The objective of the research is to determine energy indicators of a screw cutterbar for ameliorative clipper under the different angles of mowed surface and moving speed, as well as the choice of base chassis (tractor). At the first stage laboratory study was conducted, during the study we determined the values of power required for driving a cutterbar, cutting stems of cane, grinding and transport of mowed mass. Torque measurements were made at a constant speed by changing an angle of mowed surface 0; 15; 30; 45°. Then another speed was set and the experiment was repeated again in the same sequence. Forward speeds of a cutterbar were changed in the following sequence: 0.25; 0.75; 1.25 m/sec. The laboratory experiments results in determine that power required for grinding and transport of cane over all experiments actually doesn’t change. Significant changes were found for power-intensity of the process of cane stems cutting under the variation of moving speed of a cutterbar. Results of laboratory data processing show that change of an angle of mowed surface has insignificant impact on power costs of screw cutterbar. Change of an angle of mowed surface has no influence on the moving speed of screw cutterbar. The main effect on the increasing of power costs for cutting cane stems has the variation of forward speed of a screw cutterbar. The research resulted in the selection of basic chassis (tractor) of class 1.4 ton-force, which in the unit with the clipper equipped by screw cutterbar will provide the sustainable technological process, while the motor loading (power 59 kW) of a tractor is 41 %.
Keywords: screw cutterbar, energy indicators, torque, power, variance analysis, forward speed, angle of mowed surface.
