Application of variable spray technology in agriculture

Trend of population growth and the need for greater production of health-safe food, on the one hand, and environmental protection on the other hand, affect the change of production technologies in agriculture. Challenges of modern agriculture are reflected in the growth of productivity, but also the long-term sustainability of the agricultural sector. It is indisputable that information technology (IT) has a direct impact on the productivity of agriculture, and as the ultimate goal leads to the growth of the profit of agricultural producers. Precise agriculture, the application of state-of-the-art technical systems for satellite guidance and automatic management, as well as the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) lead to yield growth, but also affect the rational use of inputs, which leads to reduction of adverse effects on the environment. Accordingly, the implementation of new technologies in agriculture is an important factor in improving agricultural production, as well as the potential for sustainable development of this sector. The units of observation in this research are Serbia and all countries of the European Union. The aim of this research is to determine the position of Serbia in relation to the countries of the European Union in terms of the dimensions of sustainable development of agriculture, as well as to consider the current level of application of information technologies in the agriculture of these countries. The paper analyzes a set of indicators of economic, ecological and social sustainability and their connection with the implementation of information technologies in agriculture. The results of the research indicate that the current application of information technologies in Serbia's agriculture, compared to EU countries, is modest, primarily due to the unfavorable educational structure of agricultural producers, as well as limited financial resources, which significantly impedes the process of IT implementation.

Family farms are the main force that promotes the direct application of new agricultural technology to production. So what are the factors that affect the adoption of new agricultural technology by family farms, and can the adoption of new technology increase the operating income of family farms? Using cross-sectional data from 847 family farms, this study examines the determinants and impacts of multiple new agricultural technologies adoption on family farms’ income in China. To account for selection bias from both observable and unobservable factors, an endogenous switching regression model is employed to evaluate the effects of new agricultural technology on family farms’ income. The empirical results show that the adoption of new agricultural technology is affected by the endowment of farmers and the characteristics of family farms. After controlling for the selection bias, the adoption of new agricultural technologies has a positive and significant impact on family farms’ income. And the impact on the non-adopter family farms is much larger than adopter family farms. Heterogeneity analysis indicates that family farms with a larger area of arable land earn more from the adoption of new technologies than small farms. In all types of technology investigated, the new methods of pest control and the new chemical fertilizer technology have a relatively large impact on family farms’ income, while the new mechanical technology has the least impact on family farms’ income. The adoption of new technologies by family farms is more important for promoting the progress of agricultural science and technology. Therefore, it is necessary to take effective measures to overcome the obstacles to the adoption of new agricultural technologies and pay more attention to the use of new agricultural technologies to improve agricultural production efficiency.

Background: The use of smart technology in grape and wine production in Serbia in the current economic conditions represents a significant segment of the further development of grape and wine production. The use of smart technology in grape and wine production in Serbia could help and contribute to production in every sense. Unfortunately, the application of new technologies is still limited to individuals. Purpose: Despite all the unknowns, some farmers are ready to implement this type of production. Therefore, the main goal of this work is to familiarize the interested public with smart technologies in grape and wine production. The authors want to emphasize that this type of production has a future and that it can be developed further. Study design/methodology/approach: In this paper, the authors used their own research conducted through surveys with winegrowers and winemakers in 2019 and 2023, which relates to the application of smart technologies. In other words, the authors tried to find an answer whether the application of precision technologies has a future. Findings/conclusions: The application of new technologies in agriculture has great potential that can improve grape and wine production. We believe that Serbian grape and wine producers should be more active and involved in projects that imply the application of new technologies. On the other hand, the state could significantly contribute to facilitating the application of these technologies. Limitations/future research: A possible limitation for the application of this manuscript, according to the authors, is the lack of information about the benefits and real possibilities of (smart) technologies among grape and wine producers. A major problem in the implementation of this production may be ignorance of its benefits and insufficient state support in providing subsidies.

Erratum to “Rheology parameters controlling spray atomization and roll misting behavior of waterborne coatings” [Prog. Org. Coat. 40 (2000) 35–38

The matter of the effectiveness of applying smart technologies in agriculture of the Republic of Kazakhstan will be of interest to the academic community, regardless of territorial affiliation. The relevance of the research is in the need to inform farmers on the efficiency of such technologies and how to use them. Economic valuation, cost-benefit analysis were used to compare traditional and digital agricultural technologies in grain production. Wealthy farmers from developed countries widely use digital technology, reducing operating costs for wage labour and productive resources. In this research, the authors attempted to prove the hypothesis of significant economic and environmental efficiency in the application of precision technologies. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the results of the application of precision farming tools from an economic standpoint, these results can contribute to the study of the efficiency of digital technologies at the global and local levels. This research displays that with application of modern digital technologies in production, under certain circumstances, a farm can increase wheat yield by at least 25-30%. Gross profit with traditional technologies in agriculture amounted to 31 US dollars per hectare, while application of digital technologies brought 54 US dollars per hectare.

