Design and Experiment of a Sowing-Layer Residual Film Recovery Machine Integrated with a Soil Preparation Function

To address the issues of low efficiency and repeated soil compaction caused by segregated pre-sowing operations for residual film recovery and soil preparation in Xinjiang’s long-term film-mulched cotton fields, this study developed a sowing-layer residual film recovery machine integrated with soil preparation functionality. The modular machine sequentially performs harrowing, film-pickup, removal, collection, soil crushing, and leveling operations. An orthogonal experiment focusing on film-pickup rate and film-removal rate was conducted using forward speed, roller speed, and working depth as experimental factors to evaluate the residual film recovery performance. Simultaneously, the effectiveness of the soil preparation operation was quantitatively validated. The results indicated that the order of factor influence significance on the film-pickup rate was forward speed > working depth > rotational speed of the film-removal roller, while the film-removal rate was primarily affected by the rotational speed of the film-removal roller. The optimal parameter combination was identified as a forward speed of 4 km/h, a film-removal roller speed at 300 r/min, and a working depth of 120 mm. Validation tests under these conditions yielded a pickup rate of 71.23% and a removal rate of 95.06%. Regarding soil preparation, the surface evenness was maintained at 1.23 cm after operation, demonstrating significant performance improvement over previous machine prototypes. This study promises to deliver crucial advancements for combined pre-sowing operations, offering support for future agricultural machinery innovation.