Effect of the use of anaxial flow thresher-cleaner asi on threshing-cleaning effectiveness and rice quality in Benin

Production activities and rice processing are done in Benin with inefficient and strenuous traditional technologies. Bad threshing operation in Benin affects the quality of rice. This study aims at evaluating the technical and technological performances of the ASI axial flow thresher-cleaner in farmer’s field. The improved method with the thresher-cleaner and farmer’s practice using barrel have been tested in the real conditions of rice harvesting and threshing in Benin.Indicators of technical and technological performances(Hourly capacity, impurities percentage, threshing losses)reveal that the ASI thresher-cleaner has better results compared to the farmer’s practice using barrel. Results showed that the hourly capacity (kg/h) of the axial flow thresher-cleaner is 1780.5 kg/h or 445.05 kg/man/h compared to 129.14 kg/h or 32.29 kg/man/h for the farmer’spractice using barrel. The percentage of the losses at threshing is 4.13%for traditional threshing practice against 0.14% for the ASI thresher-cleaner. The germination percentage of rice grains is 79.38% for the threshing on barrel versus89.47% for the thresher-cleaner. It emerges from this study that the ASI thresher-cleaner has a high-performance andallows producers to save time by reducing the work hardnesscompared to the traditional method. Moreover, this machine is highly appreciated by rice producers because it does not significantly alter farmer’s practices, gives clean paddy and significantly reduces the broken ratewhich is a key factor affecting rice quality in Benin. This thresher-cleaner can be used in seed production.