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On-farm Storage of Winter Canola: Study of Lined and Unlined Steel Bins

This research study explores the use of grain bag material to line steel bins for the storage of canola seed. The objective is to allow producers to use old infrastructure without aeration for canola storage. The study examines factors such as temperature, grade, free fatty acid content, and visual inspection.

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On-farm Storage of Winter Canola: Study of Lined and Unlined Steel Bins

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  1. On-farm Storage of WinterCanola: Study of Lined and Unlined Steel Bins Stored Products Research and Education Center Carol Jones, PhD Kevin Moore, Research Engineer Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Oklahoma State University

  2. Canola Storage Concerns • Canola seed is very small • 115,000 seeds per pound • High oil content: ~ 40% • “Sweat” or extended respiration producing heat and moisture for 6-8 weeks

  3. Current Canola Handling • Sell and ship out of the field to the crusher in Okla. City • Flat storage with aeration at the crusher • Truck to country elevators. There it goes into steel bins • Grain bags on the ground have been used successfully on farm and at the elevator • BUT… • Producers and smaller elevators wish to use older bins (steel and concrete) and to segregate from other grain and seeds.

  4. Challenges of Storing CanolaOn-Farm • Older bins and small seeds are not a good mix • No aeration systems • Limited space for grain bags • Animal and weather related problems for grain bags on ground • Grain bags take up land space and require land preparation

  5. Objective: Seek a method to allow producers to use old infrastructure without aeration for canola storage Thank you, Anderson’s and NC213, for allowing us to launch this project! Goals: • Use grain bag material to line steel bins to hold canola in sub-optimal storage structures • The “sweat” period would be reduced with the sealed atmosphere storage. • Temperature, Grade, FFA, and visual inspection

  6. Preparation and Loading of Bins • 170 bu bins, no aeration or ventilation • Liner: 9’ diameter polyethylene grain bag • donated by Delta Grain Bag Systems, Inc. of Monette, AR West East

  7. Evenly distribute bag material in the the binNO EASY TASK!!!Eventually used a leaf blower to inflate the bag inside the binSealed the top of the bag with a heat sealer after installation and filling. Bottom already sealed before installation

  8. Installed a silage bag vent at the top for a sampling port • Duct taped around temperature cable, sealed as effectively as possible but not airtight • Samples collected from all 6 bins with 5’ long grain trier and transported to Enid Grain Inspection for grading,

  9. Loading of Bins • June 4th – • 1000 bu of “Cropland 115” canola received from Kingfisher, OK immediately after harvest, placed in two 500 bu bins

  10. June 5th and 6th, • Moved from 500 bu bins to 170 bu bins • 3 lined and 3 unlined, • 6’ diameter steel bins, • no aeration, fairly low quality bins due to rust West East

  11. Baseline • Grade 1, • 35.1% avg oil content, • 9.1% avg moisture content

  12. Temperature Testing and Data Collection • StorMax temperature cable located roughly centerline of the bins, • Temps collected 3 days a week for first three months and two days a week after that, • Temps recorded at six depths

  13. Temperature: Average by bin

  14. Temperature: Lined vs Unlined

  15. Lined Bins

  16. Un-Lined Bins

  17. FFA Testing • Tested according to AOCS Ca 5a-40 method (titration) • Sampled weekly for 2 months (June and July) • Every 2 weeks for 2 months (August and September) • Monthly after that

  18. FFA Testing Results • No significant difference in FFA between lined and unlined storage bins during year 1 of the study (α=0.05) • FFA stayed below 1% for the duration of storage • FFA increased during storage following a quadratic trend, initial FFA was a mean of 0.25% and appears to have leveled off at approximately 0.8%

  19. Grading • Graded by Enid Grain Inspection • At binning, after 6 weeks, and after 6 months • More frequent grading needed, missed the transition from Grade 1 to sample grade • All bins still Grade 1 at 6 weeks

  20. Bins 1, 4, 5, and 6 • Sample grade at 6 months due to musty or sour smell • Visible mold (first noted October 31) • Appears to be light surface mold from condensation at the top of the unlined bins • Two of the lined bins have a crust of mold at the top of the bag, approximately 1” thick near sample port • Bin 4 at a depth of 1.5-2 feet has considerable resistance to insertion of the trier, once this region is passed insertion of the trier becomes easier

  21. Grading • Infestation of soldier flies in bottom of bin 4 due to water infiltration at bottom of bin (first observed August 27)

  22. Grading • Bins 2 and 3 are still Grade 1, • One bin is lined and one is not

  23. What are we learning? • Lining bins may keep Temperature down • Is that a function of less physiochemical oxidative activity? • FFA development was not critical in either lined or unlined • Questions we still have for next year: • How would lined bins compare to aerated bins? • When did we lose the Grade 1? • How can we manage condensation in the bags? • Germination? • Seasonal differences (ambient T challenges, seed quality) • Commercial scale

  24. Questions?

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