Session 5: Agricultural engineering (ATAE)

Chairs:

Prof. Kovacev, UNIZG, Croatia
Univ. Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Dr. Andreas Gronauer, BOKU, Austria

The presentations held in the Agricultural Engineering session gave insight in a wide range of topics. On the first day the focus was on soil tillage techniques and also on the automation and digitisation trends in agriculture. Igor Kovacev from University of Zagreb pointed out the possibilities of energy savings by alternative/reduced tillage methods for arable crops cultivation, while Franziska Mairhofer from BOKU University Vienna gave an overview regarding the management of crop residues under reduced soil tillage as an important aspect in erosion mitigation. Raimondo Gallo presented an innovative approach for automating operational monitoring activities in agri-forestry tasks which could enable the entrepreneurs to have automatically updated all the operative information in a dedicated database system and Maximilian Treiber from Technical University of Munich emphasized the importance of digitisation in agricultural logistics to solve problems in organization, transport, work management and documentation. The second day was reserved for presentations from young scientists and PhD candidates from University of Zagreb, Faculty of Agriculture. Zlatko Koronc presented results of testing DI diesel engine performance using different types of diesel fuel, a research started to determine whether the subsidized fuel for agricultural machinery was the same quality/characteristics as a regular fuel for automotive use. Mateja Grubor showed the comparison results of energy properties of two wheat varieties as biomass resource, whether it was used for heat and/or electricity or in the second-generation biofuels production. Finally, Marko Vincekovic presented a research work on the new type of biofertilizers, microcapsules simultaneously loaded with chemical and biological agents to ensure controlled application through timely release of active ingredients. All presented scientific work was on a high level and the presentations was followed by intensive and productive discussion.

Presentations:

• Igor Kovacev - Impact of soil tillage reduction on cultivation productivity of wheat, barley and soybean
• Franziska Mairhofer - Influence of tillage depth of a chisel plough on the quantity and spatial distribution of crop residues of winter barley on a chernozem soil
• Raimondo Gallo - Solutions to automate operational monitoring activities in agri-forestry tasks
• Maximilian Treiber - Aspects of digization in agricultural logistics in Germany
• Zlatko Koronc - Tractor DI diesel engine performances using different types of diesel fuel
• Marko Vincekovic - New type of biofertilizers: microspheres (microcapsules) loaded with chemical and biological agents
• Mateja Grubor - Comparison of energy properties of wheat variety ,,Kraljica“ with unregistered varietiy ,,Brkulja“