geaps grain quality course 26 february 2020aeration, grain temp monitoring, level measuring...

Aeration, Grain Temp Monitoring, Level MeasuringPresented by:

Scott Chant President, Safe-Grain, Inc./ Maxi-Tronic, Inc.

GEAPS Grain Quality Course

26 February 2020

© 2020 Safe-Grain, Inc.

GRAIN VALUES TODAY = SERIOUS COIN

=

•Typical 500,000 bushel bin •500,000 Bu. Corn @ $3.50 = $1,750,000 •500,000 Bu. Beans @ $8.50 = $4,250,000 •500,000 Bu. Wheat @ $4.50 = $2,250,000

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC


http://www.allwhitebackground.com/corn.htmlhttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/

ALCHEMY • Is grain aeration an art or a science?• Alchemy was the science of turning a

base element into gold.

• Grain aeration has been described as a similar science.

• Many operators may feel that their merchandisers buy poor quality grain and expect the superintendent to turn the junk into “gold”.


Storage Management

•Grandpa factor -this is how we have always done it…..


Procedures

•Drying / wet grain storage•Calculating shrink

• Dryer cleaned at least once per week• Length wet grain is held• Segregating wet grain• Determining grain moisture level• Procedures for dryer fire or smoldering grain• Who is in charge of all of these items???


Procedures

• Binning• Are bins cleaned & fumigated properly?• Are the bins cored after filling?• Factors determining binning decisions?• Is there an inventory method?• What is the schedule for bin emptying, cleanout, inspection?• Who is in charge of all of these items???


Procedures


Where to go with this load?

Aeration Overview

• What is the main goal of storing grain? • Grain quality may be maintained but it will not be improved.

• Grain can be • segregated, • cleaned, • dried, • aerated, • fumigated, • or transferred –

• The incoming quality is as good as it will ever be.


Aeration Overview

• What is the difference between these items?

• Will any of these items ever be better than they are right now????

• The incoming quality is as good as it will ever be.


Aeration Overview

•Can you make bread or corn “un-moldy”?


Enemies Of Grain

•INSECTS•MOLD & FUNGI•MOISTURE•HEAT


Shelf Life Of Grain

• Shelf life of the product is • a function of product temperature and moisture

• Insects will cause more problems • with grain temperatures above 56° F / 13° C• in products like wheat

• Mold likes moisture and mold is always a problem-• especially with grain temperatures above 48° F / 9° C• in products like corn and soy beans


What Does Grain Aeration Do?

• It changes the temperature of stored grain by using a fan to move outside air through the grain.

• Most of the time the grain will be cooled but there may also be occasions to raise the temperature of the grain.

• Thus the goal of aeration management is to “safely” change the temperature of the stored product to a temperature sufficient for safe storage.


Aeration Equipment Design Criteria and Equipment

•What is it going to look like when you are done?•Holding wet grain•Cooling dry grain•Long / short term storage management•Warming dry grain in the spring or summer


Shelf Life Of Grain

• Shelf life of the product is a function of product temperature and moisture

• The purpose of aeration is to maintain a consistent relationship between grain temperature and outside air temperatures

• Which will minimize moisture migration and

• Keep grain temperatures low to minimize deterioration rates.

• Please keep in mind that quality can go to heck in a hurry!!!


Storage AirTemperature

15% days

20% days

25% days

30% days

24 C - 75 F 116 12.1 4.3 2.6

21 C - 70 F 155 16.1 5.8 3.5

18 C - 65 F 207 21.5 7.8 4.6

16 C - 60 F 259 27 9.6 5.8

13 C - 55 F 337 35 12.5 7.5

10 C - 50 F 466 48 17 10

7 C - 45 F 725 75 27 16

4 C - 40 F 906 94 34 20

2 C - 35 F 1140 118 42 25

Safe Corn Storage At Various Grain Moisture

Contents And Grain Temperatures

Aeration Strategy

• Based on where are we going and what will it look like when we are done?

• Factors:• Wet grain• Dry grain • High value product • Long term storage• Short term storage• Type of storage structure

• What could go wrong?


