Effects of tilling methods on soil penetration resistance, organic carbon and water stable aggregates in a vineyard of semiarid Mediterranean environment

Tillage, especially in semiarid Mediterranean environment, enhances the mineralization process of soil organic matter (SOM) and, in turn, decreases aggregate stability. Furthermore, continuous tillage leads to the formation of plough pan beneath the tilled layer. In the present study, we investigated the effect of an innovative self-propelled machine (spading machine, SM) for shallow tillage on SOM, water stable aggregates (WSA) and soil penetration resistance (PR). Such effects were compared to those of chisel plough (CP), rotary tiller (RT) and no tillage (NT). Each tilling method was applied up to a depth of 15 cm, whereas in NT only a brush cutter was used for weed control. Soil analyse…

Investigation of a tunnel pasteurizer for “Nocellara del Belice” table olives processed according to the “Castelvetrano method”

The influence of pasteurization temperature and time of treatment on the flesh firmness and the evolution of microbial communities was studied for table olives Cv. Nocellara del Belice, packed in glass jars and processed with a tunnel pasteurizer. The experiment was first carried out on the laboratory level in order to select the optimal combination of pasteurization time/temperature so as to obtain the proper balance between the consistency of the pulp and the microbiological quality of the final product. Pasteurization at industrial scale was then carried out in a tunnel pasteurizer applying the treatment at 75 °C for 8 min in the thermal center of the jars. Besides flesh firmness and mic…

Hydroseeding application on degraded slopes in the southern Mediterranean area (Sicily)

Abstract. Hydroseeding is a technique increasingly used to establish vegetation on degraded areas in order to provide environmental protection. The objective of this article was to evaluate the effectiveness of four different hydroseeding methods (bonded fiber matrix hydroseeding, thick hydroseeding, reinforced hydroseeding plus water retention, and reinforced hydroseeding) on a degraded artificial slope in the southern Mediterranean area determining total vegetation cover, hydroseeding vegetation cover, hydroseeding success index (HSI), natural and hydroseeded vegetation height. The test area does not allow the use of any operating machinery for soil and vegetation management, and the only…

Effect of different soil management in sloping vineyards on soil penetration resistance.

In environments characterized by steep slopes or arranged in terraces, among the shallow tillage systems, rototilling is extensively used. However, the effect of the repeated use of rototilling has a considerable influence on soil characteristics; it appears finely powdered, soft and without structure. In order to limit these inconveniences, an innovative self-propelled machine equipped with working tools as a spade, to be used in steep slopes or arranged in terraces areas, was designed by the Mechanics Section of the SAF (Scienze Agrarie e Forestali) Department of the University of Palermo in cooperation with Agrotec company, Padua, Italy. The aim of this study is to compare the effects of…

STUDY ON THE TUNNEL PASTEURIZER ON TABLE OLIVES PROCESSING

The application of heat treatment is particularly important in maintaining the organoleptic characteristics of fermented agro-food products, which potential consumers perceive as reflecting the quality of these foodstuffs. However, heat treatments can be cause of deterioration of many quality parameters of agro-food products, including texture, intended as the consistency of the pulp. In this study 'Nocellara del Belice' table olives produced in 2010 and packaged in glass jars were subjected to pasteurization at industrial scale using a tunnel pasteurizer with a core temperature of 75°C for 8 min. The aim of the study was to mechanically evaluate the pulp texture evolution that contributes …

Analysis of the main critical points in protected crops on risk prevention in Sicily

Safety in the use of portable olive harvesters

Evaluation of Multispectral Data Acquired from UAV Platform in Olive Orchard

Precision agriculture is a management strategy to improve resource efficiency, production, quality, profitability and sustainability of the crops. In recent years, olive tree management is increasingly focused on determining the correct health status of the plants in order to distribute the main resource using different technologies. In the olive grove, the focus is often on the use of multispectral information from UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle), but it is not known how important spectral and biometric information actually is for the agronomic management of the olive grove. The aim of this study was to investigate the ability of multispectral data acquired from a UAV platform to predict nu…

Study on the tunnel pasteurizer in table olives processing

The application of heat treatment is especially important in maintaining the organoleptic characteristics of fermented agro-food products, which potential consumers perceive as reflecting the quality of these foodstuffs. However, heat treatments can be cause of deterioration of many quality parameters of agro-food products including texture, intended as the consistency of the pulp. Pasteurization is one of the most important steps of the table olives packaging process; it is applied after that olives are properly treated for debittering process. In this study ‘Nocellara del Belice’ table olives produced in 2010 and packaged in glass jars, were subjected to pasteurization at industrial scale…

Application of hydroseeding for environmental protection in the Mediterranean area

Evaluation of the vibrations transmitted to the hand-arm system in the use of portable harvesters for olives

The use of portable harvesters in olives harvesting is presently widely diffused in Sicily, south Italy, both to reduce the costs of production and to assure the olive oil quality. Nevertheless, it's well known that the use of such tools may involve risk of exposure to vibration transmitted to the hand-arm system which is a potential cause of muscular/skeletal pains, and specific pathologies such as Hand-Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS), Vibration-Induced White Finger (VWF) and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS). The aim of this study was to assess the level of exposure to vibration transmitted to the hand-arm system of the operators during the use of portable harvesters for olives. Two different co…

