Indoor measurements to develop a methodology for spray mass balance assessment from air-assisted sprayers

To know the allocation of the spray deposition (between target and losses in the atmosphere and to the ground) when applied on 3D crops, according to the sprayer type and configuration, as well as to the target size and density, it is useful in order: i) to assess the efficiency of treatment and, ii) to select the proper adjustment to optimise the spray distribution (Balsari et al., 2005). This evaluation, for providing comparable results, should be preferably made under controlled conditions both in terms of environmental parameters (e.g. temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, etc.) and of target characteristics (e.g. canopy height, width, number of leaf layers, etc.). In connection with the activities made during the Life PERFECT project (www.perfectproject.eu), one specific research was carried out by DISAFA-UNITO (Italy) together with IFV-INRAE (France). The aim was to compare the spray mass balance measured indoor with different settings of a conventional axial fan air-assisted sprayer - previously used in the field for the PERFECT project experiments - to apply artificial vineyard rows, adequately sized, to mimic different growth stages.