Emulsifying properties of cellulose nanocrystals with different structures and morphologies from various solanaceous vegetable residues.

The stems of solanaceous vegetables with attractive source of cellulose, have caused severe environmental problems as agricultural residues. For the reutilization of the residues, this study isolated cellulose nanocrystals (CNs) from the stems of tomato, eggplant, and pepper to explore their applications in Pickering emulsions. Detailed analyses of the crystalline structure and morphology revealed differences in their emulsifying properties.

Evaluation of airflow pattern and thermal behavior of the arched greenhouses with designed roof ventilation scenarios using CFD simulation.

Natural ventilation is an effective energy-saving strategy conducive to promoting sustainable agricultural production. A comprehensive numerical simulation is performed to predict the airflow pattern and thermal behavior in different arched greenhouses. The defined arc chord angle and position angle are employed to examine the natural ventilation process and corresponding roof vent scenarios.

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) tuber-root modeling method based on physical properties.

The development of tuber-root models based on the physical properties of the root system of a plant is a prominent but complicated task. In this paper, a method for the construction of a 3D model of a potato tuber-root system is proposed, based on determining the characterization parameters of the potato tuber-root model. Three early maturing potato varieties, widely planted in Northeast China, were selected as the research objects.

Effect of internal surface structure of the north wall on Chinese solar greenhouse thermal microclimate based on computational fluid dynamics.

Chinese solar greenhouses are unique facility agriculture buildings and widely used in northeastern China, providing a favorable requirement for crop growth. The north wall configurations play an essential role in heat storage and thermal insulation and directly affect the management of the internal environment. This research is devoted to further improve the thermal performance of the greenhouse and explore the potential of the north wall.

Development of machine-vision system for gap inspection of muskmelon grafted seedlings.

Grafting robots have been developed in the world, but some auxiliary works such as gap-inspecting for grafted seedlings still need to be done by human. An machine-vision system of gap inspection for grafted muskmelon seedlings was developed in this study. The image acquiring system consists of a CCD camera, a lens and a front white lighting source.