Comparison of different single disc type furrow openers in no till seeders with respect to furrow profile and draft force

This study was established to determine power consumption, soil physical parameters and furrow profile of different single disc type furrow openers in different soil moisture content, soil compaction level and working depth levels. The study was conducted in soil bin conditions located in the Department of Agricultural Machinery and Technologies Engineering of Agricultural Faculty of Ataturk University, Erzurum, Turkey. Five different types of disc coulters (plain, grooved, waved, concaved and serrated), two soil moisture contents (12%, 18%), two soil compaction levels (2 MPa, 3 MPa) ) and two working depths (50 mm, 75 mm) was taken into consideration as factors. The experiment was conducted in a split-split plot design with moisture content as main factor and soil compaction as sub factor with three replications. According to the results obtained; the lowest vertical force was detected on the flat type disk and the highest vertical force was detected on the concave type disk. The highest draft force was found on the wavy type disc, while the lowest value was found on the serrated type disc. When the side forces acting on the openers were examined, the minimum side force was found on the grooved type disc and the highest side force value appeared on the concave type disc. The highest penetration resistance measurements made from the bottom of the furrows after passing the openers was found with grooved type disc at 0-5 cm depth, a serrated type disc at 5-10 cm depth, and a concave type disc at 10-15 cm depth. The lowest penetration resistance measurements made from the edge of the furrows was obtained at 0-5 cm depth with serrated disc, at 5-10 cm depth with flat and wavy type discs and at 10-15 cm depth with flat type disc. Soil compaction results from both the bottom and the edge of furrows were found below 2 MPa which will not prevent plant growth. In the study, it was determined that the requirement for vertical, horizontal and side forces was less in loose and wet soils compared to the compacted and dry soil conditions. It has been identified that the furrow profile is more prominent when the depth of penetration was 75 mm, even though the furrow profiles were similar to each other. The furrow profiles, which were opened at 18% soil moisture content and 3 MPa compaction level were cleaner and closer to the target profile than the one obtained at 12% moisture content and 2 MPa compaction level.