SBIR Phase I: Budbreak Delay Gel Technology for Frost Management and Mechanization of Vineyards

SBIR 第一阶段：用于葡萄园霜冻管理和机械化的发芽延迟凝胶技术

• 批准号: 1938235
• 负责人: Manfredo Seufferheld
• 金额: $ 22.5万
• 依托单位: FROSTDEFENSE ENVIROTECH, INC.
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2020
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2020-01-01 至 2021-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1938235&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SBIR; Phase; Budbreak; Delay; Gel

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to create value for grape farmers by reducing crop damage from frost by delaying the time when the buds break in spring. The innovation proposed will reduce the costs of frost management, decrease yield loss, and improve quality. Delaying bud break will also assist in labor management by increasing the operating window for optimal shoot removal. Grapes are the highest value fruit crop in the U.S. and the sixth largest crop globally. Grape production is highly influenced by the weather, with frost damage among the top weather hazards. Success in the grape market opens the door to deployment with many other fruit crops.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will allow grape growers to reduce frost damage and maximize resources for mechanization. This approach integrates many studies, including: biophysical and biochemical factors influencing the endogenous regulation of bud break, resistance to cold injury, and polymer sciences. Preliminary studies indicate the ability to resist wet conditions and regulate bud break by 10 to 14 days. If the aims of this project are achieved, the technology will contribute significantly to farmers’ abilities to cope with present and future threats of spring frost, with current mechanization and available labor limitations, and will be the foundation for continued innovation in tools that address current and emerging challenges of climate change. The project will demonstrate the feasibility of the spray through a series of in situ applications with partners in Washington and Illinois. In addition, the project will launch data analytics studies to guide the application timing of bud break delay technology by testing sensors for farm microclimate data acquisition and gaining access to critical data sources.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是通过推迟春天花蕾断裂的时间来减少霜冻对作物的损害，为葡萄种植者创造价值。 提出的创新将降低霜冻管理成本，减少产量损失，提高品质。延迟萌芽也将有助于劳动力管理，增加最佳芽去除的操作窗口。 葡萄是美国价值最高的水果作物，也是全球第六大作物。 葡萄生产受天气影响很大，霜冻是最严重的天气灾害之一。在葡萄市场的成功为许多其他水果作物的应用打开了大门。这个小型企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目将使葡萄种植者减少霜冻损害，并最大限度地利用机械化资源。这种方法整合了许多研究，包括：生物物理和生物化学因素影响芽的内源调节，抗冷害，和聚合物科学。初步研究表明，能够抵抗潮湿的条件，并调节芽的断裂10至14天。 如果该项目的目标得以实现，该技术将大大提高农民科普当前和未来春霜威胁的能力，并将成为应对当前和新出现的气候变化挑战的工具持续创新的基础。该项目将通过与华盛顿和伊利诺伊州的合作伙伴进行的一系列现场应用来证明喷雾的可行性。此外，该项目还将启动数据分析研究，通过测试农场微气候数据采集传感器和获取关键数据源，指导萌芽延迟技术的应用时机。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。