Potatura meccanica per il Guyot è possibile

In Sicilia, negli ultimi decenni, si è assistito a rapidissime variazioni in merito ai sistemi di gestione della vite da vino. Si è passati dalla forma di allevamento ad alberello degli anni 60’, all’allevamento a spalliera bassa e tendone degli anni 80’- 90’ al sistema a controspalliera medio-alta di oggi. Tutto ciò per un duplice motivo: la richiesta di vini di qualità da parte del consumatore e la meccanizzazione delle principali operazioni colturali al fine di ridurre i costi di gestione. Per quanto riguarda il sistema di potatura, il più diffuso è sempre stato il Guyot. Scopo del presente lavoro è stato quello di valutare l’impiego della potatrice meccanica, comunemente impiegata in vi…

A survey to evaluate safety in protected crops in western Sicily

Protected crops in the Mediterranean area has reached advanced production systems, but they should solve environmental, energy and money problems. The greenhouse, in fact, is a system characterized by high energy inputs with a reduced environmental sustainability compared to extensive farming and intensive open field. In Sicily, the area dedicated to annual greenhouse cultivation is 8,200 ha with a total number of farms greater than 6,000; although the sector is of great importance in the Sicilian economy, issues as workplace, food and environmental safety are often overlooked. A survey was carried out with the aim of identifying the possibilities to improve environmental, work and food saf…

Interventi di trasformazione sugli impianti di una cantina siciliana ai fini dell'ottimizzazione del processo produttivo

A decision support system based on multisensor data fusion for sustainable greenhouse management

The sustainable exploitation of natural resources is nowadays an important challenge for governments and institutions, considering the expected increase of the world population. In order to respond to this emergent criticality, the principles of green economy have been introduced in the European policy discussion to achieve a good compromise between the sustainability and the profitability of productions by increasing the efficiency of farming operations. Such approach poses some technical and financial challenges for small-sized enterprises because they generally do not possess adequate internal knowledge, nor they can acquire external expertise due to their budget restrictions. Decision S…

Analisi delle modalità di gestione dei suoli di Pantelleria al fine di preservarne la fertilità

Controlling the atmosphere in the malaxation machine headspace in order to improve the quality of Sicilian extra virgin olive oils

During the mechanical extraction process of Virgin Olive Oil (VOO) some important physical phenomena and enzymatic transformations occur influencing the final product quality. The control of process parameters is crucial to ensure the quality of VOO, therefore process monitoring and control is a fundamental requirement in the modern VOO processing industry. The present work proposes a research performed in order to develop a system for the oxygen continuous monitoring inside the malaxation machine to enhance the Sicilian extra virgin olive oil typicality and to establish a correlation with the quality of the final product. The results showed that the use of oxygen during malaxation, allowed…

Funzionalità dell’irroratrice ed efficienza dei trattamenti in vigneto

Nel campo dei trattamenti fitosanitari, parecchi sono i fattori che possono avere conseguenze sull’ambiente e sull’uomo. La taratura e la regolazione delle macchine irroratrici sono fattori essenziali per eseguire una corretta pratica fitosanitaria nel rispetto dell’ambiente, della salute degli operatori e dei consumatori, tenendo conto delle problematiche economiche connesse. In quest’ottica, gli autori hanno voluto provare come alcuni accorgimenti adottati possano influenzare l’efficienza di una macchina irroratrice impiegata su vigneto. Le prove di trattamento sono state eseguite presso un’azienda ad indirizzo viticolo. Le prove eseguite confermano che riducendo il volume distribuito, do…

Analysis of the filtration efficiency of white wines using different filter aids

The global wine market, having recently entered into full crisis, is suffering some changes in its production and marketing. The reasons for these changes are mainly due to new trends in consumer demand for wine safety and quality standards at low cost. Social cellars, in order to be included in this new trend, should focus on the rationalization of the production techniques to reduce the costs and improve the quality of wine. In the case of winemaking for the production of a wine stored in a bag-in-box, filtration is a very important technique because it gives the finished product clearness and stability. The experimentation was based on the application of a low cost filtration technique o…

Mechanical harvest of grapes and quality of wine

A modern system to control the ambient parameters inside the greenhouse

Risk Assessment of Hand-Arm Vibration in Different Types of Portable Shakers for Olives Harvesting

Assessment of the Vegetation Parameters of Almond and Vine Plants for Designing a Compact Tractor

The aim of this research is to assess the vegetation parameters of almond and vine plants, aimed at designing a compact tractor suitable for these orchards. The research is part of the Italian project TRACLAS, involving the Universities of Palermo, Milan, Bari, “Tuscia” of Viterbo and Agricultural Research and Economics - Research Unit for Agricultural Engineering (CREA-ING) of Treviglio (Bergamo). Based on the results of the surveys carried out in a sample of almond and vine farms, it was possible to define the vegetation parameters that will allow to design a very low and narrow tractor equipped with a fixed ROPS and suitable for these orchards.

Influence of row orientation on the canopy temperature of Sicilian vineyards

Row orientation can have significant effects on grape quality as it directly affects the exposure of the fruits with indirect consequences on wine quality. In this study, a Flir i7 thermal camera was used to measure the temperature of both canopy sides of a ‘Sauvignon blanc’ vineyard trained to vertical shoot position and with north-south (NS) and east-west (EW) row orientations. Photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) measurements using a 0.8-m sensor bar were taken along with the thermal imaging camera measurements. Considering both row orientations, south and east canopy sides were those that intercepted the greatest radiant energy during the day, 57.7 and 47.5%, respectively. The EW r…

A system for the oxygen continuous monitoring inside the malaxation machine to enhance the Sicilian extra virgin olive oil typicality

Introduzione di moderne macchine e tecniche per il mantenimento ed il recupero della viticoltura di Pantelleria