Grain Storage Life WheelFahrenheit

1

2

4

8

16

32

64

128

256

1,024

90°

70°

75°

80°

85°

65°

40°

45°

50°

55°

60°

35°

95° 24%

12%

13%

14%

15%

16%

17%

18%

19%

20%

21%

22%

23%

DAYS

Grain MoistureGrain Temperature

512

Examples:15% moisture corn @ 40° F has over 512 days of safe storage life.15% moisture corn @ 80° F has about 32 days of safe storage life.21% moisture corn @ 50° F has about 32 days of safe storage life.* Based on 1/2% dry matter decomposition.Safe storage periods shown above 75° F and 25% moisture content are extremely unstable.Grain can and will go out of condition rapidly in an unstable state.

Safe-Grain, Inc. / Maxi-Tronic, Inc.417 Wards Corner Rd. │ Loveland, OH 45140 USA

Tel: 513.398.2500 │ Fax: 513.398.2536

www.safegrain.com │ www.maxitronic.com

Quality Control Equipment For Your Grain Since 1954GRAIN AERATION | DUST CONTROL | TEMERATURE DETECTION | LEVEL MONITORING | MOTION HAZARD

MONITORING & CONTROL

© 2018 © 2020 Safe-Grain, Inc.

http://www.safegrain.com/http://www.maxitronic.com/

Who Wins???

Rate Summer Fall Winter

½ CFM/Bu 16 Hours 24 Hours 32 Hours

1/5 CFM/Bu 40 60 90

1/7 CFM/Bu 56 84 112

1/10 CFM/Bu 80 120 160

1/15 CFM/Bu 120 180 240

1/20 CFM/Bu 160 240 320


Approximate Cooling Times to Raise or Lower Grain Temperature to Outside Air Temperature

•Will the fans “win” •or will the mold and bugs “win”???

Selecting Aeration Material

• The main goal:

• Start with a well designed and balanced system.

• Velocity and volume.

• Including roof vents.


Point of Diminishing Returns

• Replace a 5,000 BPH leg with 15,000 BPH

• Keep the old 5,000 BPH distributor and spouting

- What happens?

• Double the fans on a bin -• Keep the venting, tunnel

openings, perforated floor the same

- What happens????© 2020 Safe-Grain, Inc.

Resistance

• Air follows the path of least resistance-just like water, electricity, …and some employees


Push Or Pull –Which Is Best?• The answer: it depends

on your needs and budget but

• “POSITIVE” OR PRESSURE (push up) with

• ROOF EXHAUST FAN” system

• Offers the most flexibility to the operator.


Condensation

• A temperature differential of 10 ° C / 15° F is the magic number for condensation to occur.

• Water vapor turns to water liquid.


This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-ND

http://flickr.com/photos/mrurganci/4272373868https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/

Negative Aeration No-no

• Watch out when the outside temperature is right at freezing!!!

• Frozen vents = Disaster


Size the equipment to do the job

Aeration System• Fan• Supply Duct• Perforated Duct• Venting & Exhaust Fans


Positive Air

• 1/5 or 0.20 CFM is recommended

• Some air is better than no air• Avoid condensation with roof

exhaust system fans

© 2020 Safe-Grain, Inc.PLENUM

Positive Air With Exhaust Fans

• Main Fans = 100% Air• Roof Vents = 100% Air +

25% To 60%• Roof Exhaust Fans =

125% to 160% Main Fans


Anti-condensation Air With Exhaust Fans

• Roof Exhaust Fans = 125% to 160% of Main Fans

• SafeTrack™ Relay auto-control option

• Or manual operation


Exhaust Fan Control • Let SafeTrack™ run or • Manually control exhaust

fans 30-60 minutes after main fans are turned off


This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC

http://pngimg.com/download/6665https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/

Roof Vents

• Tend to plug faster in wet bins than in dry grain storage bins


3 Rules

•Three simple rules for successful grain storage•Rule #1 keep stored grain as uniform as possible -temperature, quality, and moisture

•Rule #2 try to run fans when the outside ambient temperature is within 15° F of the grain temperature

•Rule #3 when you start an aeration front- finish the aeration front


Typical Aeration Conditions

•Holding wet grain•Cooling dry grain •Long /short term storage maintenance•Warming dry grain in the spring


Cooling Dry Grain

• Start fans as soon as the grain covers the aeration tunnel

• Cool to 35° to 40° F (2 to 4 ° C) as quickly as possible

• Run fans continuously until desired temperature is reached

• Turn the fans off when desired temperature is reached


Spring & Summer Long Term Storage

• Exhaust fans may be run without main fans on hot summer days

• Prevent condensation caused by temperature differentials of over 15° F between the ambient air temperature and the dead air space inside the silo.


