Mass flow assessment of particulate in lint cleaner waste - Sensor evaluation and model adaptation

A sensor was developed to measure mass flow of lint cleaner waste (LCW) thr ough a small-scale (one bale/h) cotton gin to provide additional informatio n on lint cleaner performance far automated gin process control. The device consisted of a light source bank and light bar at opposite sides of the wa ste duct. The amount of light blocked as detected by the light bar was prop ortional to mass flow. Experiments were conducted to evaluate the sensor by varying the number of lint cleaners activated. Statistical correlations be tween sensor output and output from photodiodes configured to detect tempor ally varying light levels were examined. Curves were developed relating mea sured mass flow to sensor output, consistent with expected sensor responses . A Weibull-type function was found to best describe the sensor response as a function of experimentally measured mass flow A re-parameterized Weibull -type function was found to be a suitable predictor of mass flow rate when runs using zero lint cleaners were included in the data. When the zero lint cleaner treatment was not included in the data set, a linear relationship best predicted mass flowrate. Total mass of particulate was best predicted by a reciprocal log model.