The paper presents the results of the research of the size and shape of parenchyma tissue cells in potato tubers depending on the direction and site of sampling in tubers. An optical confocal microscope was used to observe samples in their natural state. The investigation was carried out for 1 mm thick samples cut from cylindrical samples (10x10 mm)taken in two mutually perpendicular directions of the inner and outer core of each variety. The analysis was done ten times.The methods developed for the composition and image analysis ensure obtaining a sufficient number of cells to determine tissue structure parameters (surface, shape, elongation and number of cells per 1 mm2) and decays of these parameters were obtained. Statistical analysis was performed using the -Kolmogorov-Smirnov compliance test.Arelationship between the direction of sampling and the size and shape of the inner core of cells was found. Greater surface area and elongation of the inner core cells for the longitudinal direction in the tuber (stolon – top) was demonstrated. There was no such a correlation for the outer core in the tubers of the cultivars examined.
Results of compression tests of various strain rates with measurements of the total counts sum of the acoustic emission for the samples of six selected potato varieties with various appropriations have been presented. It was shown that an increase in the strain rate cause a decrease in failure strain and an exponential increase in the total counts sum. No influence of the strain rate on the failure stress was observed. It was found that the total counts sums were higher in the case of edible medium-late varieties as compared to the medium-early starch varieties within the range of the strain rates studied. No such relation was found for the failure stress and failure strain.