Pesticide drift simulation under different spray conditions

Pesticide spray drift is a major problem in agriculture today. Among the factors affecting drift, droplet size and wind velocity are of paramount importance. Thus, this work aimed to evaluate the theoretical horizontal distance traveled by droplets of known size, subjected to different discharge heights and wind velocities. Using traditional equations of Fluid Mechanics and response surface methodology, the distance traveled by droplets discharged from different heights was determined by droplet size, liquid density and wind velocity. Data analysis allowed to simulate the horizontal distance traveled by droplets in several discharge conditions. Drift has shown to be highly related to droplet diameter and wind velocity. In the simulated conditions, the maximum horizontal distance traveled by droplets was less than 40 m.