Bottom Pressure and Porosity of a Rough Rice Layer Piled in a Rectangular Prism Container

Abstract

The bottom pressure and porosity of a rough rice layer piled in a grain tank are expected to be negatively correlated. Thus, we investigated the applicability of Janssen’s equation to the estimation of the bottom pressure, which can be an indicator of the porosity. Janssen’s equation accurately estimated the bottom pressure of a rough rice layer (moisture content: 14 %, 18 %, 25 %, 30 %) piled in a rectangular prism container with an RMSE of 0.04-0.13 kPa, indicating that Janssen’s equation is applicable to a grain tank of rectangular cross-sectional shape, but the porosity was dense and almost constant for each moisture content. Whether the abovementioned negative correlation prevails during harvest requires further investigation.