ANALYTICAL REVIEW OF TECHNICAL SOLUTIONS OF NEEDLE ROTARY TOOLS FOR APPLYING LIQUID FERTILIZERS TO THE SOIL LAYER

Abstract

The purpose of the research is to identify trends in the technical development of needle rotary means for injecting liquid mixtures into the soil layer, taking into account the essence of the technological operation, as a control action to change the state of the soil. Research methods - analysis and generalization of essential features of technical solutions of needle tools for processing and applying liquid fertilizers to the soil layer. In order to develop criteria for evaluating technical solutions, scientific research on the classification of tools of this type and generalized interpretations of the essence of technological operations of tillage, application of chemicals, sowing, etc. were preliminary analyzed. Research results. An analysis from the point of view of the possibility of controlling the process and the degree of its implementation by a specific instrument allows to assess the place of a specific tool in the development stage. In accordance with the "System of properties and indicators of soil condition" [Vetokhin 2009], any introduction / extraction of matter, energy and / or information is considered a controlling factor in changing the state of the system, the ultimate goal of which is to change the level of metabolic processes and, as a result, to change the yield. An increase in the information component of processes is considered to be a tendency in the development of agricultural technologies and technical means aimed at a radical reduction in resource consumption [Vetokhin, Altybaev 2019]. One of the first technical solutions of needle tools for applying liquid to the soil layer is known from the American patent of 1898 [Morris, 1898]. The aim of the inventor is to provide a device adapted to form a hole in the soil for receiving a plant and supplying water to the hole. The current state of the development of technical means is illustrated by the invention, patented in the USA, RF and EU, "Systems, methods and devices for the introduction of agricultural liquids" [Stoller et al., 2020], [Radtke et al., 2020], [Levy et al., 2015]. A qualitatively new level is achieved by the inclusion of sensors of the current state of the soil in the process control system. Sensors come in contact with the soil to monitor its condition, in particular, density, temperature, humidity, percentage of carbon, organic matter, potassium, phosphorus, nitrogen, etc. In a fluid delivery system, each of the outlets is connected to separate sources of input material and may contain dissimilar fluid materials, for example, different types of fertilizers, liquid insecticides. Conclusions. It has been established that the technical solutions of needle tools have been developed from manual devices of periodic action to rotary needle tools of continuous action for dosed application of complex fertilizers and simultaneous loosening of the soil. The next step in technical development is to expect the creation of automated complexes with rotary needle working bodies, which are able to continuously assess the condition of the soil and control the process of loosening and applying agricultural materials with different doses along each row. A promising stage of technical and technological development is the creation of means that will directly control metabolic processes in a system with a layer of soil. In a scientific sense, the study of trends in the development of technical means confirmed the previously published theoretical generalization of soil properties in relation to the process of managing its condition with minimal resource costs.