A Wind-Tunnel Assessment of Parameters That May Impact Spray Drift during UAV Pesticide Application
The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of varying wind speeds (1.5, 3.0, and 4.5 m/s), initial payload volumes (2 and 10 L), and nozzle droplet size characteristics (fine, medium, coarse) on drift during spray applications from an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) hovering freely in a...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2022-08-01
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| Series: | Drones |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2504-446X/6/8/204 |
| _version_ | 1797445950007934976 |
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| author | Shanique Grant Jeff Perine Farah Abi-Akar Timothy Lane Brenna Kent Christopher Mohler Chris Scott Amy Ritter |
| author_facet | Shanique Grant Jeff Perine Farah Abi-Akar Timothy Lane Brenna Kent Christopher Mohler Chris Scott Amy Ritter |
| author_sort | Shanique Grant |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of varying wind speeds (1.5, 3.0, and 4.5 m/s), initial payload volumes (2 and 10 L), and nozzle droplet size characteristics (fine, medium, coarse) on drift during spray applications from an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) hovering freely in a wind tunnel. Along the length of the wind tunnel, glass slides were used to collect spray droplets at 14 points distributed in upwind, in-swath, and downwind distances. Analysis of the results showed that there are distinguishable shifts of up to 2 m in-swath as wind speed increases. Downwind of the UAV, a regression of the combined variables indicated that tunnel wind speed changed deposition the most overall, followed by nozzle/droplet size. Initial payload volume was less impactful. Overall, faster wind speeds, finer droplet sizes, and a heavier initial payload were associated with more drift on average. Wind directions and speeds were also measured on a finer scale of tunnel locations to record airflow pattern variability especially closer to the UAV. These findings may provide guidance to regulators and applicators to identify operating conditions for UAVs that limit off-target movement during applications. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T13:33:10Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-681d0c412e994db6be7748541bc0ddbd |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2504-446X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T13:33:10Z |
| publishDate | 2022-08-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Drones |
| spelling | doaj.art-681d0c412e994db6be7748541bc0ddbd2023-11-30T21:15:06ZengMDPI AGDrones2504-446X2022-08-016820410.3390/drones6080204A Wind-Tunnel Assessment of Parameters That May Impact Spray Drift during UAV Pesticide ApplicationShanique Grant0Jeff Perine1Farah Abi-Akar2Timothy Lane3Brenna Kent4Christopher Mohler5Chris Scott6Amy Ritter7Syngenta Crop Protection, LLC, Greensboro, NC 27409, USASyngenta Crop Protection, LLC, Greensboro, NC 27409, USAWaterborne Environmental, Inc., Leesburg, VA 20175, USABattelle Memorial Institute, West Jefferson, OH 43612, USAWaterborne Environmental, Inc., Leesburg, VA 20175, USABattelle Memorial Institute, West Jefferson, OH 43612, USABattelle Memorial Institute, West Jefferson, OH 43612, USAWaterborne Environmental, Inc., Leesburg, VA 20175, USAThe objective of this study was to investigate the impact of varying wind speeds (1.5, 3.0, and 4.5 m/s), initial payload volumes (2 and 10 L), and nozzle droplet size characteristics (fine, medium, coarse) on drift during spray applications from an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) hovering freely in a wind tunnel. Along the length of the wind tunnel, glass slides were used to collect spray droplets at 14 points distributed in upwind, in-swath, and downwind distances. Analysis of the results showed that there are distinguishable shifts of up to 2 m in-swath as wind speed increases. Downwind of the UAV, a regression of the combined variables indicated that tunnel wind speed changed deposition the most overall, followed by nozzle/droplet size. Initial payload volume was less impactful. Overall, faster wind speeds, finer droplet sizes, and a heavier initial payload were associated with more drift on average. Wind directions and speeds were also measured on a finer scale of tunnel locations to record airflow pattern variability especially closer to the UAV. These findings may provide guidance to regulators and applicators to identify operating conditions for UAVs that limit off-target movement during applications.https://www.mdpi.com/2504-446X/6/8/204unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)droneswind tunnelspray drift |
| spellingShingle | Shanique Grant Jeff Perine Farah Abi-Akar Timothy Lane Brenna Kent Christopher Mohler Chris Scott Amy Ritter A Wind-Tunnel Assessment of Parameters That May Impact Spray Drift during UAV Pesticide Application Drones unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) drones wind tunnel spray drift |
| title | A Wind-Tunnel Assessment of Parameters That May Impact Spray Drift during UAV Pesticide Application |
| title_full | A Wind-Tunnel Assessment of Parameters That May Impact Spray Drift during UAV Pesticide Application |
| title_fullStr | A Wind-Tunnel Assessment of Parameters That May Impact Spray Drift during UAV Pesticide Application |
| title_full_unstemmed | A Wind-Tunnel Assessment of Parameters That May Impact Spray Drift during UAV Pesticide Application |
| title_short | A Wind-Tunnel Assessment of Parameters That May Impact Spray Drift during UAV Pesticide Application |
| title_sort | wind tunnel assessment of parameters that may impact spray drift during uav pesticide application |
| topic | unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) drones wind tunnel spray drift |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2504-446X/6/8/204 |
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