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ARS Home » Plains Area » College Station, Texas » Southern Plains Agricultural Research Center » Aerial Application Technology Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #414177
Research Project: Improved Aerial Application Technologies for Precise and Effective Delivery of Crop Production Products

Location: Aerial Application Technology Research

Title: Spray drift of mosquito larvicide applied with a multirotor drone

Author
item THISTLE, ANDREW - Mdot Technologies
item BONDS, JANE - Bonds Consulting Group
item Fritz, Bradley - Brad
item THISTLE, HAROLD - Teals, Llc

Submitted to: Proceedings Annual Conference on Liquid Atomization and Spray Systems
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/30/2024
Publication Date: 4/10/2024
Citation: Thistle, A., Bonds, J., Fritz, B.K., Thistle, H. 2024. Spray drift of mosquito larvicide applied with a multirotor drone. Proceedings Annual Conference on Liquid Atomization and Spray Systems. 2024-59.

Interpretive Summary: Understanding the movement of sprays applied using unmanned aerial spray systems is critical to improving the effectiveness of these applications while mitigating adverse environmental consequences. This work focused on collection of field data and validation of a new proprietary model that predicts the movement and fate of sprays applied from unmanned systems. The results showed a strong correlation between measured and predicted values and provide a basis for using predictive modeling to support precision delivery of pesticide products using unmanned aerial systems, minimizing waste and adverse environmental impacts.

Technical Abstract: This article presents a study on using multirotor drones for mosquito control through larviciding. AGDISP simulations provide a framework for understanding the dispersion and deposition patterns of spray droplets in the atmosphere based on significant experimental correlation to conventional rotorcraft and fixed wing aircraft. Multirotor drones present a deviation from the original scope of AGDISP. A new proprietary model (AGDISPPro) leverages the vortex lattice method to analyze multirotor drones. This new module of AGDISP is compared to experimental results from field trials and compared to results expected from conventional rotorcraft.