Research PaperAppropriateness of on-combine moisture measurement for the management of harvesting and postharvest operations and capacity planning in grain harvest

•Field trials were carried out to assess on-combine moisture measurement accuracy.•On-combine measurement was compared with four laboratory methods.•On-combine approach is suitable for quantifying the variability of grain moisture.•On-combine measurement is suitable for use in Farm Management Information Systems.

Grain moisture content is an important factor for the management of harvesting and postharvest operations and for capacity planning in grain harvest, storage and preservation, and a basis for pricing in grain trade. The advantage of rapid and non-destructive on-combine moisture content determination is set against the disadvantage of lower measurement accuracy. The objectives of this study are to determine the agreement of on-combine grain moisture measurement with laboratory measurement methods, and to assess the suitability of on-combine grain moisture measurement. The appropriateness of on-combine measurement of grain moisture content for the management of harvesting and postharvest operations and capacity planning by maintaining a defined acceptable level of disagreement was also investigated. On-combine moisture measurement (OMC) was compared with two dry-oven methods and two capacitive moisture sensors used in laboratories, in each case for unground and ground grain. Field trials with on-combine moisture measurements and manual sampling were carried out on two farms in Germany in 2014. A total area of 514 ha with 201 manual samples was used for the investigations. The assessment of on-combine moisture measurement indicated that the on-combine approach is suitable for quantifying the variability of grain moisture content. The deviation between indirect laboratory methods and on-combine moisture meters was sufficient to determine the allowable total error that agreed with the defined relative error of two percentage points moisture content. In combination with fuzzy classification of grain moisture measurements, the on-combine moisture meters are suitable for process control and capacity planning for grain harvest and preservation.