Noise risk assessment in a bottling plant of a modern Italian winery

In the wine industry, bottling is a phase of the production cycle characterized by high levels of noise, mostly owing to repeated collisions between the bottles. In Italy, the Law Decree 81/2008 defined the requirements for assessing and managing noise risk, identifying a number of procedures to be adopted at different noise levels to limit worker exposure. This study was aimed at evaluating the equivalent and peak noise level inside the bottling plant area of a modern Italian winery. In particular, the influence of the working capacity (number of bottles produced per hour) on noise levels was evaluated. Three test conditions were considered: T1 with a working capacity of 4000 bottles/h; T2…

AN INNOVATIVE SYSTEM FOR VINEYARD MANAGEMENT IN SICILY

The aim of this study was to monitor the micro-climate of the grapevine in order to detect the adversities of the spring period (especially April and May), while reducing the operating costs of the vineyard, and increasing the overall quality of grapes. For this purpose a Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) was used. Furthermore, a comparison was performed between data measured by the wireless sensors and data provided by the fixed meteorological station of the Regione Siciliana (SIAS).

A novel device for assessing the health risk caused by hand-arm vibrations in olives harvesting

The mechanization of olive harvesting is very important both to reduce the costs of production and to assure the oil quality because the manual harvest does not allow to operate at the right time and also need a long period to be completed. The use of portable shakers, that are spreading more than others typologies, can give a solution to the problem. However, the use of such equipment may involve risk of exposure to hand-transmitted vibration. The aim of this study was to assess the level of exposure to hand-arm vibration of the operators using portable shakers (reference standards UNI EN ISO 5349-1:2004, Italian Low Decree 81/2008). The research presented here concerns the definition of a…

Whole body vibrations during field operations in the vineyard

Human exposure to mechanical vibration can be a significant risk factor for exposed workers and this also occurs in the agricultural sector, in particular with reference to the driver of the tractor during field operations. The aim of this paper is the evaluation of Whole Body Vibrations for the operator driving tractors during the field operations in the vineyard. The experimental tests were performed using a wheeled and a track-laying tractor. They were coupled to four different machines: rototilling (RT), chisel plough (CP), flail mowers (FM) and vibro farmer (VF). Two homogeneous plots of vineyard, about 200 m long, were identified different only for slope: 0% and 30%. The tests were pe…

Prime prove di lavorazione del terreno impiegando un prototipo di motovangatrice per preservare la fertilità del suolo

Valutazione dei fattori di rischio chimico-fisico nelle serre

Anali delle componenti di rischio per i lavoratori in ambiente protetto.

Primi risultati sull’impiego della tecnica dell’idrosemina in ambiente mediterraneo

Compression tests of cv. Nocellara del Belice table olives for texture evaluation during storage

The influence of pasteurization temperature and time of treatment on the flesh firmness and the evolution of microbial communities was studied for table olives Cv. Nocellara del Belice, packed in glass jars and processed with a tunnel pasteurizer. Pasteurization at industrial scale was carried out within a tunnel pasteurizer applying the treatment at 75 °C for 8 min in the thermal center of the jars. Besides flesh firmness and microbial evolutions, pH, total ti-tratable acidity (TTA) and colour were evaluated for the table olives during storage at 6, 12 and 15 months from packing. Table olives showed a high stability and an acceptable flesh firmness for the entire period under observation. …

Worker safety in agriculture 4.0: A new approach for mapping operator's vibration risk through Machine Learning activity recognition

While being a fundamental driver of competitiveness in agroindustry, technological innovation has also introduced new critical elements related, for example, to the sustainability of the production processes as well as to the safety of workers. In such regard, the advent of the 4th industrial revolution (Agriculture 4.0) based on digitalization, is an unprecedented opportunity of rethinking the role of innovation in a new human-centric perspective. In particular, the establishment of an interconnected work environment and the augmentation of the operator’s physical, sensorial, and cognitive capabilities, are two technologies which can be effectively employed for substantially improving the …

Evaluation of hand-arm vibrations during the use of portable olives harvesters

The use of portable shakers in olives harvesting is becoming increasingly, especially in Sicily, both to reduce the costs of production and to assure the oil quality. Nevertheless, it’s well known that the use of such tools may involve risk of exposure to hand-transmitted vibration. Such exposure to vibrations is a potential cause of muscular/skeletal pains in hand–arm system, and specific pathologies such as Vibration-Induced White Finger (VWF) and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS), Hand–Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS). The aim of this study was to assess the level of exposure to hand-arm vibration of the operators during the use of portable shakers for olives harvesting. Two different commonly u…

Manuale per il controllo delle macchine irroratrici

Quality evaluation of grapes for mechanical harvest using vis NIR spectroscopy

Mechanical harvest of grapes is one of the operations that mostly influence the quality of the future wine. The shaking frequency of the harvesting machine is usually adjusted on the basis of the grape berry characteristics in order to limit grape juice production that is a potential cause of uncontrolled fermentations. These evaluations usually require time, personnel and laboratory analyses. The introduction of a vis NIR system to rapidly and reliably evaluate the berry properties in field before mechanical harvest could be a good alternative. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of applying vis NIR spectroscopy as a non-destructive technique on grapes cv. Syrah and Chard…

Effect of O2 control and monitoring on the nutraceutical properties of extra virgin olive oils

Abstract The presence of oxygen during malaxation has key role in improving Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) quality in terms of volatile and phenolic compounds. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of the head space malaxer oxygen concentration on the physicochemical characteristics and nutraceutical properties of EVOO from the Nocellara del Belice olives. The acidic compounds were related to the concentration of the oxygen presented in the machine headspace considering a new software application for the online oxygen management opportunely designed and applicable to all the existing plants. The right timepoint and oxygen concentration of the malaxation process was establ…

