MEASUREMENT OF PARTICULATE MATTER EMISSIONS FROM CORN RECEIVING OPERATIONS WITH SIMULATED HOPPER-BOTTOM TRUCKS

Dust emissions from grain elevator operations can be a safety and health risk as well as a nuisance. Fundamental data on air entrainment and dust emission are needed for designing adequate and effective dust emission control methods. This study measured the amount of entrained air and emitted dust during corn receiving operations at an elevator operated by the USDA-ARS Grain Marketing and Production Research Center in Manhattan, Kansas. Shelled corn (maize) was unloaded from a storage bin, representing a hopper-bottom truck, to the receiving pit at rates of 17 to 262 kg/s and drop heights of 38 to 56 cm. Airflow rates were measured with propeller anemometers. The emission rates of total suspended particulates (TSP) and particulate matter smaller than 10 .m aerodynamic diameter (PM10) were measured with high-volume particulate samplers. The amount of air entrained per unit volume of grain decreased with increasing grain flow rate (0.26 to 2.07 m3/m3). The emission rates of TSP (8.3 to 52.1 g/metric ton of grain received) and PM10 (0.6 to 6.1 g/t) decreased with increasing grain flow rate and decreasing drop height.