World Grain - February 2018 - 64

GRAIN OPERATIONS

Silo bags consist of three layers of polyethylene totaling
250 microns thick. The outer layer is white to reflect solar
radiation, and the inner layer is black to block sunlight.
stored in silo bags. Silo bags are a key
hermetic storage technology that reduces post-harvest losses while providing
an economic alternative for farmers to
gain control over marketing their stored
grain between crop harvests.
Silo bags consist of three layers of
polyethylene totaling 250 microns thick.
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radiation, and the inner layer is black to
block sunlight. A typical silo bag is about
60 meters long, 3 meters in diameter,
and can store as much as 200 tonnes of
wheat, maize and soybeans, though they
can be smaller by simply using less of
the bag. When properly sealed, the silo
bag is watertight and has a high degree

of gas tightness to CO2 and O2.
The ground upon which a silo bag
needs to be placed should be level and
should not accumulate standing water
during rains. It also must be free of any
objects that could puncture the plastic
LH¿HOGVWXEEOHVKDUSURFNVRUEUDQFKes) because even very small holes will
compromise the hermetic seal, allowing
air, moisture and insects to enter the grain
mass. Because a high level of CO2 and
low level of O2 are the means by which
insect and fungal activity is controlled in
the silo bag, holes or leaks will permit air
exchange with the outside and will confound the desired internal atmosphere.
Grain is loaded and unloaded from

RadarTrack

Continuous Level Monitoring System
y
Monitor Your Product, Anytime, Anywhere.
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RadarTrackTM is an advanced non-contact radar level sensor
for all powders, liquids and bulk commodities.
RadarTrack sensors are ideal for high-precision continuous
level sensing of granular and powder product in hopper or
flat bottom, round, square and interstice bins and silos.
Applicable Industries: Grain, Food, Cement and Aggregates,
Plastics, Processed Wood and others.

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RadarTrackTM in action
Accurate, fast and maintenance free
Integrates easily with the SafeTrack monitoring software,
a PLC or a remote panel-display.
Wireless options for cost saving SafeTrack integration.
Extremely rugged and sealed design for total reliability.
Hazardous Location Approvals: CSA/FM Class II Div 1 Grp E, F, G;
CSA/FM Class I Div 2 Grp A, B, C, D, T4; IECEx; ATEX II 1D, 1/2D, 2D
Optimized 78 Ghz and narrow 4˚ beam
Max. Range: 131' (40m), or optionally 328' (100m)
Immune to extreme dust and high temperatures
Flat, aiming or sloped-roof mounting flanges

I NINCORPORATED
C O R P O R AT E D

Analog 4-20mA output, loop powered (24VDC)
HART, Profibus and Fieldbus outputs also available.
RS-485 ouput with optional "Interface Module"
Simple installation and commissioning
No moving parts for maintenance free operation

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513-398-2500

800-659-8250

a silo bag using special equipment that
can be attached to a PTO-driven tractor.
The silo bags and equipment to load and
unload the grain are relatively inexpensive compared to permanent grain storage structures and the associated grain
handling equipment. Loading and unloading equipment cost about $50,000,
and each silo bag costs about $600.
Equipment is becoming increasingly
available as dealers and service suppliers pick up on the trend in countries
that have adopted silo bag usage. The
storage environment within a silo bag
can be monitored with handheld CO2
sensors along the length of a bag. Data
with bag number, position along the bag
DQG*36EDVHGORFDWLRQLGHQWL¿HULVXSloaded automatically via mobile phone
technology for online monitoring and
record-keeping.
Damp grain should not be stored in
silo bags. In warm temperatures, higher moisture grain creates an interstitial
equilibrium relative humidity (RH)
above 65% to 70%, which provides a
good environment for fungi to develop.
While it has been shown that low oxygen environments can prevent the proliferation of certain species of fungi
present in grain, trials in Argentina with
damp grain stored in silo bags showed
that fungi develop to the detriment of
grain quality. It is therefore best to store
grain at the recommended safe storage
moisture content when placed into silo
bags. Safe storage moisture content depends on weather conditions during the
warmest period of storage at the geographic location of the silo bags.
RECOMMENDED BEST
MANAGEMENT PRACTICES
Before choosing to utilize silo bags, in
addition to the economics, the following best management practices adapted
February 2018 / World Grain / www.World-Grain.com

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World Grain - February 2018

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