Long / Short Term Winter Storage

• Monitor the grain temperature• If the grain temperature is stable• the grain is stable• no further aeration is required or

recommended. • The cost of covering the positive

fan inlets using inlet dampers • can be justified.

• Negative fans should always have discharge dampers covering the fan opening as a matter of safety.


Spring & Summer Long Term Storage

•If the decision is made to warm up the grain from 35°F to 48°F ± it • should be done when expected fair weather periods provide

sufficient fan operation time to warm the grain• Warming the grain above 48°F [9°C]

• will increase potential mold growth opportunities and • above 56°F [14°C] will increase insect problems


Smell, Look, Listen, & Test

• Use your senses-• Does the fan sound like it

is struggling?• What is the fan’s amp

load as a % of full load amps?

• Is air going the wrong direction?

© 2020 Safe-Grain, Inc.This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SAThis Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC

http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-164-jhttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/http://pngimg.com/download/25444https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/

WHAT’S WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE ?

Things To Look Out For


Things To Look For

•Perfect world•A clean bin will improve your odds of successful grain storage

•Over filling is bad too!!


Velocity Problems

RESTRICTED AIRFLOW!


EXTRA STORAGE SPACE


Recipe For Disaster

200 MPH DUCT TAPE

Permanent Repairs???


Giving Mold A Head Start On The This Year’s Crop


MOLD HEAVEN

GRAIN TEMPERATURE DETECTION


Grain Temperature Detection

•WHY TEMPERATURE DETECTION OVERVIEW

•How do you measure grain quality inside of a bin/silo?

•How can we look inside of the bin/silo?

•The best, fastest, most reliable, and least expensive method is to know the grain temperature


•PC BASED SYSTEMS

•PORTABLE SYSTEMS




• If the temperature of the grain is changing (less than a 3-10 degree change can be significant)

• Why ??• Mold growth• Moisture migration• Hot grain dumped in the wrong bin• Insect infestation• Human variables like someone left the

man hatch open


Enemies of grain

SAFE-GRAIN INC.

3530 IRWIN-SIMPSON RD.

MASON, OH. 45040

TEL 513.398.2500 FAX 513.398.2536 www.safegrain.com

QUALITY CONTROL EQUIPMENT FOR YOUR GRAIN SINCE 1954

GRAIN AERATION DUST CONTROL TEMPERATURE DETECTION

How Do Temperature Cables Actually Work???



If Grain Stacked up like Sugar Cubes…

•There are no air gaps in stacked sugar cubes

•But in grain…•We have gaps or voids between the grain with air surrounding grain kernels

•That allows for extremely representative sampling of grain temperature


Temperature Cable Coverage

Because of the voids between grain -The expected temperature sensor coverage range is about 10’ to 12’ from the sensor.

So• Aeration fans NOT RUNNING-in a 24 To 72 hour time frame –we should see what is going on inside the bin

• Aeration fans RUNNING –basically immediately 24 To 72 hours –we should see what is going on in the bin

60' [183 m] Dia Silo With 11 Cables© 2020 Safe-Grain, Inc.

