Performance evaluation of a cyclone to clean the air exiting from pneumatic seed drills during maize sowing

Seed dressings that control pests by the application of small doses of neonicotinoids directly on the seed are used on a large variety of crops. Although this system is efficient and inexpensive, in recent years it has been banned in the EU because small amounts of dust abraded from the seed coating can be released into the atmosphere by sowing machines, which kills non-target insects including honey bees. Bayer Crop Science (R) has developed a device to clean the air at the exit of the drill's fan (patented as SweepAir (R)). This system is able to separate the dust from the exhaust airflow and convey it into the soil while the cleaned air is returned to the atmosphere. This paper reports experimental tests on the performance of this system using tracer materials to simulate the seed dressing dust. The tests showed that the cyclone system effectively separated 99.4% of the inert material, and it did not negatively impact drill performance. The tested kit reduced the contaminated superficial soil area by close to 100% and eliminated dust drift because the abraded seed dust was effectively inserted into the soil. In addition, this system can improve operator and environmental safety because the external surface of the drill was not contaminated by pesticides. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.