The aim of this research was to provide values for different material properties considered in either traditional or more recent numerical silo design methods. Different samples of granular agricultural materials commonly stored in silos were tested. Common geotechnical devices have been used in order to make the replications easier. Based on these experiments it was determined that the different material properties were not affected by the test velocity, except in the case of Poisson ratio. From a practical point of view, the test velocity correlates well with the sliding velocity of grain during discharge. The values obtained for material properties considered in traditional silo design methods were similar to those reported by other authors. No significant differences were observed in the results obtained when using either the square shear box or the circular shear cell. The same conclusion was reached when comparing the results from direct shear tests with preconsolidated and unconsolidated samples. This means that simplified devices and procedures can be used in agricultural grains against other products. Finally, a table with the recommended values for the different parameters determined for each sample tested was provided in this work.

The mechanical properties of the materials stored in agricultural silos determine the loads they generate under static and dynamic conditions. The present work describes the mechanical properties of wheat, maize and wood pellets. Direct shear and triaxial assay devices, and oedometers (all commonly used in geotechnical assays), were used to determine these materials’ internal angle of friction, Poisson’s ratio, Young’s modulus, apparent specific weight, etc. The results for wheat and maize were similar to those previously reported by other authors. For the wood pellets, the results for the internal angle of friction and apparent specific weight were also similar to those found in the literature. However, this is a relatively new type of material, and few results of this type have been reported, certainly not enough for reference values to be available. This work is the first to report this material’s dilatancy angle and Poisson’s ratio. A table is provided with suggested reference values for the studied mechanical properties of each of the test materials; these can be used in silo load calculations involving numerical methods.