Study on tillage quality and energy requirement of ‘L' and ‘C' profile rotary tiller blades for clayey soil of sikkim under soil bin condition

Blade confguration, operating conditions, and soil parameters are the major factors infuencing the energy requirement and tillage quality of rotary tillers. In the present study, the operating parameters like blade profle, forward speed (Fs), rotary speed (Rs), and operating depth (Do) were optimized with respect to energy requirement (ER) and tillage quality in terms of soil mean mass diameter (SMMD). Twenty experiments for each blade with 3 replications as per experimental design obtained using response surface methodology were conducted under controlled conditions in a soil bin. It was observed that forward speed, rotary speed, and depth of operation signifcantly afected the tillage quality. The lowest SMMD (0.97 mm) was observed for ‘C' profle blade at 1.5 km.h⁻¹ Fs, 500 rpm Rs, and 80 mm Do. The minimum energy requirement (2, 200.43 kJ.ha⁻¹) was observed for ‘L' shape blade at 1.5 km.h⁻¹ Fs, 300 rpm Rs, and 80 mm Do. The efect of depth of operation was signifcant on energy requirement for both types of blades. The minimum energy requirement for both types of blades was at 1.5 km.h⁻¹ Fs, 300 rpm Rs, and 80 mm Do. The optimum values of operating parameters for C-type blade were 1.2 km.h⁻¹ Fs, 382 rpm Rs, and 66 mm Do correspond to SMMD of 0.97 mm and ER of 3813.7 kJ.ha⁻¹. In case of L-type blade, the optimum values were 1.2 km.h⁻¹ Fs, 320 rpm Rs, and 66 mm Do correspond to optimum SMMD of 1.03 mm and ER of 3414.2 kJ.ha⁻¹.