With changing climate and farmland ecological conditions, pest outbreaks in agricultural landscapes are becoming more frequent, increasing the need for improved crop production tools and methods. UAV-based agricultural spraying is anticipated to be an important new technology for providing efficient and effective applications of crop protection products. This paper reviews and summarizes the status of the current research and progress on UAV application technologies for plant protection, and it discusses the characteristics of atomization by unmanned aircraft application systems with a focus on spray applications of agrichemicals. Additionally, the factors influencing the spraying performance including downwash airflow field and operating parameters are analyzed, and a number of key technologies for reducing drift and enhancing the application efficiency such as remote sensing, variable-rate technologies, and spray drift models are considered. Based on the reviewed literature, future developments and the impacts of these UAV technologies are projected. This review may inspire the innovation of the combined use of big data analytics and UAV technology, precision agricultural spraying technology, drift reduction technology, swarm UAV cooperative technology, and other supporting technologies for UAV-based aerial spraying for scientific research in the world. Keywords: UAV, plant protection, spraying technology, drift reduction, pesticide efficacy, spraying model, big data analytics DOI: 10.25165/j.ijabe.20211401.5714 Citation: Chen H B, Lan Y B, Fritz B K, Hoffmann W C, Liu S B. Review of agricultural spraying technologies for plant protection using unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). Int J Agric & Biol Eng, 2021; 14(1): 38–49.

The impression of paint spraying operation is that the paint mist is flying and it can pollute the environment and endanger the human health. The Airmix® spray technology invented by Chemlin completely changed the working conditions of the painting operation. This painting technology is called “mixed air spraying”. Although the technology is still little known in China, aeration spray has become a newcomer in the field of spray technology. It not only has the advantages of good atomization effect of traditional air spraying, high surface quality of paint film, convenient use, etc., but it also has many excellent process characteristics: it can spray paint with high viscosity, high spraying efficiency, save paint and reduce cost, and get a thicker film. In particular, “mixed air spraying” inhibits the scattering of paint mist; it not only improves the spraying environment, occupational health and safety production guarantee, but also effectively reduces the pollution of VOCs and greatly promotes the development of productivity. The China’s government should promote the application of this new technology and gradually phase out some backward technology equipment.

CRISPR-Cas9 technology is based on the specificity of the CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) and Cas9 (CRISPR-associated proteins) systems, which allow for the precise editing of the DNA sequence of target genes. This technology is capable of targeting specific genes for editing, thereby enabling the regulation of important crop traits such as yield, disease resistance, and stress tolerance. The purpose of this paper is to summarize the progress of CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing technology in crop improvement. Firstly, the basic principle and operation process of gene editing technology are introduced. The application of this technology in crop genetic improvement and functional gene research is summarized. In addition, the challenges and prospects of this technology in crops are discussed. Although CRISPR-Cas9 technology has great potential for crop improvement, there are still some technical difficulties and ethical issues that need to be further explored and improved.

The research aims to present a strategic proposal for the application of smart agriculture technologies in the Iraqi agricultural sector considering global transformations such as climate, drought, global warming, water scarcity, conflicts and wars, as well as economic struggles for global hegemony. This is because artificial intelligence technologies contribute to increasing productivity and achieving food security. This is considering inspiring smart agriculture experiences such as the Saudi and Emirati experiences, which have achieved tangible results regarding the contribution of agriculture to increasing productivity and achieving food security. To achieve the desired goal, a SWOT analysis was used to arrive at a proposal for the application of climate-smart agriculture technologies in the Iraqi agricultural sector. The most important conclusion reached was the absence of a clear strategy by those in charge of agricultural affairs in Iraq to apply smart agriculture technologies, in addition to the weakness of the agricultural technology infrastructure in the country. This has contributed to reliance on imports from abroad to meet global demand. Therefore, the research proposes building an effective vision for the application of sustainable smart agriculture technologies and benefiting from international experiences in this field.

Utilization of plasma gasification in waste to energy (WTE) is one of the novel applications of a technology that was introduced several decades ago. In this application, plasma arc gasifies the carbon-based part of waste materials such as municipal solid waste, sludge, agricultural waste, etc., and generates a synthetic gas which can be used to produce energy through reciprocating engine generators, gas turbines, and boilers. The noncarbon-based part of the waste materials form a vitrified glass and reusable metal. The goal of this study is to describe the basics of this technology, review the challenges and opportunities for implementation of plasma gas technology in WTE applications in the U.S., and provide a road map to eliminate current roadblocks for developing such projects.

Starting with the characteristics of three-dimensional software virtual reality technology and taking the application characteristics of three-dimensional technology as the starting point, this paper analyzes the differences between its environment and concept, as well as the similarities and differences in application technology, so as to find that the application of virtual reality technology plays a vital role in space reconstruction. This paper introduces the required software and hardware equipment, including the selection of design space, the division and modeling of internal space, the expression design of three schemes, and the preliminary preparation in unity3d. This technology puts human experience in the first place and achieves the immersive effect in the most convenient and fast way; And 3D virtual reality technology is associated with art design, so the application of 3D virtual technology should not be limited to the grasp of space.

