Agricultural Engineering Today
Year : 1994, Volume : 18, Issue : 3and4
First page : ( 31) Last page : ( 41)
Print ISSN : 0970-2962. Online ISSN : 2230-7265.

Recent Developments in Pesticide Spray Application

Gupta C.P., Professor, Dante E.T., Doctoral student

Agricultural and Food Engineering Program, Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok, 10501, Thailand.

Abstract

The design of applicators for application of pesticide sprays is very important since badly targeted or drifting pesticides are much more than an economic loss: they have a potentially very harmful influence on the local environment. The physics of transport of spray droplets is receiving a great deal of attention and undoubtedly useful process modelling will soon be able to be applied-together with relatively new principles such as air assistance and electrostatics to spraying machinery. Substantial increases in deposition at the target and hence potential reduced quantities of application have been reported. If the presence of weeds, disease or insects can be detected and quantified then information technology systems can help to judge whether spraying at that time or at a more optimum time will be economically effective or even environmentally safe. Sensors to provide the necessary detection are being developed and biologists are studying the effectiveness of varying application concentrations. This paper reviews some valuable research work aimed at improving the efficiency of pesticide spray application and safety in pesticide handling and mixing. Progress in conventional and non conventional spraying methods and development of new crop sprayer is briefly discussed.

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