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ThesisItem Restricted Optimization of greenhouse drying process for white button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus)(Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, 2016) Sidhu, Jashandeep Singh; Amarjit SinghThe present study entitled “Studies on optimization of greenhouse drying process for white button mushroom (Agaricus bisporous)” was carried out in the Department of Processing and Food Engineering, Punjab Agricultural University. Mushrooms were pretreated with citric acid and samples without treatment were kept as control. The treated and untreated mushroom samples were dried in greenhouse and open sun during the month of October, 2015.On the basis of microclimate parameters, a mathematical thermal model “BITGREEN” for greenhouse was developed to optimize the drying conditions. The developed model was working satisfactorily to predict the microclimate inside the greenhouse. The drying parameters studied were moisture content, moisture ratio, drying rate, drying air temperatures, solar intensity and relative humidity. The quality parameters included rehydration ratio, shrinkage ratio, colour, texture (hardness), bulk density, protein content and overall acceptability. Moisture content of dehydrated mushrooms reduced from 88-90 (% wb) to 6.5 (% wb) for greenhouse drying (28-46°C) in 48 hours and 8.2 (% wb) for open sun drying (25-32°C) in 72 hours. The Lewis model showed best adequacy of fit for drying of mushrooms. The dried mushrooms were packed in two packaging materials viz. LDPE and PP and stored under refrigerated and ambient conditions for three months. The quality attributes of stored product like colour, texture, rehydration ratio, shrinkage ratio, water gain and overall acceptability were evaluated at 15 days interval. The greenhouse dried mushrooms packed in polypropylene (PP) and stored under refrigerated conditions were found to be highly acceptable upto 75 days of storage. Benefit-Cost ratio of 1.36:1 for subsidized greenhouse revealed that it is profitable to dry mushrooms in greenhouse.ThesisItem Open Access Development of Oil Extraction Method from Kinnow Peel(Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, 2016) Sharma, Pallavi; Tarsem ChandThe study was conducted to develop an oil extraction method from kinnow peel on the basis of shredding of flavedo layer. Mechanical and Solar drying of peel was performed and drying kinetics and physico-chemical characteristics were evaluated. Oil was extracted from fresh peel either by using physical or hydrodistillation method alone or in combination whereas only hydrodistillation method was used in case of dried peel. Qualitative and quantitative analysis of the oil was done. It was observed that oil yield in physical method was 0.179% with a shredding efficiency and extraction time of 88.94% and 25 minutes respectively. The initial and final moisture content of kinnow peel was 316-354.80% and 7.06-7.4% respectively. Luminous intensity and yellowness of peel decreased significantly (p<0.05) in both mechanical and solar drying. Colour difference (∆E) of kinnow peel ranged from 15.33-18.36. Oil retention capacity, total phenols, flavanols, total antioxidant capacity and swelling index decreased significantly (p<0.05) on drying whereas water retention capacity and solubility increased. Highest oil yield was obtained from hydrodistillation from mechanically dried powder. Colour values of varied significantly (p<0.05) with respect to oil extraction method. Physically extracted oil showed highest redness (a) value and whereas highest yellowness (b) was shown by hydrodistilled oil from fresh peel. Saponification value, acid value, specific gravity, refractive index of oil ranged from 181.73-186.90 mg KOH/ g oil, 3.46-5.023 mg KOH / g oil, 0.803-0.856 and1.352-1.486 respectively.ThesisItem Open Access Design and Optimization of Modified Atmosphere Packaging for black carrot (Dacus carota L.)(Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, 2016) Singla, Mohit; Ashok KumarThe present study was undertaken to Design and optimization of Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) for black carrot (Dacus carota L.) to obtain the maximum shelf life on the basis of quality attributes and sensory evaluation during the storage study experiment. Respiration and transpiration rates of black carrot at different temperatures viz. 5, 10 and 15°C were determined. The respiration rate was described assuming the mixed model inhibition in the enzyme kinetics model. Arrhenius relationship was used to explain the temperature dependence of respiration rate, respiratory quotient and transpiration rate of fresh black carrot. A theoretical analysis for design of MAP for selection of appropriate packaging film was carried out by