Closed tank pneumatic press application to improve Sauvignon Blanc wine quality and nutraceutical properties

The machines used in the winemaking process directly affect the quality of wine and its nutraceutical properties. Grapes-pressing is a very important step in winemaking as it may promote the presence and/or absence of enzymatic processes on the must, leading to the creation of different products in terms of chemical composition, starting from the same grapes. The aim of the study was to compare two different pressing systems of Sauvignon Blanc grapes using an innovative pneumatic discontinuous closed tank press in two operating modes: the traditional pressing mode in presence of oxygen and the inert pressing mode, performed through grapes pressing under inert gas with nitrogen recovery. Che…

Analisi tecnica di cantieri meccanizzati nelle operazioni di utilizzazioni forestali in Sicilia

The authors describe the results of a research performed in a wood of the Western Sicily, covered with Pinus halepensis Mill. and Cupressus sempervirens L. Felling, delimbing, cross-cutting and extraction of the logs were carried out. The wood obtained was used as firewood. Two different methods of logs extraction were carried out: with transporters and with polyethylene timber chutes. The working time and the labour productivity recorded during each operations are reported. The results show that in the forest utilization performed in Sicily the mean labour productivity per operator is 2.4 t of firewood per day. This value fits well the mean value recorded in Italy (2-3 t of firewood per da…

Confronto fra due cantieri di raccolta delle olive in Sicilia

Vengono analizzati diversi cantieri per la raccolta delle olive. I risultati valutano i consumi energetici e le capacità di lavoro.

Noise risk assessment in a bottling line of a modern Sicilian winery

In wine industry, bottling is a phase of the production cycle characterized by high levels of noise mostly due to repeated collisions between the bottles. In Italy the Law Decree 81/2008 defined the requirements for assessing and managing noise risk, identifying a number of procedures to be adopted at different noise levels to limit workers exposure. This study aims at evaluating the equivalent and peak noise level inside the bottling plant area of a modern Sicilian winery. In particular, the influence of the working capacity (number of bottles produced per hour) on noise levels was evaluated. We considered three test conditions: T1 with working capacity of 4,000 bottles per hour, T2 with w…

Effects of the Extraction Technology on Pomegranate Juice Quality

Pomegranate juice is a rich source of phenolic components; its consumption has considerably increased throughout the world in recent years, due to its nutraceutical properties. Commercial juice production involves pressing the fruits. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of the pressing stage on pomegranate juice properties, in terms of value, duration of the applied pressure and juice yield in order to examine the influence of pressure level on volatiles and nutraceutical properties of the juice. Pomegranate fruits cv. Wonderful One were manually harvested and mechanically processed for extracting the juice by means of a shelling machine, a peristaltic pump and a pneumatic pre…

First results on the use of an innovative machine for soil tillage in terraces or steep sloped areas

Noise risk assessment in a bottling plant of a modern Italian winery

In the wine industry, bottling is a phase of the production cycle characterized by high levels of noise, mostly owing to repeated collisions between the bottles. In Italy, the Law Decree 81/2008 defined the requirements for assessing and managing noise risk, identifying a number of procedures to be adopted at different noise levels to limit worker exposure. This study was aimed at evaluating the equivalent and peak noise level inside the bottling plant area of a modern Italian winery. In particular, the influence of the working capacity (number of bottles produced per hour) on noise levels was evaluated. Three test conditions were considered: T1 with a working capacity of 4000 bottles/h; T2…

La sicurezza nel settore delle colture protette: stato attuale nella sicilia occidentale

Applicazione di tecniche innovative per la produzione di olio di Alta Gamma di Pantelleria

Optimising the efficiency of olive harvesting considering operator safety

Mechanical-assisted harvesting of olives, which is carried out using hand-held harvesting units that detach the drupes through vibration supplied by electric motor or combustion engines, is a widespread method used in southern Italy. Such machines are able to harvest more than 80% of the overall quantity of olives available per tree in 5–10 min, but their performance is influenced by several factors related to the mechanical characteristics of the device and to the features of the trees. Here the problem of optimising harvesting efficiency whilst minimising the health risks to the operators is investigated, with the aim of demonstrating that it is possible to determine an optimum harvesting…

Mechanical harvest of grapes: assessment of the physical-mechanical characteristics of the berry in order to improve the quality of wines

Potatura meccanica su guyot in vigneto a controspalliera. Risultati di un biennio di sperimentazione

Design and Implementation of a Smart System to Control Aromatic Herb Dehydration Process

Drying is a process aimed at reducing the water content in plant materials below a limit where the activity of microbes and decomposing enzymes deteriorate the quality of medicinal and aromatic plants. Today, the interest of consumers towards medicinal and aromatic herbs has registered a growing trend. This study aims at designing a low-cost real-time monitoring and control system for the drying process of aromatic herbs and evaluating drying efficacy on the microbial community associated with the studied herbs. Hot-air drying tests of sage and laurel leaves were carried out in a dryer desiccator cabinet at 40 &deg

Analysis of the leaf deposit in chemical distribution on vineyard in different wind conditions

A New Wireless Device for Real-Time Mechanical Impact Evaluation in a Citrus Packing Line

Abstract. Postharvest handling of fresh fruit is a potential source of bruising and damage, with significant consequences for fruit quality and marketability. In the last 30 years, different types of impact-recording devices (also called electronic fruits or pseudo-fruits) have been developed with the aim of measuring the impacts experienced by fruits during postharvest operations. The aim of this study was to develop and test a novel wireless instrumented sphere to study the critical points in a citrus packing line by measuring the impacts experienced by fruits in real-time. The non-commercial device was based on a MEMS (micro-electro-mechanical system) sensor node with a sensing range fro…

