One of the most important requirements on agricultural boom sprayers is to produce a uniform distribution of the applied pesticide on the target area. In the agricultural pesticide applied by the sprayers, there are some main factors effects on the distribution of spray. The major factors affecting on the pattern of the liquid spray is the wind speed (cross-flow), height of boom and nozzle pressure. The current research carried out in the laboratory of the Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Hohenheim University, Germany. The aims of the present research was to investigate of the effect of the cross wind speed on the pattern of liquid spray and study the interaction between the wind speed, the height of boom, type of nozzles and nozzle pressure and their effects on the spray of pattern.
The electrical axial fan of 2.2 kW was used to produce the cross wind speed of 1.2 and 3.1m s-1. The IDKN120-04, AD110-03, TT11003 Turbo Jet and ATR 208 (Albus) spray nozzles were used at different nozzle pressures. Tests were conducted in the laboratory using an experimental spray patternator with 150 collection tubes (3 meters wide) at three nozzle pressures of 300, 400 and 500 kPa for IDKN Lechler, TT11004 and Turbo Jet nozzle at wind speeds 1.2 and 3.1m s-1 of the trajectory of liquid and without wind speed (0 m s-1). The nozzle pressures for ATR208 (Albus) nozzle were 300, 400, and 500 kPa at the same wind conditions. Results indicated that the wind speed affected the uniformity of dose under laboratory conditions. The IDKN120-04 nozzle gave the low effect compared to the others nozzles.
The nozzle height and nozzle pressure had a high significant effect on the uniformity of spray. The highest mean value of 17.3 % for the SPD was found at the ATR 208 nozzle, nozzles height of 60 cm, nozzle pressures of 300 kPa and wind speed of 3.1m s-1.
The minimum mean value of 0.8 % for the SPD was found at the IDKN120-04 nozzle, nozzles height of 30 cm, kPa, nozzle pressures of 300 and wind speed of 1.2 m s -1. In addition, the maximum SPD % for the other nozzles at nozzle height of 60 cm, wind speed of 3.1 ms-1 3.1 and nozzle pressure 300 kPa were 10.2, 7.9, and 8.8 % for the AD110-03,TT110-03 Tee-jet and IDKN110-04 nozzle respectively.