Modern sustainable agricultural production trends pose a need to change production technology processes with the application of techniques, and tools that cause less environmental pollution and contribute to ensuring health safety in general. Precision agriculture can be defined as an agricultural production process that includes the application of information technology and various types of sensors, satellite positioning, and monitoring of farming machinery. Aerial remote sensing is regarded as one of the most crucial technologies for smart and precision agriculture. This mini-review aims to summarize the applications of drones in precision agriculture with special reference to crop monitoring and pest management. Drone equipped with modern capabilities like Artificial Intelligence integrated systems with multispectral cameras help the farmers to observe aerial images of crops in real time. Camera-equipped drones use advanced image data analysis tools to identify diseased or defective plants which assists the farmer in crop monitoring. Also, the fully automatic pesticide spraying system analyzes real-time data and is capable of spot spraying. The use of drone-borne sprayers in the field increases coverage, chemical effectiveness, and make spraying operations easier and faster. Each type of drone has its performance drawbacks, such as high operating and maintenance costs, limited flight range, time, and payload capacity, but with accelerating technology development and the systems integrated into drones, they offer a promising role in advancing precision agriculture.

In order to ensure sustainable water supply to the population and all sectors of the economy in 2020-2030, to improve the reclamation of irrigated lands, to widely introduce market principles and mechanisms and digital technologies in water management, to ensure reliable operation of water facilities and increase land and water resources efficiency At the initiative of President Sh. Mirziyoyev, the main goal is to supply every drop of water on the basis of the normative limit for crops. Resolution of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan No. PP-4499 of October 25, 2019 “On measures to expand mechanisms to encourage the introduction of water-saving technologies in agriculture” and the Resolution of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan dated July 10, 2020”. The application of irrigation technologies in the hills is effective, irrigation is carried out on the basis of modern technology, measures to combat irrigation erosion are identified. Therefore, ways to prevent leaching of the fertile layer of soil in water-saving technologies have been studied in this article. These experiments were carried out on the farm “Umid” Zangiota district, Tashkent region, using water-saving technologies to increase the efficiency of grain crops on hilly lands, in 2019-2021 on the area of irrigation erosion. In order to increase grain yield, 100 m, 150 m, 200 m long fields were irrigated with zigzag furrows using K-9 polymer. professor Qambarov B.F., t.f.d. Professor Baraev F.A. Based on the recommendations, 8-factor experiments were conducted to prevent leaching of the fertile layer of soil. Yields increased from 30-35 quintals to 60-68 quintals. The number of swimmers has decreased by 5-6 compared to the previous one. Development of the effectiveness of engineering technology to protect the active layer of the soil from irrigation erosion. The main goal is to prevent the washing of the active layer of soil by the use of water-saving anti-erosion technologies (zig-zag), water-saving K-9 polymer in typical gray soils with old irrigated erosion, as well as high-quality grain from winter wheat “Kroshka”. The main purpose of the application of new technologies to protect the soil from irrigation erosion is to prevent the erosion of the fertile layer of the soil, to improve the water regime, to maintain the water regime, to determine the period of active root irrigation and, above all, grain irrigation.

Cold spray technology, originated from the Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics Siberian branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, is a rapidly emerging industrial coating technology. Cold sprayed particles with high-velocity impact onto a substrate so as to induce severe plastic deformation and then create a deposit. For its low temperature and high velocity compared with thermal spraying, the cold spraying process is increasingly used in the industries for protective coating. The deposition characteristics of the particles, coating formation and bonding mechanism of the cold spraying process are different from thermal spraying. Many theory investigations of the cold spraying process contribute to the development of the high performance coatings, which makes the cold spraying process as a popular research field. Presently, the deposition characteristics, bonding mechanism, process optimization as well as classical applications of the cold spraying technology in the past are reviewed, and the interesting points for the further development, optimization and applications of this technology are also recommended.

In the context of increasingly constrained land resources and growing demands for sustainable agriculture, vertical farming has emerged as an innovative industry that transcends the limitations of traditional agriculture through its multilayered, three‐dimensional cultivation model and controlled growing environment. In the evolution of vertical agriculture, sensor technology has established a comprehensive “feedback optimization loop.” Through continuous data collection and growth condition adjustments, sensors provide ongoing feedback on the effects of these adjustments, creating a closed‐loop control system. By monitoring changes in crop growth indicators, sensors evaluate the efficacy of previous control measures. When optimal growth conditions are not achieved, control strategies are promptly modified to further optimize resource allocation. Controlled irrigation techniques in vertical farming can save approximately 70%–95% of water resources. This feedback mechanism enables vertical agricultural production to make real‐time, precise adjustments based on actual conditions, thereby continuously enhancing resource utilization efficiency, promoting optimal plant growth, and contributing to sustainable development goals. This study provides a comprehensive review of the current applications of sensor technology in vertical agriculture, thoroughly analyzing its significant advantages in improving agricultural production efficiency, ensuring product quality, and advancing ecological agriculture. Additionally, it addresses the challenges faced by sensor technology in practical applications, including data compatibility, measurement accuracy, spatial configuration, and maintenance management. In response to these challenges, this article proposes strategic directions to optimize the application of sensor technology in vertical agriculture, supporting its development towards high yield, efficiency, and sustainability, thereby addressing the challenges of food security and sustainable development.