TECHNOLOGIES FOR ENHANCING PECAN PRODUCTION AND PROCESSING

This paper summarizes research at Oklahoma State University (OSU) to develop innovative technologies that provide solutions to issues and problems affecting pecan production and processing. Some of the projects areas include;

• Pecan yield estimation technique using backscattered terrestrial microwave sensing.
• Dielectric spectroscopy for estimating quality of in-shell pecans.
• Wireless image sensor networks in estimating the population of pecan weevils.
• Low-cost small-scale sanitizer for in-shell pecans.
• Optical sensors and algorithms that adequately predict plant N status for nitrogen management.
• X-ray machine vision inspection systems for pecan defect identification.

Accurate estimates of pecans in the field prior to harvest are critically important for production management decisions and marketing. Pecan producers, processors and marketers identified improved accuracy of crop estimates as a research priority for the industry. The pecan weevil (Curculio caryae) is considered a key pest. Without timely insecticide treatments, crop losses can exceed 75%. Research has focused on the design of a wireless sensor network for real-time monitoring and population estimation of pecan weevils. Nitrogen (N) has become a major cost in producing pecans. Traditionally, N is applied once or twice per season. Application rates usually exceed the minimum N requirement for optimum production. Research has focused on reducing N inputs while maintaining production levels. Sorting of defective nuts is difficult because nutmeat defects are not fully recognizable by physical properties, color and appearance of whole unshelled nuts. Commercial sorters are available to sort nutmeat after shelling the nuts, but this results in unnecessary shelling of defective nuts. Development of automated inspection systems to identify good pecan nuts from defective ones before shelling would reduce processing costs. Due to space limitations, only the highlights of each research area will be presented. Interested readers desiring more comprehensive discussion of the projects are encouraged to access the references.