MACHINES for treating seeds of GRAIN CROPS

The main components of high-quality seed treatment - the uniformity and completeness of their treatment with toxic chemicals and the preservation of seeds of crops by the working bodies of machines – depend, to a great extent, on the perfection of technical means and the qualified use of the seed treater.

Treating the seeds of agricultural crops is the first and necessary step to limiting diseases, the pathogens of which spread with seeds. Simultaneously with the use of broad-spectrum treating agents for the treatment of grain seeds, it is recommended to use plant growth regulators and trace elements, which, in appropriate doses for certain agricultural crops, stimulate plant development and increase their productivity.

For seed treatment of grain crops in Ukraine, our company ALC “Lvivagromashproekt” manufactures and uses a fairly wide range of different machines, which include stationary or mobile grain treaters of chamber or auger types. Among such technical means, high-performance mobile chamber grain treaters PK-20 “Super” P and PK-20-02 “Super” P are mainly used, with the help of which the treated seeds are loaded into the autoloader of seeders, and auger treaters of the PNSh-5 (P) "Hospodar" and PNSh-3 (P) "Farmer" type with loading of treated seeds into bags.

The treaters PKS-20 PT are used to disinfect seeds of grain crops at stationary units in technological lines for seed preparation.

The quality of seed treatment by the mentioned technical means depends on the perfection of the operational process carried out by the applied treating agents, which determines their technical level.

Auger seed treaters

Auger seed treaters carry out the process of applying treating agents to seeds by feeding dosed flows of seeds and the preparation into the auger and mixing them during transportation to the discharge throat. Stationary and mobile grain seed treaters of this type technologically differ only in the method of feeding seeds into the hopper: for this purpose, mobile ones are equipped with a special auger for picking seeds from heaps, while stationary ones are loaded with the help of additional devices or manually.

The PNSh-5 (P) Hospodar, PK-20 "Super" (P) and PK-20-02 "Super" (P) mobile seed treaters use augers to pick up the seeds from the heap and feed them into the hopper, from where they enter the auger through the dosing valve along with the preparation that is applied to the seeds during their transportation to the discharge throat.

Advantages and disadvantages of auger seed treaters:

• simplicity of construction;

• high quality seed treatment;

• impossibility of treating seeds of sunflower, corn, legumes.

Chamber seed treaters

The operational process of chamber seed treaters of grain crops includes: dosing and feeding of seeds and working fluid into the treating chamber, formation of the flow of seeds in the form of an empty cylinder, their preliminary treatment with drops of sprayed liquid preparation in a special chamber.

Seed treaters of this type, due to the preliminary treatment of seeds with a cross flow of drops of the preparation in the treating chamber, ensure better uniformity of seed treatment with the preparation than auger ones. However, chamber treaters for grain crops cannot do without additional mixing of seeds with an auger, since the treating chamber does not provide the required quality of seed treatment.

The advantages of chamber seed treaters:

• better uniformity of seed treatment with the preparation compared to auger ones;

• uniform treatment of seeds with the preparation in the treating chamber compared to auger ones.

These seed treaters of grain crops are designed for productivity of up to 20 t/h and are intended for the treatment of seeds of grain, leguminous and technical crops with working liquids of pesticides and can be used in special treatment departments of seed treatment plants, treatment units, at seed treatment sites of agricultural enterprises and farms.