October 17, 2024
Reduce ammonia pollution from dairy-farms with water spraying
Recent research from Wageningen University has shown that ammonia can be significantly reduced on a dairy farm or cattle farm by frequent application of water.
The reduction of ammonia from the agricultural industry is a well-known challenge across Europe. Dairy farms are responsible for around 46% of the total ammonia emission in the Agricultural industry. Wageningen University conducted a research with a dairy farm with 16 cows to see if ammonia pollution could be reduced by frequent water sprinkling on the manure. They found that they were able to reduce the ammonia emission by as much as 37-40% by applying 10 liter of water per m2 per day. They also found that the efficiency increased the more the water sprinkling was spread out over the day, compared to spraying all 10 Liters at once.
The report can be found here (mainly in Dutch)
How does water reduce ammonia pollution?
Ammonia dissolves easily in water. When ammonia comes into contact with water, a chemical reaction will lead to the formation of NH4+. This process leads to a reduction in the amount of ammonia gas which is extracted into the environment. The NH4+ is filtered at the water cleaning station before turning into drinking water again.
What does this system cost?
According to the University of Wageningen, the investment costs per installation are around 132 euros per cubicle. In addition, the water costs will amount to around 20 euros per cow per year, if you spray 60 Liter per cow per day.
The spraying solution
Ikeuchi offers spray nozzle technology suitable for ammonia reduction. We have been developing spray nozzle solutions since 1954 and have a life-long experience in developing and installing spray nozzle technology in dairy farms and other type of farms.
SSXP
Our SSXP spray nozzle is especially suitable for installment in individual barn cubicles due to its square sized spraying pattern. The wide angle of 90-100° provides a large spray coverage. This spray nozzle has a spray capacity between 2 – 700 Liter per minute, which makes it suitable for spraying 60 Liters per day. In addition, the X-shaped whirler provides a large free passage diameter for minimal clogging and maintenance.