Resumen

GUTIERREZ VACA, César et al. Characteristic determination of the cutting blades for the mechanization harvesting of agave. Rev. Mex. Cienc. Agríc [online]. 2013, vol.4, n.1, pp.159-166. ISSN 2007-0934.

In Mexico agave harvesting is done manually and it takes a crew of jimadores, and for the producers, this representing 75% of the costs of cultivation. Saldaña (2012) propose to design a machine to optimize harvest times and costs, and to provide cutting and shredding plant material destined for the production of: bioethanol, compressed material (pellets) and other byproducts. Two main activities are performed during manual harvesting: leaves and heart cuttings; for the latter, cutting blades of different characteristics have been studied to select the lowest required cutting force. An experiment was designed with independent variables; thickness of the blade (3), angle of cutting edge (2), the cutting edge side (2) and angle of attack (3), using a universal tension machine for testing. We fixed a mechanism where the blades are fastened; and when moving the set, the sample of gave is cut, recording the dependent variable force. Assays were performed on sections of agave´s heart with uniform dimensions, conducted in 2010 at the premises of the University of Guanajuato. Using the SAS statistical package (SAS, 2001) we determined the best combination of factors evaluated in the model. The results showed that, the blade thickness 6.35 mm (1/4 inch), with a cutting edge angle of 30°, smooth cutting edge, and an angle of attack of 30° require less force to effect the cutting of the heart.

Palabras llave : Agave tequilana Weber; harvester; cutting; blade.