Properties of pearl millet

Three varieties of pearl millet seed, consisting of two hybrids GHB 30 and Bajra 28-15, and one Babapuri (traditional) variety, were graded, dried to 7.4% moisture content dry basis and properties of the major fraction were determined. The average three principal dimensions were 3.12, 1.94 and 1.70 mm for GHB 30, 2.98, 1.86 and 1.82 mm for Bajra 28-15 and 3.36, 2.24 and 2.01 for Babapuri varieties. The surface area and volume of single grain were 12.5 mm(2) and 3.8 mm(3) for hybrid varieties and 16.4 mm(2) and 5.8 mm(3) for the traditional variety. Sphericity,of the grain for all the varieties was 0.94 and the bulk density and the grain density were 850 and 1600 kg/m(3) respectively. The shape factor of the grain was 1.07 for GHB 30, 1.01 for Bajra 28-15 and 1.06 for the Babapuri varieties. The porosity of the bulk varied between 45 and 49%. The static coefficient of friction was approximately 0.25 on galvanized steel sheet and 0.26 on mild steel sheet. The angle of repose was about 23 degrees to 25 degrees. Hybrid seed contained about 4.5% oil and the traditional Babapuri variety 7.3%. (C) 1997 Silsoe Research Institute.