The Application of Similarity Theory and Dimensional Analysis to the Study of Centrifugal-Rotary Chopper of Forage Grain

This article presents the device and the principle of operation of forage grain crushers that use the centrifugal force of inertia to supply the working bodies—which occurs as a result of rotation of the rotor with a vertical axis. The results of some tests of machines working on this principle have been characterized. Attention is drawn to the disadvantages of most research works, namely the lack of premises for creating shredders of this class with a wide range of performance. The aim of this work is to establish the relationship between the design and technological parameters for the operation of a centrifugal-rotary shredder using the theory of similarity and a dimensional analysis. Moreover, the experimental data show an empirical relationship when calculating the efficiency for the shredder model considered above. By applying the similarity criteria, dimensionless complexes were obtained, which allow to determine the significance of the parameters selected at the initial stage for the efficiency of the shredder. The novelty of this research is the application of the theory of similarity and the use of dimensional analysis, which allowed for scaling the results of the experimental data and obtaining a centrifugal-rotary shredder with higher efficiency, while maintaining the quality of the obtained product. This technique indicates the energy costs of the grinding process, which can be used to select the ratio of parameters in the shredder that would ensure that a minimum amount of energy is consumed.