IMPLICATIONS OF VARIABILITY IN MECHANICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF RICE STRAW UNDER DIFFERENT MOISTURE, VARIETY AND LOADING RATE

Exact information of mechanical properties of straw arc necessary to be executed for designing the equipment's and machineries being used for harvesting, threshing and other post-harvest practices. This study in this importance was carried out to assess the mechanical properties of rice straw as effected by different moisture, variety and loading rates, which have never been accounted before. Three different rice varieties i.e. Yue76, Qianjindao and Yuc61 when harvested were collected for experimentation. Mechanical properties of rice straw were evaluated at three intcrnodes (INI, IN2 and IN3) down from car, and were subject to two different moisture contents (11 and 18%) and loading rates (10 and 20 mm min"1). The experimental design was subject to randomized complete block design, replicated thrice. The results revealed that the rice straw parameters and their interactions were significantly affected (p