matching the data obtained in respiration study with the permeabilities of commercially available packaging films. Black carrot was packed in LDPE and stored under different conditions such as film thickness: 100, 150, 200 gauge; package fill weight = 100, 300, 500g; level of perforations: 0, 2, 4; storage temperature: 5, 10, 15°C. The qualitative analysis of black carrot throughout the storage study was done in terms physiological loss in weight, total colour difference, firmness, total soluble solids, antioxidants, flavonoids and anthocyanins. Sensory evaluation was done on the basis of visual appearance, odour rating and water accumulation. The study also revealed that the low temperature storage better retained the quality and quantity of fresh black carrot during its storage. MAP along with low temperature storage helped in enhancing shelf life of fresh black carrot upto 24 days. The optimized conditions obtained for shelf life extension of black carrot under MAP by using response surface methodology was temperature: 5°C, film thickness: 200 gauge, fill weight: 500 g, perforations: 0.ThesisItem Open Access EFFECT OF PACKAGING MATERIAL ON SHELF LIFE AND QUALITY OF GRAPES (Vitis vinifera L.)(PAU Ludhiana, 2011) Landge Kishor Changdeo; Jarnail SinghThe effect of packaging material on shelf life and quality of grapes cv. Thomson seedless was studied. Material was packed with three different packaging materials viz. Low density polyethylene (LDPE) of 100 guage, Polypropylene (PP) of 90 guage and Laminated aluminum foil (LAF). These samples were stored at 5˚C and 90- 95 % RH in the cold chamber. Control group of grapes samples were stored at room temperature without packaging. During the study viscoelastic behavior, PLW, moisture content, colour , TSS, Ascorbic acid content and Titrable acidity were measured at an interval of 5 days. The grapes stored at refrigerated conditions have shelf life of four weeks as compared to the control samples which has seven days. The LDPE film showed the best performance in terms of maintaining the hardness of fruit. The thickness of loading for packaging containers of grapes was calculated to be 45 cm for samples stored with LDPE. The PLW, variation in moisture content (% db), change in L, a, b colour values was observed to be minimum with LDPE. The quality parameters like Ascorbic acid content, Titrable acidity were least affected with the LAF packaging. The PP was the most effective packaging material for maintaining TSS values of fresh grapes. All the parameters PLW, colour, TSS, Ascorbic acid etc. were observed to be decreased at a faster rate in samples stored at atmospheric conditions in comparison with the samples stored at refrigerated conditions.ThesisItem Restricted STUDIES ON THE PERFORMANCE OF C.I. ENGINE USING ETHYL ESTER AS AN ALTERNATIVE FUEL(PAU Ludhiana, 2011) Rajneesh Kumar; Anoop Kumar, DixitThe agriculture sector of the country is mainly dependent on diesel for its motive power and to a large extent for power applications. Increased farm mechanization in agriculture, further increases requirement of this depleting fuel source. To overcome the problems associated with the use of petroleum derived fuels, it becomes necessary to develop alternative fuels with properties comparable to petroleum based fuels. Among the alternative fuels, biodiesel fuel has received much attention in recent years for use in diesel engines and could be one alternative in the country to reduce petroleum diesel import. Research has been done in the country using methanol. But, methanol is toxic in nature. Ethanol is derived from biomass. Ethyl ester derived from plant oils by using ethanol brings extra carbon atoms through ethanol molecule which slightly increases the heat content and the cetane number. Ethyl esters have lower cloud and pour points than the methyl esters. This fact improves the cold start of engine. Jatropha plant oil is non edible oil so it was selected for preparation of ethyl ester. The available Jatropha oil had high free fatty acid therefore, a twostep transesterification process was used to prepare ester for the study. Fuel characteristics of different blends of ethyl ester and diesel were determined in terms of kinematic viscosity (cS), gross heating value (MJ/kg), density (g/cm3), flash point (ºC), cloud point (ºC) and pour point (ºC) and were compared with that of pure diesel fuel. Thereafter, five blends of ester and diesel were used as fuel at four levels of loads i.e. 0%, 25%, 50%, and 75% of the rated load for engine performance study at two different compression ratio (16.5:1 and 18.5:1) and compare the results with the results obtained in case of diesel fuel. Maximum recovery of ester was obtained by pretreating the oil with 5% H2SO4 and 20% ethanol and then its transesterification using 30% ethanol and 