Volume: 5, 2026
5th International PhD Students’ Conference at the University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Poland:
ENVIRONMENT – PLANT – ANIMAL – PRODUCT
Abstract number: E024
DOI: https://doi.org/10.24326/ICDSUPL5.E024
Published online: 22 April 2026
Comparison of the use of the power unit of an agricultural tractor in selected rapeseed cultivation operations
Karolina Sokal*1, Paweł Krzaczek2 and Magdalena Kachel-Górecka1
1 Department of Machine Operation and Production Processes Management, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, 28 Głęboka St., 20-612 Lublin, Poland
2 Department of Power Engineering and Transportation University of Life Sciences in Lublin, 28 Głęboka St., 20-612 Lublin, Poland
* Corresponding author: karolina.sokal@up.edu.pl
The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare selected energy-related, operational, and environmental parameters of a tractor combined with various agricultural machines, from both economic and ecological perspectives. Operational parameters of the tractor and the composition of exhaust gases during winter rapeseed cultivation treatments were analyzed. In the study, data were collected directly from the tractor’s CAN bus, which enables communication between all vehicle controllers through messages containing values of operating parameters. The tractor’s operating parameters were read using a diagnostic interface via the tractor’s diagnostic connector and recorded on a laptop computer.
The research was conducted for three agrotechnical operations plowing, cultivation with a cultivation and seeding aggregate and cultivation with a stubble cultivator. The analysis included, among others, engine load, engine speed, and travel speed. Simultaneously with recording the vehicle’s operating parameters, measurements included determining the concentrations of NOx, PM, and CO₂ in exhaust gases during working passes and tractor turning headlands with the machine. During turning, a clear decrease in the concentration of most exhaust components was observed. This was a consequence of reduced engine load and torque, despite their high variability. The first and second working passes for plowing were characterized by high concentrations of the analyzed exhaust components; however, these values were lower than those obtained during operation with the cultivation and seeding aggregate. For plowing, CO₂ concentration was 6.6% and NOx 170 ppm in the first pass, and 6.1% and 128 ppm in the second pass, with engine loads of 69.2% and 54.6%, respectively. In contrast, during operation with the cultivation and seeding aggregate, these values were 8.4% and 216 ppm, and 6.3% and 112 ppm, with engine loads of 81.1% and 51.7%, respectively.
Despite the high energy demand of plowing, high engine loads may also occur in simplified cultivation technologies due to greater working width and weight of the machine, which generate higher resistance during operation. During working passes for the stubble cultivator and the cultivation and seeding aggregate, an increase in particulate matter emissions was observed 8.0 and 8.5 mg·m−3 for the stubble cultivator, and 8.9 and 6.1 mg·m−3 for the cultivation and seeding aggregate compared to turning headlands (3.3 and 3.7 mg·m−3, respectively). This may result from high engine load and increased power demand during working passes.
Keywords: agricultural tractor; concentration of exhaust gas components; engine load; engine speed
How to cite
Sokal K., Krzaczek P., Kachel-Górecka M., 2026. Comparison of the use of the power unit of an agricultural tractor in selected rapeseed cultivation operations. In: 5th International PhD Students’ Conference at the University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Poland: Environment – Plant – Animal – Product. https://doi.org/10.24326/ICDSUPL5.E024