Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-t5tsf Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-03T05:27:32.029Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The storage of ware potatoes in permanent buildings II. The temperature of unventilated stacks of potatoes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

W. G. Burton ,
G. Mann  and
H. G. Wager
W. G. Burton
Affiliation:
Ditton Laboratory and Low Temperature Research Station, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research
G. Mann
Affiliation:
Ditton Laboratory and Low Temperature Research Station, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research
H. G. Wager
Affiliation:
Ditton Laboratory and Low Temperature Research Station, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

1. Under normal English storage conditions, the heat production of mature potatoes drops rapidly from a value of probably about 150 b.th.u./ton/hr. immediately after harvest to about 30–50 b.th.u./ton/hr. Sprouting is accompanied by an increase in the rate of heat production. The initial heat production of immature potatoes may be of the order of 250 b.th.u./ton/hr.

2. As a result of the production of heat, the temperatures in stacks of potatoes will tend to rise to levels above that of the outside air which are just sufficient to cause the convection and conduction necessary to remove the metabolic heat as fast as it is produced.

3. The difference in temperature between the potatoes and the ambient air is a function of the heat production of the potatoes and of the height of the stack, and is practically independent of its other dimensions if these exceed twice the height. Under average conditions during the middle of the storage season, and for heights of storage of from about 6 to 12 ft. it may be taken as a rough practical guide that the average and maximum temperatures of the potatoes will tend to exceed the average temperature of the store air by about 2/3 and 1° F. respectively for every foot of height.

4. Overheating is possible at both the beginning and end of the storage season, when heat production is high and the outside temperatures also possibly high. In general it is safe to store unventilated potatoes to a height of about 6 ft. if they are mature, though if they are harvested with a great deal of earth late storage should not be attempted. If there is no intention of storing late, and the potatoes are fairly clean, storage to aheight of 12 ft. may be permissible. Immature potatoes should not be stored to a height of more than 3 ft.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 46 , Issue 2 , August 1955 , pp. 150 - 163
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1955

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Appleman, C. O. & Miller, E. V. (1926). J. Agric. Res. 33, 569.Google Scholar
Barker, J. (1933). Rep. Fd Invest. Bd, Lond., for 1932, p. 80.Google Scholar
Barker, J. (1935). New Phytol. 34, 407.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barker, J. (1936). Proc. Roy. Soc. B, 119, 453.Google Scholar
Barker, J. (1938). Rep. Fd Invest. Bd, Lond., for 1937, p. 175.Google Scholar
Barker, J. & el Saifi, A. F. (1952). Proc. Roy. Soc. B, 140, 362.Google Scholar
Burton, W. G. (1950). New Phytol. 49, 121.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Green, W. P., Hukill, W. V. & Rose, D. H. (1941). Tech. Bull. U.S. Dep. Agric. no. 771.Google Scholar
Hanes, C. S. & Barker, J. (1931). Proc. Roy. Soc. B, 108, 95.Google Scholar
Hardy, J. K. (1949). Rep. Fd Invest. Bd, Lond., for 1939, p. 101.Google Scholar
Huelin, F. E. & Barker, J. (1939). New Phytol. 38, 85.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wager, H. G., Burton, W. G. & Mann, G. (1952). J. Agric. Sci. 42, 266.CrossRefGoogle Scholar