Noise levels of a track-laying tractor during field operations in the vineyard

Noise in agriculture is one of the risk factors to be taken into account in the assessment of the health and safety of workers; in particular, it is known that the tractor is a source of high noise. The Italian Low Decree 81/2008 defined the requirements for assessing and managing noise risk identifying a number of procedures to be adopted at different noise levels to limit workers exposure. This paper concerns the analysis of the noise risk arising from the use of a tracklaying tractor during field operations carried out in the vineyard. The objective of this study was to evaluate the noise level that comes close to the ear of the operator driving the tractor measuring the values of equiva…

Indagine sulla sicurezza ambientale, alimentare e del lavoro nel settore delle colture protette in Sicilia

Evaluation of the efficiency of different harvesting methods of olives

This paper reports the results of experimental tests carried out in Sicily about the harvesting of olives. Three varieties were selected (Biancolilla, Cerasuola and Nocellara del Belice); the tests were performed in three different periods with three different harvesting systems: manual, manual with pneumatic combs and mechanical harvesting. The aim of this study was to evaluate the work capacity and productivity of the three harvesting systems and the period maximising the mechanical harvesting efficiency. The damages caused to the trees after mechanical harvesting with a variable frequency shaker were also evaluated. Naturally fallen olives, Jean’s maturity index, detachment force, harves…

A system for detecting hand-arm vibration in the use of portable shakers for olives harvesting

The mechanization of olive harvesting is very important both to reduce the costs of production and to assure the oil quality because the manual harvest does not allow to operate at the right time and also need a long period to be completed. The use of portable shakers, that are spreading more than others typologies, can give a solution to the problem. However, the use of such equipment may involve risk of exposure to hand-transmitted vibration. The aim of this study was to assess the level of exposure to hand-arm vibration of the operators using portable shakers (reference standards UNI EN ISO 5349-1:2004, Italian Low Decree 81/2008). An effective approach would rather involve to equip the …

Pantelleria, in vigna operazioni più efficienti con le macchine

Effect of different processing methods on the quality of obtained pomegranate juice

Pomegranate juice has many health properties as the fruits contain anticarcinogenic, antimicrobial and antiviral compounds. Its consumption has greatly increased throughout the world in recent years due to the potential of its different components, polyphenols and anthocyanins mostly. Many studies have been performed on the pomegranate juice yield demonstrating its influence on the organoleptic and physicochemical properties of the juice. Commercial pomegranate juice production involves pressing the fruits. As a consequence, there is a need to investigate the pressing machine types and adjustment in order to maximize juice yield and enhance its health properties. The aim of this study was t…

Analisi qualitativa della distribuzione di fitofarmaci con irroratrici su vigneto a controspalliera

Today a very effective crop protection is necessary to improve the production of good quality wine and to limit the environmental pollution. Field tests were carried out in a Sicilian vineyard using two different sprayers, in tree periods, each corresponding to a different canopy distribution. The objective of this research was to determinate the best operative solution in order to obtain an effective vineyard protection. The quality of distribution was evaluated through the coverage index of the canopy, the number of impacts per square centimetre and the mean diameter of the drop prints on artificial targets opportunely placed into the canopy, as the canopy volume varies. The sprayers were…

Application of A Precision Apiculture System to Monitor Honey Daily Production †

Precision beekeeping or precision apiculture is an apiary management strategy based on the monitoring of individual bee colonies to minimize resource consumption and maximize the productivity of bees. Bees play a fundamental role in ensuring pollination

Risk exposure to vibration and noise in the use of agricultural track-laying tractors.

Human exposure to mechanical vibration may represent a significant risk factor for exposed workers in the agricultural sector. Also, noise in agriculture is one of the risk factors to be taken into account in the evaluation of workers’ health and safety. One of the major sources of discomfort for the workers operating a tractors is the noise to which they are exposed during work. The aim of this study was to evaluate the risk of exposure to whole-body vibration for the operator driving track-laying tractors in vineyard orchard and the noise level. The experimental tests were performed with six different track-laying tractors coupled with the same rototilling machine. The results showed that…

A System to Control the Atmosphere in the Headspace of the Malaxation Machine to Improve the Fatty Acid Composition of Extra Virgin Olive Oils

In recent years, oxygen content regulation during malaxation has been noted as a process parameter. As concluded by many studies, the presence of oxygen during malaxation has a key role in for improving the quality of Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) in terms of volatile and phenolic components. There are, however, very few studies of the influence of oxygen in the malaxation machine headspace on the fatty acid composition of Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO). The aim of this study is to evaluate the influence of oxygen in the malaxation machine headspace on Nocellara del Belice EVOO fatty acids. During of the malaxation process, the atmosphere inside the malaxation machine was modified by blowing…

Meccanizzazione di vigneti in territori a forte declività: soluzioni a ridotto impatto ambientale per l’isola di Pantelleria

Greenhouse climate control using wireless sensors

Meccanizzazione di vigneti a forte pendenza dell’isola di Pantelleria

Influence of greenhouse different coverings on chemical and physical risk factors

Crop production in greenhouses needs the use of chemicals and requires high levels of temperature and relative humidity to assure the increasing of crop production. This can cause risks for the health of the operators, especially if they are not equipped with protection devices. The risks may also vary with the type and/or size and/or shape of the protected structures. In order to determine the influence of different coverings on type and amount of risks, chemical and physical risk factors were measured inside greenhouses with different cladding materials (glass panels and plastic films) after crop management. In these two different greenhouses typologies, that were similar for location and…

A system to monitor the main ambient parameters in the vineyard with wireless sensors

Wireless technologies have been under rapid development during recent years but applications of wireless sensors in agriculture and food industry are still rare. The aim of this study is to monitor the micro-climate of the grapevine in order to monitor the adversities of the spring period reducing the operating costs of the vineyard and increasing the quality of grapes. At this purpose a Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) was used. Furthermore, a comparison was performed between the data measured by the wireless sensors and the data provided by the fixed meteorological station of the Regione Siciliana (SIAS).

