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geoff_sanders

Grass bonding to rotary mower blades

Geoff_Sanders
9 years ago

Anyone who's sharpened a rotary mower blade knows that grass can adhere as if it were glued on, and can't easily be scraped off. I've yet to see a plausible explanation of this phenomenon. There's not enough lignin in grass to act as a bonding agent, but lots of cellulose, so maybe that has something to do with it. Blades don't move at more than Mach .2, so impact forces aren't great enough to cause a molecular change in the cellulose - or so I think.
Any physicists/biologists/chemists/aerodynamicists in the crowd? I'd really like an explanation!

Geoff Sanders, misplaced/displaced Oregonian stuck in Central Indiana

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