Energy Consumption in Alfalfa Production: A Comparison Between Harvesting Systems

The purpase of this study was to determine the amount of input-output energy used in different harvest systems in baled alfalfa hay production in Tekirdag province, Turkey. Data were collected from 176 alfalfa farms in 2019-2020. The simple random sampling method was used to determine survey volume. Harvesting systems consisting of different tool-machine combinations are used in alfalfa production. The capacities and features of the machines used are quite different from each other. In harvesting systems; baler type (rectangular/round), number and frequency of use of the conditioner rake were taken into account. Therefore, the studied population was divided into six groups based on different harvesting systems (H/1-6). In addition, according to the number of mowing (1,2,3,4,5,6); The energy consumption of the harvesting systems used was determined. While alfalfa production was taken into consideration in the first cutting process, the applications made after the cutting process were taken into account in the single mowing process. Results showed that the energy use efficiency, energy productivity and net energy varied according to the type of bale machine used and the number of conditioners. The total energy input and output in harvesting systems was highly variable. The highest share of input energy was recorded for diesel fuels-oil ( 38.77%) and N fertilizer ( 24.89%). The fuel energy of 3244.57 MJha(-1) was calculated in the H6 system for the highest amount of fuel used per unit area. Due to the increase in the number of use of conditioner equipment and the number of mowing, energy consumption has also increased. When mowing six times; 1248.57 MJha(-1) machine energy consumption was calculated in the harvesting system using rectangular baler, and 1751.07 MJha(-1) machine energy consumption in the harvesting system using round baler. The highest total energy input (first cutting) was 8179.41 MJha(-1), 8377.54 MJha(-1) in the systems using round baler (H5-H6). The lowest specific energy was calculated 2.94 MJkg(-1), 3.17 MJkg(-1) in the systems using rectangular baler (H3-H4)

DETERMINATION OF ENERGY USE EFFICIENCY OF ALFALFA PRODUCTION: A CASE STUDY OF TEKIRDAG PROVINCE

Bu çalışmada, Tekirdağ ilinde yonca üretiminde uygulanan farklı hasat sistemlerinde kullanılan enerji girdileri incelenmiştir. Yonca üretiminde kullanılan dolaylı ve doğrudan enerji girdileri, üreticilerle yapılan anket çalışmaları ile belirlenmiştir. Yonca hasadında altı farklı (H1, H2, H3, H4, H5 ve H6) kuru ot hasat sistemi ve silaj yapımında (H7, H8, H9, H10 ve H11) beş farklı hasat sistemi incelenmiştir. Çalışmanın temel amacı; yonca üretiminde kuru ot ve silaj yapımındaki harcanan temel enerji girdileri açısından analiz edebilmektir. Doğrudan enerji girdisi en yüksek kuru ot üretim sisteminde, dolaylı enerji girdisi ise en yüksek silaj üretim sisteminde hesaplanmıştır. Toplam enerji girdisi en yüksek balya silajı üretiminde 20787.19 MJ/ha, kuru ot üretim sisteminde ise silindirik balya kullanılan sistemde 19454.57 MJ/ha hesaplanmıştır. En yüksek enerji verimliliği (20.07), özgül enerji (2.26 MJ/kg) ve en düşük net enerji üretimi (396443.81 MJ/ha) ile balya silaj üretim sisteminde saptanmıştır. Enerji üretkenliği ise en yüksek 0.53 kg/MJ ile kuru ot (D) sisteminde ve yığın silaj üretim sistemlerinde hesaplanmıştır.In this study, the energy inputs of different harvesting systems applied in alfalfa production in Tekirdağ province were investigated. Indirect and direct energy inputs used in alfalfa production were determined by surveys conducted with producers. In the alfalfa harvest, six different harvesting systems (H1, H2, H3, H4, H5 and H6) and five different harvesting systems in silage making (H7, H8, H9, H10 and H11) were investigated. The main aim of the study is to analyze the basic energy inputs in the production of dry grass and silage in alfalfa production. Direct energy input is calculated in the highest dry grass production system, while indirect energy input is calculated in the highest silage production system. The highest total energy input was calculated in the production of bale silage (20787.19 MJ / ha) and in the dry grass production system (19454.57 MJ / ha). The highest energy efficiency (20.07%), the highest specific energy (2.26 MJ / kg) and the lowest net energy production (396443.81 MJ / ha) were determined in the bale silage production system. Energy efficiency was calculated with 0.53 kg / MJ in dry grass (D) system and pile-type silage production system