Soil tillage is a very energy-intensive operation. A general expectation is to reduce energy consumption and reduce soil compaction with as few turns and interventions as possible. Thus, more and more attention is being paid to the use of active tillage machines. The aim of the present work is to test a new approach to optimize PTO-driven tilling machine operations regarding energy consumption. A real, active tillage machine, the MSS-140 type spading machine, was investigated in the Matlab^® Simscape™ environment. The solid model of the spading machine was built using actual dimensions. The work done by a single spade is broken down into elementary processes. The acting forces on the implement, in each elementary process for different advancing speeds, were modelled and calculated. The model is suitable for illustrating the dynamics of loads and for calculating the mechanical work. The model was also tested in comparison with real fuel consumption. The consumed fuel quantity was measured and the energy requirement for the model calculated at three advancing speeds. A comparison between the measured and calculated energy consumption values was made: the calculated results are similar to the measured values; the mean difference is 9.91%, with a standard deviation 3.3%.

The Mixed CAD Generating Method, developed by the first author and presented in previous papers, is able to generate gear teeth gaps from a special points cloud. The generation method requires only a few specific points from the cutting edges of the generating tools. These points can be obtained in a first approach through a simple drawing of the cutting edges. The drawings can use either mathematical equations, or simply the construction and design principles of the cutting tools. In the case of multi-edge cutting tools of a higher level of complexity, or in case of the absence of the edge equations, there exists a simpler approach. It consists in building a solid model, or obtaining the solid model of the tools from the tool’s designer or manufacturer. In these cases, the generating points are downloaded from the solid model. This paper presents two possibilities of obtaining these points with usual CAD methods.

The actual energy situation and the significant energy demand of agricultural production require the exploration and analysis of the general laws of the main processes in the field of energy, which is part of the borderline between the technical sciences and the agricultural sciences. Tillage machines change the physical properties of the soil, but at the same time the mechanical properties of the soil react to the implement. One of the basic works of seedbed preparation is harrowing. In this work we study the kinematics and dynamics of the active rotary harrow implements, taking into account the cutting resistance of the soil. The results obtained with the developed modeling methods, give reliable approximations to the experienced tilling processes.

Tillage is the most energy-intensive soil operation. In the actual energy situation is important to explore and analyze the physical laws of soil cultivation processes, that demand large energy quantities, at the border of technical- and agricultural sciences. We studied the physical phenomenon’s occurring during the work with a rotary tiller and approximated the energy requirements with a computer simulation using Matlab Simulink environment. The model used was a simplified solid model of an FPP-1,3 type rotary tiller, used previously in real experiments to determine fuel consumption at various working parameters. The results obtained with the dynamic simulation were compared with the real measurements.

Two kinds of phase stabilization mechanism are discussed and compared: the first is characteristic of the formation of bulk amorphous alloys, in which the high supercooling ability of multicomponent liquids is responsible for the glassy phase stabilization. Here the hindered nucleation of crystalline phases is the center phenomenon. The origin of this hindering is the slowing atomic mobility in the supercooling melt. In contrast the melt supercooling is negligible during the high entropy alloy formation. It is believed that stability of the crystalline single fcc phase is the consequence of the characteristic of high configurational entropy at high temperatures. However, the significance of this entropy-dominated stabilization is overestimated in several references. It has been concluded that transition metal contraction (arising from the d electron participation in the overall bonding state) does also contribute to the high temperature stability of fcc single phase in the high entropy alloys.

The plough is the basic machine for soil work. It is usually connected to the tractor by means of a suspension system. The suspension system is a bar-shaped arm system fixed to the tractor frame, which fixes and raises the attached machine in three points. Its role is significant. Single-sided ploughing on slopes creates some special situations. This phenomenon was observed during a plowing competition and in this paper we look for solutions related to this topic.