Sensor Spacing


Sensor SpacingTypically on 6’, 7’ or 8’ centerlines(1.83 M, 2.13 M, or 2.44 M centerlines)

TC Sphere of Influence


1.Grain temperature detection is a very representative type of sampling.Corn and large grains are about 2/3 grain and 1/3 air. Smaller grains like wheat are more compact.2. With that said- there are always gaps in the product that allow convection air currents to move. 3. Cold air being heavier makes the warm air “sink” inside the bin. 4. We actually are reading the air temperature surrounding the grain. 5. The air temperature between the grain is a very representative sample of the grain temperature.• 10’ [30M] to 12’ [37m]• 24 To 72 hours – should see what is “going on”

inside the bin.• Overlapping sensors = Redundant Coverage

Extended Coverage

1. Grain temperature detection is a very representative type of sampling.Corn and large grains are about 2/3 grain +/-and 1/3 +/- air. Smaller grains like wheat are more compact.2. With that said- there are always gaps in the product that allow convection air currents to move. 3. Cold air being heavier makes the warm air “sink” inside the bin causing the air to move inside the bin. 4. We actually are reading the air temperature surrounding the grain. 5. Also- Because of the overlapping sensor coverage – we have redundant verifications of the grain condition


Temperature Cable Installation – Sloped Roof Steel Tank


• Portable instrument systems

How do we obtain temperature data from cables?

• PC based systems• Wireless or hardwired


Grain Temperature Detection Systems

• Are the grain temperatures read & recorded • Daily?• Weekly?

• Do the grain temperature detection cables work properly?


Main Screen on PC


Detailed Reports

• LOOK FOR THE EXCEPTIONS


Conclusion

•In conclusion, it is always the operator’s responsibility to monitor the quality of the grain.

•Moisture migration, mold activity, and insect infestation threaten the quality and condition of stored grain.

•It is up to the operator to monitor the temperature, the odor, and the visual appearance of the grain to interpret the condition of the grain.

•It is up to the operator to take prudent steps such as aeration, fumigation, and moving or turning the grain as required.


More info???

•www.Safegrain.Com• General Checklist For Inventory Control Of Stored Grain • Grain Storage Life Wheel

•www.Geaps.Com• Distance Education Program• https://www.geaps.com/education/distance-education/


http://www.safegrain.com/http://www.geaps.com/

THANK YOU GEAPS!

` `


www.safegrain.com

Aeration, Grain Temp Monitoring, Level MeasuringGRAIN VALUES TODAY = SERIOUS COINALCHEMYStorage ManagementProceduresProceduresProceduresAeration OverviewAeration OverviewAeration OverviewEnemies Of GrainShelf Life Of GrainWhat Does Grain Aeration Do?Aeration Equipment Design Criteria and EquipmentShelf Life Of GrainAeration StrategyGrain Storage Life Wheel�FahrenheitWho Wins??? Selecting Aeration MaterialPoint of Diminishing ReturnsResistancePush Or Pull – �Which Is Best?CondensationNegative Aeration No-noSize the equipment to do the jobPositive AirPositive Air With Exhaust FansAnti-condensation Air With Exhaust FansExhaust Fan ControlRoof Vents3 RulesTypical Aeration ConditionsCooling Dry GrainSpring & Summer Long Term StorageLong / Short Term Winter StorageSpring & Summer Long Term StorageSmell, Look, Listen, & TestThings To Look Out ForThings To Look ForVelocity ProblemsRecipe For DisasterPermanent Repairs???MOLD HEAVENSafety FirstGRAIN TEMPERATURE DETECTIONGrain Temperature DetectionGrain Temperature �DetectionGrain Temperature DetectionGrain Temperature DetectionIf Grain Stacked up like Sugar Cubes…Temperature Cable CoverageSensor SpacingTC Sphere of InfluenceExtended Coverage��1. Grain temperature detection is a very representative type of sampling.�Corn and large grains are about 2/3 grain +/- and 1/3 +/- air. Smaller grains like wheat are more compact.�2. With that said- there are always gaps in the product that allow convection air currents to move. �3. Cold air being heavier makes the warm air “sink” inside the bin causing the air to move inside the bin. �4. We actually are reading the air temperature surrounding the grain. �5. Also- Because of the overlapping sensor coverage – we have redundant verifications of the grain condition�Temperature Cable Installation – Sloped Roof Steel Tank �How do we obtain temperature data from cables?Grain Temperature Detection SystemsMain Screen on PCDetailed Reports ConclusionWhat could go wrong?More info???THANK YOU GEAPS!

geaps grain quality course 26 february 2020aeration, grain temp monitoring, level measuring...

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