3% KOH. Kinematic viscosity (cS), density (g/cm3), flash point (ºC), cloud point (ºC) and pour point (ºC) of all blends of ethyl esters (B10, B20, B30 and B40) were higher than that of diesel and gross heating values (MJ/kg) of all biodiesel blends were less as compared to diesel. Nitric oxide (NOx) emissions in case of all biodiesel blends were more as compared to diesel. NOx concentration in exhaust gases was increased with increase of ester in blends and also increased with increase in compression ratio. Carbon monoxide (CO) emission for all biodiesel blends was less as compared to diesel. CO concentration in exhaust gases was decreased with increase in percentage of ester in the blend and also decreased with increase in compression ratio. Brake thermal efficiency for all biodiesel blends was more as compared to diesel. Brake thermal efficiency increased with increase in load and also increased with increase in compression ratio. Brake specific fuel consumption in case of blends was more as compared to diesel. Brake specific fuel consumption decreased with increase in load as well as with increase in compression ratio.ThesisItem Open Access PROCESS OPTIMIZATION FOR EXPRESSION OF OIL FROM DEHULLED SUNFLOWER (Helianthus annuus L.) SEEDS(PAU Ludhiana, 2013) Arul Selvam T; Tarsem ChandMechanical expression of oil from dehulled sunflower seed is highly desirable as it provides, at low cost, non-contaminated, nutritionally rich press cakes which can be processed into nutritious edible foods. Unfortunately, mechanical oil extraction process suffers from certain drawbacks. The dehulled sunflower seeds obstruct forward movement inside the expeller barrel due to the absence of hull portion and less friction. The main focus of the present study was to maximize the oil recovery and obtain nutritionally rich press cakes from dehulled sunflower seeds using mechanical oil expression. Physical and mechanical properties were studied under four different moisture content ranged from 6-18 % (d.b.). The results showed that the geometric mean diameter, surface area, volume, sphericity and aspect ratio, thousand seed/kernel weight, true density, porosity, the angle of repose, static coefficient of friction and rupture energy were found to be increasing linearly for seed and kernel. Whereas bulk density, initial cracking force and mean rupture force decreased linearly with the increase of moisture content for both seed and kernel under study. Pre treatments in the form of steaming and addition of bio-based friction materials such as rice bran and wheat bran at different levels were employed. Central composite rotatable design was used to generate a set of experiment at different pretreatment levels during oil expression. A statistical model predicted the maximum oil yield efficiency, maximum protein, minimum fibre, minimum residual oil, minimum chlorogenic acid, minimum free fatty acid and minimum peroxide value of dehulled sunflower oil and press cakes at these optimized variable conditions for rice bran incorporation: steaming time of 10 min, steaming pressure of 0.5 kg cm-2 and rice bran incorporation of 13.88g 100g-1 of dehulled sunflower seed. For wheat bran incorporation it was at steaming time of 15 min, steaming pressure of 1.00 kg cm-2 and wheat bran incorporation of 15g 100g-1 of dehulled sunflower seed. Using these variables results are validated under experimental condition in three independent replicates. Rice bran incorporated oil expression gave best results with high desirability value.ThesisItem Open Access Development of an Expert System to Estimate the Specifications of Submersible Pump System Based on Geographical Information(Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, 2016) Gurpreet Kaur; Derminder SinghEscalated need of water resources has created an issue of declination of water table depth in most of the parts of the state of Punjab (India) during past two decades. Thus there is an acute need to identify the spatial status of water table depth for the effective management of water resources. In this research, groundwater depth maps were prepared with the help of Geographical Information System and an expert system was developed using Java Standard Edition 7 which provide appropriate selection of submersible pump set and required associated components such as power cable wire diameter, length, generator capacity, ammeter rating, voltmeter rating, capacitor rating and Polyvinyl Chloride pipe diameter based on the spatial information of last 18 years (1998-2015) of ground water table for the state of Punjab. The developed system will be beneficial for the farmer’s in estimation of the required submersible pumping system and allied electrical components.ThesisItem Restricted Studies on effect of blade shape and rotor speed of rotavator on pulverization