Design and field testing of a novel low-drift sprayer for sustainable crop protection in olive trees

Pulverization technologies are widely used for pest control in medium and tall tree crops, such as olive and citrus orchards. Air-assisted sprayers provide good coverage and penetration, but traditional systems often fail to adapt to the specific shape of each tree, reducing efficiency and increasing environmental impact. The presence of different planting systems, with row spacings ranging from 6 to over 14 meters, further complicates precise application. This study introduces a new low-drift air-assisted sprayer designed to address these challenges. The system maintains the benefits of conventional spraying but adds an adjustable nozzle-to-target distance and ducted delivery of air and spray mixture for improved precision. A prototype was tested against a standard sprayer in olive orchards, showing a 66.3% reduction in drift and 73.0% less ground deposition, without compromising canopy coverage. Additionally, the new design reduced both energy and chemical use; therefore, these preliminary results show great potential for the prototype to offer a more sustainable solution for crop protection.