Controlled-distribution wing for agricultural aircraft

A new concept for aerial application of agricultural pesticide chemicals, seeds, and fertilizers is now nearing the point of practical application. The concept involves utilization of air forced from the trailing edge of the wing of an aircraft to give boundary layer control of air flow effects on the wing and to entrain and transport dry chemical materials through ducts in the wing and discharge them rearward. The new system offers improvements in application of dry materials by permitting higher application rates per acre, and wider, more uniform material distribution. Research leading toward the development of the “distributor wing” has been conducted for the past five years by agricultural engineers at University of California, Davis, in cooperation with Kenneth Razak, formerly Dean, College of Engineering, University of Wichita, Kansas, who has also developed an aircraft to utilize the new wing.