• Semester 1 (Day)

Synopsis

Agricultural  engineers are involved in the interactions of  machinery
and  soils.  Tillage, traction and compaction are processes which  are
of  vital interest in any agricultural system.  The response of a soil
to  an imposed stress, the various modes of soil failure, and detailed
soil  behaviour are investigated using classical theory  and  critical
state  soil mechanics.  The fundamentals of soil loosening by  tillage
tools and the development of tractive forces by wheels and tracks  are
outlined  and interpreted using these models of soil behaviour.   Soil
loadbearing  and the process and consequences of soil  compaction  are
investigated in the light of current research and understanding of its
implications  for  soil  properties  and  plant  growth.   Means   for
measuring and describing soil structure are discussed.