Click on “Download PDF” for the PDF version or on the title for the HTML version.

If you are not an ASABE member or if your employer has not arranged for access to the full-text, Click here for options.

Cotton strippers are used primarily in the Southern High Plains due to the specific varieties grown. Typically cotton strippers cost about 2/3 the price of a cotton picker and range from to the horsepower. A cotton stripper also has a higher field and harvesting efficiency than a cotton picker under low yield conditions. Data collected during this study includes fuel consumption, engine speed, ground speed, relative yield, and peripheral machine parameters. ASAE D497.7 indicates that the rotary power requirement for a cotton stripper is a function of width only. The collected data does not include engine horsepower, however the data shows a correlation of fuel usage based on an estimated crop material (cotton) follow rate indicating that power requirement is a function of cotton flow rate. The data collected to date suggests that cotton flowing throughout the harvester impacts fuel consumption, suggesting that the ASAE D497.7 may need to be updated to include the effect of crop yield on the rotary power requirement. Additional data will need to be collected to validate these preliminary findings.