Studio dell’indice di ammostamento nella vendemmia meccanica in funzione dei parametri ambientali e delle caratteristiche meccaniche dell’acino

An Innovative Malaxer Equipped with SCADA Platform for Improving Extra Virgin Olive Oil Quality

Agriculture 4.0 is gaining more attention, and all companies are thinking about innovating machines to increase income and improve the quality of the final products. In the agro-food sector, there is space for innovation, as it is far behind the industrial sector. This paper reports an industrial-scale study on the application of an innovative system for the extraction of Sicilian EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) to improve both process management and the quality of the product. Based on previous studies, the authors suggested an innovative machine equipped with a SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition system) for oxygen and process duration monitoring and control. The objective of th…

Assessment of the pedicel detaching and crashing forces of grape berries to determine the right mechanical harvesting period

During the mechanical harvesting the shakers cause the detachment of the grape berries from the grape stalk but also the breaking of the grape berries peel with the consequent production of must that influences the quality of the harvested grapes. This one is higher in the varieties having grape berries more resistant to the crushing and, at the same time, an easier detachment of the pedicel. The aim of this work is to evaluate, for three different varieties of grape (Chardonnay, Catarratto comune and Nero d’Avola), the crushing strength of the berry, that represents the cause of the production of must during the mechanical harvesting, and the resistance of the berry-pedicel system that inf…

Application of Precision Agriculture for the Sustainable Management of Fertilization in Olive Groves

Olive tree growing (Olea europaea L.) has considerably increased in the last decades, as has the consumption of extra virgin olive oil in the world. Precision agriculture is increasingly being applied in olive orchards as a new method to manage agronomic variability with the aim of providing individual plants with the right input amount, limiting waste or excess. The objective of this study was to develop a methodology on a GIS platform using GEOBIA algorithms in order to build prescription maps for variable rate (VRT) nitrogen fertilizers application in an olive orchard. The fertilization plan was determined for each tree by applying its own nitrogen balance, taking into account the variab…

Influence of tree's structure on the efficiency of the mechanical harvest of olives

This study represents an analysis about the influence of the structure of the plant and the drupes’ position on the efficiency of the mechanical harvest of olives. The aim is to study the eventual correlations between some geometrical characteristics of the plants and the harvest efficiency. The experimental tests were carried out in an olive grove sited in Castelvetrano, province of Trapani; the variety was Nocellara del Belice, the plants “globe” shaped. Some morphological surveys were carried out on a sample of trees. The mechanical harvest was performed with a trunk shaker provided with an upside down umbrella. After the harvest, the residual production was quantified for each bud in or…

Valutazione delle principali criticita’ nel settore delle colture protette in materia di prevenzione delle malattie professionali in un campione di aziende della sicilia occidentale

Revegetation through hydroseeding in degraded Mediterranean areas

Hydroseeding is a technique increasingly used to establish vegetation on degraded areas in order to perform environmental protection. The objective of this paper was to evaluate the effectiveness of four different hydroseeding methods on a degraded artificial slope in the southern Mediterranean area determining total vegetation cover, hydroseeding vegetation cover, hydroseeding success index (HSI), natural and hydroseeded vegetation height. The test area does not allow the use of any operating machine for soil and vegetation management, the only applicable technique is therefore hydroseeding. After hydroseeding was applied (December 2010), 21 checks were carried out every 15 days (from Janu…

Acceleration Assessment During Mechanical Harvest of Grapes Using a non Commercial Instrumented Sphere

The use of the harvesting machine for grape wine has the limit of the production of must coming out from the detachment of the berries that could reflect negatively on the quality of the final product. It depends on many factors including grapes variety, ripeness and frequency of the harvesting machine shakers. The shaking frequency generally adopted is the one that achieves the maximum harvest efficiency, that means high work capacity and low grape juice production. In this paper, the authors present a new system to measure the accelerations received by grapevine during mechanical harvest with the aim of evaluating the influence of the shaking frequency on the quality of the must obtained.…

uality Evaluation of “Tardivo di Ciaculli” Mandarins in Post-Harvest Processing on an Industrial Scale Using a Portable Vis/NIR Device

Abstract. Vis/NIR technology is widely used today to quickly and non-destructively evaluate fruit and vegetable qualities, and many applications have been found since the 1990s. However, no industrial-scale applications can further consolidate the use of non-destructive techniques in post-harvest processing. This study aims to test the possibility of applying vis/NIR technology in a modern citrus-processing plant to assess the damage that the fruits eventually suffer when they are processed on an industrial scale and the evolution of their key quality parameters in a period of 10 days after harvest. The spectral acquisitions were performed using a portable vis/NIR device, which operated in …

An oxygen monitoring and control system inside a malaxation machine to improve extra virgin olive oil quality

In recent years, oxygen content regulation during malaxation has been noted as a process parameter. The aim of this study was to identify the optimal time during the malaxation process of the olives of the Sicilian cultivar Nocellara del Belice when the presence of oxygen in the machine headspace activates the enzyme complex in favour of the volatile compounds, without compromising the phenolic composition. During the malaxation process, the atmosphere inside the malaxation machine was modified by blowing pure oxygen from cylinders at specific stages of the process (i.e., 5, 15, 25, and 35 min after the start of malaxation), using a system that allows the automatic and continuous maintenanc…

