Diego Weslly Ferreira do Nascimento Santos, Domingos Sárvio Magalhães Valente, Haroldo Carlos Fernandes, Amaury Paulo de Souza & Paulo Roberto Cecon.
Abstract
The introduction of the forwarder for wood extraction has provided significant improvements in forest harvesting operations. However, these machines have a high energy demand due to the high engine speed and hydraulic system pressure. Such circumstances increase the operational cost and the emission of polluting gases. Therefore, the objective of this research was to quantify technical, economic, and environmental forwarder parameters as a function of hydraulic pump pressure and engine speed. The research was carried out in the northeastern part of Brazil. The machine operations were analyzed in forest stands with average individual volumes of 0.10 and 0.29 m3 trees-1. During the experiment, the machine was configured to operate with pump pressures of 240, 235, and 230 bar and engine speeds of 1550, 1475, and 1400 rpm, totaling 9 combinations. The technical analysis included the study of times and movements, productivity, and fuel consumption per cubic meter. Regarding the economic parameters, the production costs of the machine were determined. Environmental impact was measured by determining the amount of carbon dioxide and methane emitted. The results were analyzed by regression analysis. For the volume of 0.10 m3 tree-1, the combination of pump pressure of 230 bar and engine speed of 1400 rpm showed the best results. For the volume of 0.29 m3 tree-1, the combination of pump flow of 240 bar and engine speed of 1550 rpm provided the best results.
Source: Taylor & Francis Online
