VERTICAL FLOOR PRESSURES DURING FILLING OF A FULL-SCALE GRAIN BIN

Vertical floor pressures were measured in two different corrugated-wal led grain bins using load cells mounted on the floor at discrete locat ions from the center of the bin. Bin A was 12.8 m (42 ft) in diameter and 17.1 m (56 ft) tall while bin B was 11.0 m (36 ft) in diameter and 14.0 m (46 ft) tall. Tests were conducted with corn. For both bins, a significant decrease in vertical floor pressure was observed to occur adjacent to the bin wall. For the other load cell conditions, the ver tical floor pressures were found to be similar in magnitude. When vert ical floor pressures were compared at similar locations in the two bin s, vertical floor pressures in the 12.8-m-diameter bin were approximat ely 1.2 times those in the 11.0-m-diameter bin.