Soil management effect on soil penetration resistance in the vineyard

In environments characterized by steep slopes or arranged in terraces, among the shallow tillage systems, rototilling is extensively used. However, the effect of the repeated use of rototilling has a considerable influence on soil characteristics; it appears finely powdered, soft and without structure. In order to limit these inconveniences, an innovative self-propelled machine equipped with working tools as a spade, to be used in steep slopes or arranged in terraces areas, was designed by the Mechanics Section of the SAF (Scienze Agrarie e Forestali) Department of the University of Palermo in cooperation with Agrotec company, Padua, Italy. The aim of this study is to compare the effects of…

First results of iButton® loggers and infrared camera application inside a greenhouse

Greenhouse microclimate management (temperature, relative humidity) plays a very important role in order to optimize the production process improving pest and disease control, irrigation and energy efficiency. The systems mostly used in Sicily (south Italy) to record the ambient parameters are made up of fixed measuring stations able to give useful information about the climate inside the greenhouse limited to some pre-fixed points. In this study we texted a novel system made up of humidity and temperature data loggers (iButton®) placed inside a greenhouse. The iButton® temperature/humidity logger (DS1923) is a rugged, self-sufficient system that measures temperature and/or humidity and r…

Influence of the pressing system on pomegranate juice physical-chemical properties

Pomegranate juice has many health properties as the fruits contain anticarcinogenic, antimicrobial and antiviral compounds. Its consumption has greatly increased throughout the world in recent years due to the potential of its different components, polyphenols and anthocyanins among all. Many studies have been performed on the pomegranate juice yield demonstrating its influence on the organoleptic and physicochemical properties of the juice. Commercial pomegranate juice production involves pressing fruits procedures. As a consequence, there is a need to investigate the pressing machine types and optimization in order to achieve juice yield and enhance its health properties. The aim of this …

Facilitated harvest tests in the vineyards of the island of Pantelleria

Un sistema innovativo per la misura in tempo reale delle vibrazioni trasmesse al sistema mano-braccio da scuotitori portatili per la raccolta agevolata delle olive

ASSESSMENT OF CHEMICAL AND PHYSICAL RISK FACTORS IN GREENHOUSES

Crop production in greenhouses needs the use of chemicals and requires high levels of temperature and relative humidity to assure the increasing of crop production. This can cause risks for the health of the operators, especially if they are not equipped with protection devices. The risks may also vary with the type and/or size and/or shape of the protected structures. In order to determine the influence of different coverings on type and amount of risks, chemical and physical risk factors were measured inside greenhouses with different cladding materials (glass panels and plastic films) after crop management. In these two different greenhouses typologies, that were similar for location and…

COMPARISON BETWEEN TWO TYPES OF WINEMAKING TANKS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF QUALITY WINES CV. NERO D’AVOLA

The aim of this work is to compare two types of winemaking tanks, horizontal and vertical, using Nero d’Avola grapes, in order to assess the capacity of extraction of phenolic compounds that determine the quality of red wines. The study shows that in wine made by horizontal winemaking tanks, both anthocyanins and polyphenols have a higher decrease in time compared to wine made by the vertical type. The higher values of polyphenols found in the horizontal type appear to show that wines produced by this type of winemaking tank have a better quality in terms of health for antimicrobial, antioxidant and antiinflammatory properties of these molecules.

PROBLEMATICHE INERENTI LA SICUREZZA AMBIENTALE, ALIMENTARE E DEL LAVORO NELLA SERRICOLTURA SICILIANA

Un sistema per il monitoraggio continuo dell'ossigeno all'interno della gramola per esaltare la tipicità degli oli extravergini di oliva di Pantelleria

Biodiversity and dairy traits of lactic acid bacteria from foliage of aromatic plants before and after dehydration process monitored by a smart sensors system

ABSTRACT The main hypothesis of this work was to evaluate the presence of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) intrinsically resistant to plant essential oils in sage (Salvia officinalis L.) and laurel (Laurus nobilis), for future applications in functional cheese production by addition of aromatic herbs. The effect of the drying process on the viability of LAB was evaluated with three biomass densities (3, 4 and 5 kg/m2). The drying densities did not affect weight loss, but influenced the levels of LAB of sage and laurel. A total of 10 different strains of Enterococcus faecium, Enterococcus mundtii, Enterococcus raffinosus and Leuconostoc mesenteroides were identified from laurel, while sage did not…

Hydroseeding for revegetation in a semiarid Mediterranean environment

Hydroseeding is a technique increasingly used to establish vegetation on degraded areas in order to perform environmental protection. The objective of this paper was to evaluate the effectiveness of four different hydroseeding methods on a degraded artificial slope in the southern Mediterranean area determining total vegetation cover, hydroseeding vegetation cover, hydroseeding success index (HSI), natural and hydroseeded vegetation height. The test area does not allow the use of any operating machine for soil and vegetation management, the only applicable technique is therefore hydroseeding. After hydroseeding was applied (December 2010), 21 checks were carried out every 15 days (from Janu…

Analysis of the main factors influencing the quality of wine from mechanically harvested grapes

The wine sector is going today through a period of severe crisis mainly due to the process of globalization in which all the countries producing wine have entered into fierce competition with each other. As a consequence, the achievement of the product on the market exclusively depends on a good value for money. One of the main factors that affect the cost of running the vineyard and, therefore, the final price of the wine is certainly the grape harvest. For the reasons given above this technique, used to be performed manually, is today impossible to support except that there would be the use of the harvesting machine. It’s well known that the use of the harvesting machine has the limit of …

