Some Physical Properties of the Grains of Two Cultivars of Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench)

Abstract

This study was conducted at the Department of Agricultural
Engineering, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Khartoum and the
Food Processing Research Center, Shambat, Sudan. The study was carried
out with the objective of determining some physical properties of two
local grain sorghum cultivars that affect design of processing machines,
storage structures and processes. The studied of physical properties
included grain size, shape, 1000 grain weight, hectoliter (test) weight,
hardness, bulk density, true density and porosity. These properties were
determined at initial moisture content and the results were analyzed using
the t-test. The results showed that the the two cultivars were significantly
different in size, shape and hardness, while they were not significantly
different with respect to hectoliter (test) weight, 1000 grain weight, bulk
density, true density and porosity. The studied cultivars of grain sorghum
do not require different designs of milling machines, grain hoppers,
aeration, drying machines and storage structures, while they differ with
respect to design of sieve separators, harvesting, sizing, grinding
machines and in calculating surface area and volume of grains which are
important during modeling of grain drying, heating and cooling processes