The aim of the thesis was to experimentally determine the selected physical parameters of soil samples with the output of data usable for the needs of computer modeling and simulation of soil compaction as a result of soil loading by agricultural machinery. Output data should be expediently consolidated according to the proposed primary data synthesis proposals, taking into account the obviousness and clarity of the operating influences useful under normal agricultural practice. The practical part deals with the diagnosis of relevant factors determining and affecting the technological and consistency properties of soil samples with a focus on the content factor of the added organic soil organic matter. The output of the thesis is both the raw data of the model sample series in the form of graphical dependencies of the selected specification factors within the range of the defined intervals, as well as the outline of the design of a range of cooperative interconnections with the possibility of data evaluation, with the support of a sophisticated program for the creation of computer multiphysical simulations such as COMSOL MULTIPHYSICS?.

Le comportement (écoulement, adhésion,…) d'un fluide à seuil le long d'une surface solide est un problème récurrent dans de nombreux procédés industriels. Le caractère non newtonien de ce type de matériau rend difficile l'application des concepts établis dans le cas des écoulements similaires de liquides simples. Dans cette thèse, nous étudions expérimentalement ce problème en analysant l'écoulement généré le long d'une plaque solide en mouvement vertical (enfoncement et retrait) uniforme à travers un fluide à seuil simple. Nous déterminons d'abord le lien entre la force mesurée le long de l'objet et les propriétés rhéologiques du matériau. Nous en déduisons une nouvelle technique pour mesurer la contrainte seuil de ces matériaux. Nous décrivons, ensuite, les caractéristiques locales de l'écoulement généré lors de la pénétration de la plaque. Nous montrons que l'écoulement est localisé autour de l'objet, dans une couche d'épaisseur uniforme alors que le reste du fluide est déformé mais reste dans son état solide. Nous décrivons le processus par lequel cette couche limite se développe et nous déterminons la répartition des zones solides/ liquides autour de l'objet. Enfin, nous étudions les effets de mouillage et d'adhésion sur la plaque. En particulier, nous présentons une approche expérimentale permettant d'évaluer la tension de surface des fluides à seuil / The behavior (flow, adhesion,...) of a yield stress fluid along a solid surface is a recurrent problem in many industrial processes. The non-Newtonian character of this type of material makes it difficult to apply the concepts established in the case of similar flows of simple liquids. In this thesis, we study this problem experimentally by analyzing the flow generated along a solid plate moving vertically (penetration and withdrawal) through a simple yield stress fluid. We first determine the relationship between the measured force along the object and the rheological properties of the material. We derive a new technique for measuring the yield stress of the material. We describe then the local characteristics of the flow generated during the penetration of the plate. We show that the flow is located around the object in a layer of uniform thickness, while the rest of the fluid is deformed but remains in its solid state. We describe the process by which the boundary layer develops and determine the distribution of solid / liquid zones around the object. Finally, we study the effects of wetting and adhesion on the plate. In particular, we present an experimental approach to evaluate the surface tension of a yield stress fluid

This project considers the co-rotating twin screw extrusion of a confectionery paste comprising powdered proteins, sugars, water and fats. As is the case with many food industry products, this process has been developed experimentally with little quantitative understanding of how variations in processing conditions influence the formation of the extrudate. A variety of techniques have therefore been developed to characterise and quantify the dispersive mixing, distributive mixing and rheological flow properties of this complex, multiphase, viscoelastic, unstable material. These techniques have then been utilised in a pilot plant extruder study of the mechanics of mixing and paste formation during extrusion, considering the influence of both processing conditions and screw profile. The internal evolution of paste microstructure has been successfully tracked along the length of screw profile using dead-stop extractions of the screws. A rigorous off-line assessment of shear yield strength behaviour using cone penetrometry has shown the use of conventional off-line rheometers to be unviable due to rapid post extrusion hardening. This highlighted the need for an in-line rheological measurement technique for continuous extrusion analysis where the extruded material is severely time dependent and not extractable. In pursuit of this, a novel arrangement of bender elements is proposed and trialled, to rapidly characterise material parameters of viscoelastic pastes. A second technique looking to extend the application of shear wave interface reflection to multiphase pastes is also trialled. A novel analysis of thermogravimetric data (TGA) has generated a viable index of distributive mixing, suitable for use on complex multi-component materials where thermal decomposition temperatures of the components are not well defined. Quantitative image analysis of pastes using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), optical microscopy protein staining and a novel application of multiphoton microscopy (MPM) have been used to visualise paste microstructure and quantify dispersive mixing. From the pilot plant extruder study, the application of these techniques was successful in mapping the evolution of paste mixing and the resulting microstructure, as well as identifying key differences between pastes mixed by twin screw extrusion and batch mixing.