and mixing quality(PAU Ludhiana, 2013) Shiva Bhambota; G S, ManesA study was conducted at Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana to evaluate the performance of commercially available rotavator blade shapes to find out the best combination of blade shape and rotary speed of rotavator for tillage and mixing operations. Experiments were conducted on three blade shapes (L, C and J) at three rotor speeds (180, 215 and 250 rpm) in two types of soils S1 (sand 75.5%, silt 12.4% and clay 12.1 %) and S2 (sand 24.2%, silt 34.8% and clay 41%) to study the effect of blade shape and rotor speed on pulverization index, mixing index, percent reduction in bulk density and fuel consumption. These treatment combinations were compared with control (Pulverization with single pass of disc harrow followed by single pass of cultivator). For measuring pulverization index, soil samples were taken after single pass of rotavator. Standard sieve analysis method was used to find the mean mass diameter (MMD) of sample soil particles for mixing of crop mass after the operation of rotavator, the pieces of the crop which were exposed to 1/3rd of their length or more were collected and weighed to find mixing index. Percent reduction in bulk density before and after treatment by rotavator was calculated using core sampler method for pulverization and mixing operation. For measuring the fuel consumption; fuel flow meter was installed in the fuel line of the tractor. The results for each dependent parameter (pulverization index, mixing index, percent reduction in bulk density and fuel consumption) were analyzed on the basis of Completely Randomized Design (CRD) test using software “CPCS 1”. J shape blades gave minimum pulverization index (3.06 and 8.57 mm) and maximum mixing index (80.72 and 91.43 %) at 250 rpm rotor speed as compared to L and C shaped blades and control for both soils S1 and S2 respectively. The average fuel consumption was maximum for J shape blades followed by L and C shape blades respectively for both pulverization and mixing in both soil types. C shape blades have minimum fuel consumption as compared to other two blade shapes for both types of soil for pulverization and mixing operation respectively. So, J shape blade at 250 rpm rotor speed can be considered as the best combination for pulverization and mixing.ThesisItem Restricted Ergonomic evaluation of walk behind type self propelled paddy transplanter(Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, 2016) Goyal, Gagandeep; Chhuneja, N. K.The self propelled walk behind type paddy transplanters are gaining popularity as they require comparatively lesser initial investment and are easy to operate and maintain as compared to riding type. The ergonomic aspects of walk behind paddy transplanter are of great importance as the operator has to walk behind the machine for a distance of about 10-20 km for 8-hours a day and that also under puddled field conditions. Besides walking in field, stress due to mechanical vibrations, human workload, noise, etc. also affect performance of the operator. The research was planned to study the effect of operational parameters of walk behind self propelled paddy transplanter on physiological parameters, noise, vibrations and work-rest schedule. Hand-arm vibrations were the maximum along x-axis (vertical) and the minimum along y-axis (lateral). Soil type had non-significant effect on vibrations acceleration. However, vibrations increased with increase in forward speed of the paddy transplanter. The mean values of vibrations total value varied from 8.6 to 14.0 m/s2 among all the treatments. The equivalent 8-hours vibrations exposure was found to be ranging between 7.4 and 12.0 m/s2, which was very much higher than the limiting value of 2.8 m/s2 for safe operation of machine. The mean values of sound pressure level varied from 74.0 to 85.7 dB(A) among all the treatments. The mean values of oxygen consumption varied between 607.6 and 1052.6 ml/min with corresponding relative load between 18.1 and 37.3% among all the treatments. The mean values of energy expenditure rate varied between 12.7 and 22.0 kJ/min. The physiological workload was found to be in the category of light work at 1.3 and 1.8 km/h of forward speed of paddy transplanter; but, as moderate work at a forward speed of 2.3 km/h. The physiological responses viz. heart rate, volume of oxygen consumption, discomfort ratings and noise were within the desired limits at the maximum available forward speed of 2.3 km/h of the machine, which also gives the maximum possible field capacity. At this forward speed, a work schedule of about 45 minutes of operating the paddy transplanter followed by a rest of about 15 minutes is desired, which can be easily achieved if the two workers interchange their work after every 45 minutes.
