Investigation of Physical-Mechanical Properties of fertilizers for DEM modeling

Abstract

The effective use of solid mineral fertilizers is one of the most urgent tasks of our time and its solution will guarantee the food security of the population. One of the most significant resources for increasing the efficiency of mineral fertilizers is their qualitative distribution over the field surface. Modern machines equipped with centrifugal discs are capable of evenly applying fertilizers, however, the rod-type working bodies are more efficient, which makes it possible to distribute fertilizers with a coefficient of variation not exceeding 7%. The most important advantage of standard machines is their suitability for compensatory fertilization with a change in the application rate not only along the movement of the aggregate, but also along the width of the grip. Another promising way to increase the effective-ness of mineral fertilizers is to apply them in-soil, which minimizes wind drift and reduces nitrogen and phosphorus losses. To improve the quality of fertilizer distri-bution by working bodies, it is necessary to implement experimental and theoreti-cal studies to substantiate the main design and technological parameters of work-ing bodies, taking into account their interaction with the flow of fertilizer particles. Irreplaceable tools for these purposes are software applications of discrete ele-ment modeling. The most important input data affecting the accuracy of calcula-tions is information on the physical-mechanical properties of currently used solid mineral fertilizers. In this regard, the purpose of this work was to study the missing physical and mechanical properties for modeling.