Search results for "grain"
showing 10 items of 752 documents
Agro-ecological benefits of faba bean for rainfed Mediterranean cropping systems
2017
This paper reviews the main results from a set of experiments carried out in a semiarid Mediterranean environment during the past 25 years on faba bean (<em>Vicia faba</em> L.), a crop traditionally grown in southern Italy and Sicily under rainfed conditions. These experiments focused on the residual effects of faba bean on subsequent crop(s) and assessment of the nitrogen (N) balance during the crop cycle, paying attention to both the environmental release of N (losses via volatilisation and denitrification) and estimates of N2 fixation as influenced by tillage system, intercropping, and presence/absence of mycorrhizal inoculum. Faba bean relied on N2 fixation more than other g…
The critical period of weed control in faba bean and chickpea in Mediterranean areas
2013
Weeds are often the major biological constraint to growing legume crops successfully, and an understanding of the critical period of weed control (CPWC) is important for developing environmentally sustainable weed management practices to prevent unacceptable yield loss. Therefore, we carried out two field experiments to identify the CPWC for two grain legume crops traditionally grown in Mediterranean areas: chickpea and faba bean. The experiments were conducted at two sites both located in the Sicilian inland (Italy). In chickpea, when weeds were left to compete with the crop for the whole cycle, the grain yield reduction was on average about 85% of the weed-free yield, whereas in faba bean…
Biochemical Composition of Spring Barley Grain Pearled to Varying Degrees
2017
Abstract Differences in biochemical composition in dehulled and pearled grain samples affected by the various degrees of pearling were studied for spring barley (Hordeum vulgare L.). Twelve covered spring barley and two hulless genotypes were examined. Commercial samples of pearled barley were included for comparison. Covered barley grain samples were pearled using a small-scale barley pearler to obtain dehulled and pearled barley grain products with pearling percentage of 12% and 30%, respectively. Significant differences were observed in the chemical composition between dehulled grain and pearled grain. As the outer layers of the covered grain were removed to a greater degree by pearling,…
Automatic measurement of wood fiber orientation and knot detection using an optical system based on heating conduction.
2015
In this paper, a new approach to computing the deviation of wood grain is proposed. To do this, the thermal conduction properties of timber are used (higher conduction in the fiber direction). Exciting the surface of the wood with a laser and capturing the thermal conduction using a thermal camera, an ellipse can be observed. Using a method similar to the tracheid effect, it is possible to extract information from this ellipse, such as the slope of grain and the presence of knots. With this method it is therefore possible to extend the mechanical model (assessing the mechanical properties of timber) to take certain singularities into account. Using this approach, the slope of grain can be e…
Effects of seed production and storage conditions on blackgrass (Alopecurus myosuroides) germination and shoot elongation
2003
Abstract Blackgrass is a common winter annual grass weed in autumn-sown crop rotations in Atlantic European countries. Control with a minimum amount of herbicides in integrated cropping systems would be facilitated by modeling the effect of cropping systems on its demography. To develop the submodel relating weed seed bank to emerged seedlings, laboratory experiments were conducted to analyze and quantify seed germination and shoot elongation. These processes were studied as a function of environmental conditions during seed production (nitrogen availability, water deficit, plant density, and crop) and of seed characteristics (seed weight, harvest date, storage length, and dry-stored/soil-b…
Influence of nitrogen availability on seed nitrogen accumulation in pea
1999
International audience; The final seed nitrogen concentration (the ratio of seed N and dry matter content) is highly variable in pea (Pisum sativum L.) and N remobilization during seed filling may limit yield by restricting the seed filling period. This study was conducted to determine how seed N accumulation is regulated in pea. The effect of N availability and distribution on individual seed N accumulation rate at different nodes was investigated in three genotypes grown in the field and glasshouse under various levels of N fertilizer, depodding, and defoliation. The N content of vegetative plants parts (stems, leaves, podwalls) and seeds from three mainstem nodes were regularly recorded.…
Pea Efficiency of Post-drought Recovery Relies on the Strategy to Fine-Tune Nitrogen Nutrition
2020
International audience; As drought is increasingly frequent in the context of climate change it is a major constraint for crop growth and yield. The ability of plants to maintain their yield in response to drought depends not only on their ability to tolerate drought, but also on their capacity to subsequently recover. Post-stress recovery can indeed be decisive for drought resilience and yield stability. Pea (Pisum sativum), as a legume, has the capacity to fix atmospheric nitrogen through its symbiotic interaction with soil bacteria within root nodules. Biological nitrogen fixation is highly sensitive to drought which can impact plant nitrogen nutrition and growth. Our study aimed at dyna…
Enhancement of mechanical properties of FSWed AA7075 lap joints through in-situ fabrication of MMC
2017
Abstract Friction Stir Processing (FSP) has been demonstrated feasible to create local Metal Matrix Composites (MMCs) in light alloys matrix. In this research, local MMCs were produced contextually to the weld using Friction Stir Welding (FSW). SiC particles were added to AA7075 lap joints by creating a proper groove on the top surface of the bottom sheet. Different welds were produced with increasing number of tool passes. The effect of the multiple passes was investigated through shear tests, macro and micro observations, average grain size and microhardness measurements. The welded joints were compared to a reference weld produced with no reinforcements. It was found that poor mixing bet…
In-process control strategies for friction stir welding of AZ31 sheets with non-uniform thickness
2017
Two different in-process control strategies were developed and compared with the aim to produce AZ31 magnesium alloy joints by friction stir welding on sheet blanks with a non-uniform thickness. To this purpose, sheets with dip or hump zones were welded by either changing the rotational speed or the tool plunging in order to keep constant the value of the vertical force occurring during the welding stage of the process. The influence of the main process parameters on the tool force, the micro- and macromechanical properties, and the joints microstructures in the dip and hump zones were analyzed. The results showed that using the rotational speed change-based approach, the hump zones are sub…
Linear friction welding of dissimilar AA6082 and AA2011 aluminum alloys: microstructural characterization and design guidelines
2015
This paper presents the results of an experimental and numerical campaign on Linear Friction Welding of dissimilar AA2011-T8 and AA6082-T6 aluminum alloys. Experimental tests were carried out with constant oscillation amplitude and process time. Varying oscillation frequency, interface pressure, specimen geometry and mutual position were used. Grain size measurements, HV tests and EDX analysis were considered to characterize the microstructure of the joints as a function of the input process parameters. A thermal numerical model was utilized to predict the temperature profiles in the joints during the process. The obtained results allowed the identification of four weld categories: sound jo…