2. SPRAY EQUIPMENT FOR HELICOPTERS
MICRONAIR
SPRAY EQUIPMENT FOR HELICOPTERS

3. Micron Sprayers Limited
UK based and owned
Established 50 years
Inventor of CDA using rotary atomisers
50 employees
Sales to over 90 countries
Micronair Division on Isle of Wight

4. Bembridge Fort

5. CONTROLLED DROPLET APPLICATION (CDA)

6. Hydraulic Nozzles

7. Hydraulic Nozzle Droplet Formation

8. Rotary Atomiser

9. Rotary Atomiser (CDA) Droplet Formation

11. Comparison of Spray Droplets
From standard nozzle
From Micronair Atomiser

12. Droplet Size & Coverage
Reducing droplet size increases the number of droplets
Smaller droplets give more droplets/cm2 than larger droplets
Smaller droplets penetrate dense foliage better

13. Number of Droplets on Target1 8 64
512

14. Choice of Droplet Size Droplets must be small enough to:
Give good coverage
Give effective penetration of foliage
But must be large enough to:
Not evaporate significantly before reaching their target
Not drift out of the target area

15. Sensitive Card
1 cm2

16. MICRONAIR SPRAY EQUIPMENT

17. Typical Spray System

18. MICRONAIR ATOMISERS ON HELICOPTERS

19. Choice of Atomiser
AU5000 – Wind Driven
AU6539 – Electric

20. Comparison of Atomisers
AU5000
AU6539
Drive method
Wind
Electric
RPM varies with airspeed
Yes No
Suitable for low airspeeds
Speed adjustable in flight
Maximum flow/atomiser
23 l/min
3 l/min

21. Electronic Speed Control

22. AU5000 Atomisers on Mi-2

23. AU5000 Atomisers on Mi-2

24. AU5000 Atomisers on KA-26

25. AU5000 Atomisers on KA-26

26. AU5000 Atomisers on KA-26

27. AU6539 Atomisers on Mi-8

28. Mi-8 Internal Tank Capacity 750 litres
Mounted on attachment points for long-range fuel tanks
External filler & vent

29. AU6539 Atomisers on B-212

30. AU5000 System on Super Puma

31. Spray Pod on Dauphin Helicopter

32. ACCESSORIES

33. Variable Restrictor Unit (VRU)
One VRU used with each atomiser
Regulates chemical flow rate to atomiser
Installed on spray boom
Adjusted on ground

34. Variable Restrictor Plates
Fixed restrictor plate drilled with 7 different size holes
Rotating selector plate exposes one hole in restrictor plate
Selector plate rotated by knob on VRU

35. Diaphragm Check Valve
Prevents leakage of chemical when atomiser is not operating
Opens when control valve is opened and pressure in boom increases
Installed on atomiser

36. Application Monitor
Measures chemical flow rate with turbine in pipe to booms
Displays flow and application data
Measures atomiser RPM
Installed in cockpit

37. Application Monitor Functions
Chemical flow rate (Litres/Minute)
Volume sprayed (Litres)
Application Rate (Litres/Hectare)
Area sprayed (Hectares)
Spray time (Minutes : Seconds)
Work rate (Hectares/Minute)
Atomiser RPM

38. Flowmeter Turbine

39. Flowmeter Turbine Rotor

40. Flowmeter Installation on KA-26

41. Atomiser RPM Indicator
Measures speed of each atomiser (max 10 units)
Allows all atomisers to be adjusted to rotate at same speed
Magnetic transducer installed on each atomiser

42. Application Printer Prints data from application monitor
Provides permanent record of each spray job
Installed in cockpit of aircraft

43. MICRONAIR SPRAY EQUIPMENT FOR HELICOPTERS