Experimental Investigation of Magnetic Drum Separation Techniques for Dodder ( Cuscuta L.) Seed Removal from Alfalfa Seed Mixtures

Petruţa Petcu, Augustina Pruteanu (), Valeria Gabriela Ciobanu and Ana-Maria Nicolau ()
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Petruţa Petcu: Department of Engineering Graphics and Industrial Design, Faculty of Engineering Aerospace, National University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest, 006042 Bucharest, Romania
Augustina Pruteanu: Testing Department, National Institute of Research, Development for Machines and Installations Designed for Agriculture and Food Industry, INMA Bucharest, 013811 Bucharest, Romania
Valeria Gabriela Ciobanu: SEGULA Technologies Romania, Building: U Center, Avenue Serban Voda, no. 206-218, Building 1, Floor 4, 040215 Bucharest, Romania
Ana-Maria Nicolau: Department of Engineering Graphics and Industrial Design, Faculty of Engineering Aerospace, National University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest, 006042 Bucharest, Romania

Agriculture, 2024, vol. 14, issue 12, 1-17

Abstract: Thousands of species of parasitic weeds, such as dodder, pose significant threats to agricultural crops due to their ability to spread rapidly through seeds. When cultivated lands become infested with dodder, the quality of production declines, leading to substantial damage. The most effective way to limit the infestation of agricultural lands by parasitic weeds, particularly dodder, is to control the quality of seeds intended for sowing. To obtain seed material free of dodder seeds, special separation machines equipped with magnetic drums are used. These machines operate on the principle of magnetic fields acting on ferromagnetic particles, which helps differentiate the physical states of the seeds intended for separation. This paper presents experimental research on magnetic drum separation techniques for removing dodder seeds from alfalfa seed mixtures. The study examines variables such as magnetic drum speed, feed rate, amounts of iron powder, water, solution (water and glycerin), and the initial content of dodder seeds. The experimental results indicated that using a water–glycerin solution at optimal concentrations for moistening the seeds enhances the separation efficiency of dodder seeds from alfalfa seed mixtures, compared to using only water. Additionally, the numerical content of dodder seeds in the A and C sorts, which primarily contain the seeds of the main crop, decreases with each pass through the machine, resulting in higher quality seed material. The research found that using appropriate parameters—drum rotation speed (20 rpm), iron powder quantity (19 g/min), and seed feed rate (25.39 g/s)—achieved a “free” classification for dodder in alfalfa seeds. These findings are valuable for evaluating the performance of separation equipment with magnetic drums to obtain high-quality seed material. They are also beneficial for designers, machine-building units, and economic agents specializing in this field.

Keywords: infested seeds; magnetic separation; parasitic weeds; water and glycerin solution (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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