Studies on the Physical Properties of Horticultural Products (I)
On the Shape and Mechanical Properties of Cucumber, KURUME, H.
1975 Volume 36 Issue 4 Pages 549-554
Details
1975 Volume 36 Issue 4 Pages 549-554
Modern agriculture has brought about the harvesting, handling and processing of agricultural products by various specific machines or devices. Despite of the fact that the design of these are associated with the physical characteristics such as shape, size, volume, density and mechanical properties, little is known about the basic physical characteristics and properties of agricultural products. This experiment was run to obtain the data of the shape, density and other physical properties on cucumber, KURUME-H, harvested in greenhouse. The results were as follows:
1) Shape, and some physical properties; the stem-end side (portion I in Fig. 1) is bigger than the middle and apex side (portion II and III). The ratio of the mean diameter to the length is 0.132, and the means of the specific weight and the moisture content are 0.98 gram per cucic centimeter and 95.3 percent W. B., respectively.
2) Compression test (crosshead speed; 10mm/min.); the overall toughness is about 1.37kg-cm/cm3 (c. v. 28.9%), and the mean of longitudinal compressive elasticity is 23.0kg/cm2 (c. v. 4.3%). Also the difference is found between stem-end and apex portion. The compressive crushed stress and elasticity of homogeneous flesh, removed the seed portion and skin, are about 11kg/cm2 and 29kg/cm2, respectively.
3) Tensile test (c. s.; 10mm/min.); the break down stress of tension on homogeneous flesh is about a fourth of the rupture stress in compressive test. Also, tensile elasticity is about a half or the less of compressive elasticity.
4) Penetrating test (c. s.; 10mm/min, ); the results, using flat die plungers of 4mm and 2mm dia., show that difference by the portion and the freshness are in the penetrating energy and the lateral elasticity by the die.
5) Creep-recovery test (c. s.; 10mm/mn.); plate quasistatic load-deformation and the deformamation-recovery ratio, have high correlations, respectively. Under the test conditions, critical creep load is about 400 gram per unit length (cm), and the critical strain is about 0.09 in lateral, diameter (cm/cm) of the cucumber, KURUME-H..
