Effects of fan volute structure on airflow characteristics in rice combine harvesters

Abstract

Aim of study: Selecting a proper fan for the rice combine harvesters to get a good cleaning performance when harvesting high yield rice. Area of study: Jiangsu Province, China.Material and methods: Three potential multi-duct fans were designed, and the computational fluid dynamics and hot wire anemometer technology were utilized to learn the airflow and pressure variation inside the fan with perforated plates at the outlet ducts as cleaning loads. Then, the fan with the best performance was selected and a multi-duct cleaning test-bed was developed. The variation of the corresponding airflow velocity in the cleaning system was analyzed and the ideal airflow velocity in different section of the sieve was clarified. Finally, a field experiment was carried out.Main results: For a rice combine harvester with a feed rate of 7 kg/s (material other than grain + grain), the requested airflow rates inside the cleaning shoe was about 3.0 m3/s. The ideal airflow velocity in different section of the cleaning shoe was 8-9 m/s at upper duct, 4-6 m/s at the middle section, and 3-4 m/s at the tail section; large improvement in cleaning performance was achieved with the designed fan.Research highlights: The airflow velocity decreased as the cleaning loads at the duct increased. The fan with the averaged airflow velocity ≥7 m/s at the upper duct under different cleaning loads, and the airflow velocity at the lowest duct ≥ 9 m/s, is favorable for forming a blowing airflow in the tail sieve and is good for grain stratification.