Radical and Environmentally-friendly Agricultural Sprayer Technology using Ultra-Fine Bubbles

时不时地会出现一种技术，它可能带来重大变化和颠覆性的经济效益，CD和智能手机就是很好的例子。更温和，但同样重要的是基于超细气泡(UFBs)的新兴技术，也被称为纳米气泡。这些不明飞行物的直径不到百万分之一厘米(比人类头发的宽度小1000倍)，它们在稳定的形式下表现出一系列显著的特性，特别是它们的寿命(它们作为气泡保留的时间段)，以及重要的是它们在水介质中携带各种气体和气泡表面粘附物的能力。因此，它们已经在许多相关行业实现了开创性的应用，包括清洗消毒、石油、天然气和矿物提取过程、制药、食品调味品和化妆品行业，以及进入医药和癌症治疗的行业；每个行业都具有或可能达到数百万GB的市场价值。UFB特性的多样性以及UFB研究的进展表明，有目的地将适当特征的气泡纳入农业水介质、用于喷洒和灌溉目的以及为了实现更有效的减少投入物(水、化学品等)的巨大潜力。更有效的覆盖、用水、作物养分的输送、病虫害防治药剂和植物病害防治药剂。该项目的目的是确定将UFB和经过验证的磁力辅助技术整合到一个通用平台中的可行性，该平台可用于指定广泛的模式和应用，并为新的、经济上可行和环境友好的产品和服务奠定基础。一个成功的结果也可能意味着朝着新的英国企业和新的就业机会迈出了重要的一步。如果管理得当，可以将25万GB的投资转化为企业的滚动议程，可以想象，能够在五年内实现100倍的投资回报。提高农业生产力以应对粮食安全挑战的必要性是毋庸置疑的，环境保护和气候变化方面也是如此。UFB技术有潜力作为一种技术平台，为满足这些需求做出重大贡献。但好处不止于此，有效的土地利用和土地开垦是应对挑战的重要考虑因素，其他地球边界也是如此，包括排放和气候变化影响、土地和水资源使用、生物地球化学流动和生物多样性。投资风险不大，英国获得实质性回报的潜力巨大。

From time-to-time a technology comes along that offers potential for significant change and disruptive economic benefit, CDs and smart-phones being cases in point. More modest, but never-the-less significant is the emergent technology based on ultra-fine bubbles (UFBs), also known as nanobubbles. These UFBs are less than a millionth or so of a centimetre in diameter (1000 times smaller than the width of a human hair), which in their stabilised form exhibit a range of remarkable properties, notably their longevity (the period of time they remain as bubbles), and importantly their capability for carrying, in aqueous media, gases of various kinds and bubble surface adherents. As a consequence, they are already realising ground-breaking applications in many aligned industries, including, cleansing-sterilisation, oil, gas, and mineral extraction processes, pharmaceutical, food-flavouring and cosmetic industry, with in-roads into medicine and cancer treatment; each with, or the potential for, £multi-million market values. That versatility in UFB properties, together with advances in UFB research are pointing to significant potential for purposely incorporating appropriately characterised bubbles into agricultural aqueous media, for spraying and irrigation purposes, and with a view to achieving more effective reductions in inputs (water, chemicals, etc.) more effective coverage, water usage, delivery of crop nutrients, pest-control agents and agents for control of plant diseases. The aim of this project is to establish the feasibility of integrating UFB and proven magnetic-assist technology in a generic platform that can be used to specify a wide-ranging modalities and applications, and the basis for new, economically viable and environmentally-friendly products and services. A successful outcome can also mean a significant step towards new UK enterprise and new employment opportunities. Appropriately managed the outcome can turn the £0.25million investment into a rolling agenda for enterprise, conceivably capable of achieving a 100-fold return-on-the investment within five years. The need for greater productivity in agriculture to meet food security challenge is without question, as is the need to do so with regard to environmental protection and climate change. UFB technology has the potential as a technological platform to contribute significantly to meeting these demands. But the benefits do not end there, effective land use and land reclamation are significant considerations in meeting the challenge, as are other planetary boundaries, including, emissions and climate change impact, land and water usage, bio-geo chemical flows and biodiversity.The risk in the investment is modest, the potential for substantive returns for the UK is enormous.