A rapid and simple method for determining moisture in forages and grains
1941
Parks, R.Q.
A simple, inexpensive method has been developed for the rapid determination of moisture in small grains, corn, hay, and silage materials. The determination is based on th relationship between original moisture content of plant tissue and loss in weight when the sample is mixed with an excess of calcium carbide. A balance was constructed and calibrated to read directly in percentage moisture. The balance operates on the lever principle, but has its greatest sensitivity in the range of the last 10% of the weight added, instead of decreasing its sensitivity with each increment of weight, as is the case with the simple lever balance. The effects of several variables on moisture determinations by this method were studied. These variables included size of cutting sample, type of plant materials, amount and fineness of calcium carbide used, effect of original moisture content on the rate at which equilibrium was reached, and extent of variations in results due to the equipment and to personal error. It is possible, with the method proposed, to determine percentage moisture in plant tissue to within 3% of the actual moisture content over a range of from 10 to 85% moisture in from 10 to 25 minutes.
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