Aerial crop dusting in the agricultural industry is essential for protecting crop supply. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, between 20% and 40% of the annual crop harvest is lost to pests (1). However, crop protectants are powerful chemicals designed to exterminate insects, weeds, and pathogens, and may be harmful to other plants, animals, and people (2). Even though experienced pilots can fly between 8 - 12 feet above the crop line, chemicals can still drift away from the area of their intended application (3). Drones have been made to address the lack of precision of crop dusting with planes, however they are not as quick, moving only around 20 mph (depending on model) compared to the 150 mph of a plane. Solving the problem of pesticide drift from aerial crop dusters would allow for quick and efficient crop protection while limiting collateral damage to the surrounding environment.
The specific delivery method of crop protectants must be considered to address the problem of pesticide drift from aerial applications. Crop dusters utilize a spray system for liquid protectants called spray booms, which are currently mounted fixed approximately 10 inches vertically and 6 inches horizontally away from the wing’s trailing edge under the plane. Studies have shown that there are measurable advantages in lowering the spray boom to avoid turbulence, increase application area (technically referred to as swath width) and reduce unintended pesticide drift. Since the spray boom positioning has a significant effect on controlling the problem, the main focus of this project will be to design a mechanical boom that is able to adjust its positioning in order to reduce pesticide drift and increase application precision. The main physical constraints of this solution include fitting the device under the plane’s wings (50’ x 6’) and designing a mechanism that can withstand stresses from flying speeds of 150 mph. The goals of this project will be determined based on the ability to control product drift without hindering piloting applications.
The main obstacles that we will probably encounter ourselves with is finding a method on how to adequately lower and control the boom in a stable manner. This would involve designing a mechanism to control the height and rotating axis of the boom while considering the flight stresses and air flow. Another obstacle would be finding an accurate way to test and verify the results, in which a decision would have to be made on whether a scaled analysis or some other form of full scale analysis would be used. This also includes the challenge of finding a way to emulate the device in flight to validate the solution based on the previous decision. One other significant issue would be finding a way to provide power to the device. The device could be powered using the same method as the boom pump using the airflow of the plane, which would require designing the power system.
Citations:
Lori Tyler Gula, Researchers Helping Protect Crops From Pests, National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Available at: https://www.nifa.usda.gov/about-nifa/blogs/researchers-helping-protect-crops-pests (Accessed: 09 September 2023).
Tudi M;Daniel Ruan H;Wang L;Lyu J;Sadler R;Connell D;Chu C;Phung DT; Agriculture Development, pesticide application and its impact on the environment, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Available at: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33513796/ (Accessed: 09 September 2023).
Richardson, W. B. Equipment Setup for Aerial Application of Liquid Pesticides. Available at: https://www.lsuagcenter.com/~/media/system/6/0/a/d/60ad7c66df006c9949b583471c5ec5f4/pub3160liquidpesticideslowres.pdf (Accessed: 09 September 2023).
New Aerial Application Equipment Guide. Available at: https://www.fs.usda.gov/t-d/pubs/htmlpubs/htm03712826/page05.php (Accessed: 09 September 2023).
Gregg, Peter & Socorro, Alice & Hawes, Anthony & Binns, Matthew. (2016). Developing Bisexual Attract-and-Kill for Polyphagous Insects: Ecological Rationale versus Pragmatics. Journal of Chemical Ecology. 42. 10.1007/s10886-016-0725-8.
At-802A – Agriculture Aircraft (2021) Air Tractor. Available at: https://airtractor.com/aircraft/at-802a/ (Accessed: 09 September 2023).
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