operation was carried out at L2 gear. Minimum value of specific energy was obtained at 75% throttle opening in field FA as compared to 70% in field FB. The maximum power utilization efficiency of 68.11% and 61.59% was achieved during tillage operation in fields FA and FB, respectively.

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  1. Agricultural and Food Engineering Department, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, Kharagpur, 721302, India

    Anshu Kumari & Hifjur Raheman

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  1. Anshu Kumari
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All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by AK. The first draft of the manuscript was written by AK and HR commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Hifjur Raheman.

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Kumari, A., Raheman, H. Effect of Throttle Position and Gear Selection on Specific Energy Requirement and Power Utilization Efficiency of a Tractor Drawn Rotavator in Sandy Clay Loam Soil. J. Inst. Eng. India Ser. A 104, 819–829 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40030-023-00765-2

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