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Abstract
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Simulation methods are essential for understanding the intricate interactions between soil and tillage implements.
Using these methods, the impacts of three forward speeds (3, 5, and 7 km.hô€€€ 1), two tillage depth (100 and
150 mm), and two rotational speed (180 and 230 rpm) on the rotary tiller power consumption were examined,
along with an investigation of surface soil mixing in the field. Analysis of variance on the field data indicated that
all treatments and their two-way interactions, except for the three-way interaction, had significant effects on
power consumption at the 5 % probability level. The simulation successfully predicted power consumption and
surface soil mixing, with an average mean relative percentage error of 6.65 % and 9.32 %, respectively. To
develop a model for predicting power consumption, tillage operations under 12 additional conditions of soil
density and moisture content were simulated utilizing EDEM 2022 software. The mean relative percentage error
between the predicted power consumption results by the regression model and the simulation and field data was
calculated to be 7.68 % and 7.31 %, respectively, which are within the acceptable range. In this study, the highest
level of mixing occurred at 1/3–1/2 of the tillage depth, with the ratio of rotor linear speed to forward speed
values between 2 and 5. The findings indicate that the discrete element method (DEM) is a powerful method
capable of optimizing and designing rotary tillers.
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