Design of an innovative system for precision beekeeping

The innovative technologies of precision agriculture can be applied today to different productive sectors of agriculture in order to optimize crop production and to improve the quality of the final products. One of these is beekeeping, a very important sector both from an environmental and a production standpoint. The production of honey depends on many factors, some of which are environmental factors such as temperature, relative humidity and wind. The aim of this study was the design of a Precision Apicolture System (PAS) platform for monitoring and controlling the main environmental factors, both inside and outside the hive, in order to assess their influence on the honey daily productio…

SOIL QUALITY INDICATORS AS AFFECTED BY SHALLOW TILLAGE IN A VINEYARD GROWN IN A SEMIARID MEDITERRANEAN ENVIRONMENT

Within the Mediterranean basin, soil tillage enhances the mineralisation of soil organic matter. We assessed the short-term impact of shallow tillage [field cultivator (FC), rotary tiller (RT) and spading machine (SM)] on some soil quality indicators [bulk density, water-stable aggregates, total and labile organic C pools (microbial biomass and extractable organic C), soil respiration and related eco-physiological indexes] in a Sicilian vineyard. Also no tillage was included. We hypothesized that (i) RT and FC worsened soil quality indicators more than SM, and (ii) within the same tillage system, labile C pools, soil respiration and eco-physiological indexes will respond more efficiently th…

Real time assessment of hand-arm vibration system based on capacitive MEMS accelerometers

Vibrations are a well known potential cause of health diseases and therefore constitute a main concern for the safety of workers in a large number of activities. In order to prevent health hazards, national and international institutions have issued laws and directives which establish recommended limits to the workers' exposure to vibrations during operations. Consequently, if the amount of adsorbed vibration exceeds the allowable daily limits the worker has to stop his job. Recent wireless sensing and communicating technologies can effectively be employed for such purpose, allowing to develop monitoring customized devices at affordable cost which could be easily employed during the workers…

Influenza delle condizioni climatiche sulla qualità dei trattamenti fitosanitari su vigneto

Instrumental evaluation of the texture of cv. Nocellara del Belice table olives

The Nocellara del Belice (Olea europaea L.) is the most important double-aptitude olive variety in western Sicily (Italy), it is one of the most important domestic varieties both for the production and the marketed quantities. Nowadays there is a lack of studies on its mechanical properties through instrumental analysis able to provide quantitative measurements of its flesh texture which is a very important quality attribute for the consumer. The aim of this study is to evaluate the texture of Nocellara del Belice table olives, packed in glass jars, through a mechanical system allowing us to continuously measure and record the compression force along the profile of the flesh of the fruit. F…

Ammodernamento ed ampliamento delle strutture e dei fabbricati a servizio di una cantina siciliana

Sistema de monitorización en continuo a tiempo real de la concentración de oxígeno durante el batido para la producción de aceite de oliva virgen

During the mechanical extraction process of Virgin Olive Oil (VOO) some important physical phenomena and enzymatic transformations occur which influence the quality of the final product. The control of process parameters is crucial to ensure the quality of VOO, therefore process monitoring and control is a fundamental requirement in the modern VOO processing industry. The present work proposes an innovative Real-Time Monitoring System (RTMS) aimed at continuously measuring the oxygen concentration during the malaxation process in order to establish a correlation with the quality of the final product obtained. This monitoring system is based on an oxygen concentration sensor directly connect…

Positioning Accuracy Comparison of GNSS Receivers Used for Mapping and Guidance of Agricultural Machines

Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) allow the determination of the 3D position of a point on the Earth&rsquo

Risk exposure to vibration and noise in the use of tracklaying tractors

Human exposure to mechanical vibration may represent a significant risk factor for exposed workers in the agricultural sector, with particular reference to the operators driving tractors. Also noise in agriculture is one of the risk factors to be taken into account for the evaluation of workers health and safety. In particular, one of the major sources of discomfort for the workers operating a tractor is the noise to which they are subjected during work. In Italy, Law Decree 81/2008 has defined the obligations of vibration and noise assessment and risk management.The aim of this study is to evaluate the risk of exposure to whole-body vibration for the operator driving a tracklaying tractor …

Influence of pasteurization temperature on flesh firmness of table olives cv. Nocellara del Belice

The application of heat treatment is especially important in maintaining the organoleptic characteristics of fermented agro-food products, which potential consumers perceive as reflecting the quality of these foodstuffs. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of pasteurization time and temperature on the flesh firmness of table olives cv. Nocellara del Belice, packaged in glass jars, and to study their effect on the microbial community of table olives. Four different treatments were applied, one for each of the pasteurization temperatures adopted: 65 °C, 75 °C, 85 °C and 95 °C. A control test was also carried out (test Tc, not pasteurized). Each test was repeated with treatment…

Harvest of Olives with Portable Shakers

Soil physical-mechanical properties evaluation in different tillage systems

In environments characterized by steep slopes or arranged in terraces, among the shallow tillage systems, rototilling is extensively used. However, the effect of the repeated use of ro-totilling has a considerable influence on soil characteristics; it appears finely powdered, soft and without structure. In order to limit these inconveniences, an innovative self-propelled machine equipped with working tools as a spade, to be used in steep slopes or arranged in terraces areas, was designed by the Mechanics Section of the Department of Agricultural and Forest Sciences, University of Palermo, in cooperation with Agrotec company, Padua, Italy. The aim of this study is to compare the effects of t…