Abstract: The hopper is commonly utilized for storing and transporting agricultural materials. Predicting the discharge mass flow rate of the hopper accurately is crucial for achieving precise handling of these materials. To reveal the segregation law of material and the effect of segregation behavior on the mass flow rate during material discharging from a hopper, crushed corn was selected for the study. A segregation discharging test bench and a flow rate determination test bench were constructed to analyze the changes in particle size distribution, bulk density, segregation index, and mass flow rate of crushed corn during the hopper discharging process. Additionally, 14 models of crushed corn particles were constructed based on the three-dimensional dimensions of the crushed corn particles, and the discharge process of the crushed corn from the hopper was simulated using the discrete element method. The results indicate that during the discharging process, crushed corn in the hopper exhibits a noticeable segregation phenomenon. Specifically, the mass proportion of particles larger than 4 mm in the discharged material initially decreases and then increases. In contrast, the proportion of particles smaller than 2.5 mm increases and subsequently decreases. Smaller particles demonstrate interparticle percolation throughout the discharging process. The bulk density of the discharged material exhibited an initial increase followed by a decrease. It rose from 668.01 kg/m³ to a peak of 706.74 kg/m³ before falling to 597.66 kg/m³. Throughout the discharging process, the overall segregation index showed similar fluctuations, first increasing and then decreasing. This indicates that the average particle size of the material at the hopper outlet was dynamically changing, with a trend of decreasing and then increasing. When the overall segregation index reaches a peak value of 1.16, the mass proportion of particles with a particle size less than 2.5 mm in the discharged material is about 34%, and that of particles with a size greater than 4 mm is about 27%. Due to the influence of segregation, the overall mass flow rate of discharging also shows a trend of first increasing and then decreasing. Results from the discrete element simulation indicate that particles smaller than 1.25 mm exhibit significant activity in the upper section of the hopper, suggesting that these small particles experience percolation. As a result of percolation, small particles form a mass flow pattern, while larger particles form a funnel flow pattern. This percolation process causes the small particles to discharge from the hopper before the larger ones. Based on the law of segregation of crushed corn during discharging from the hopper, assuming that the discharging process consists of 3 segregation stages, as the beginning stage, the segregation stage, and the reverse segregation stage, a function of the overall segregation index as a function of discharging time was constructed. The function was utilized to adjust the particle size term in the Brown and Richards flow rate model. Subsequently, a flow rate model for hopper discharging was developed, taking into account the behavior of material segregation. Verification tests demonstrated that the modified flow rate model exhibits minimal error and effectively reflects changes in the mass flow rate during the discharging process. In practical engineering applications, the three assumed stages of segregation flow can serve as a foundation for predicting the real-time mass flow rate of segregation flow in a hopper. By using a calibration method, a mass flow rate model tailored to the specific scenario can be developed. The findings of this study will provide a theoretical basis for predicting the discharge process of agricultural granular materials that consist of irregular particles with significant size variations. Additionally, this research may offer valuable insights for the development of precision handling equipment for agricultural materials.