Insulating Organic Material as a Protection System against Late Frost Damages on the Vine Shoots

Alessia Di Giuseppe,Alberto Palliotti,Federico Rossi,Andrea Nicolini,Alberto Maria Gambelli,Nicola Ceccarelli

doi:10.3390/su12156279

Abstract

Late frosts are one of the major impact factors on agriculture worldwide with large economic losses for agricultural crops, with a significant impact also in wine production. Given the importance of the wine sector in the world, more and more efforts are being made to identify innovative techniques capable of creating a low-cost and effective protection for vine shoots, as well as reducing energy consumption. In a previous work, cotton candy was identified as an insulating material to solve the problems related to late frosts on vineyards and limit its damages as much as possible. From the results of the previous research, it has proved that cotton candy is an excellent thermal insulator, but it degrades quickly in windy conditions. Thus, climatic tests carried out in windy condition showed that straw can greatly slow down the degradation of cotton candy over time, giving an indirect contribution to the protective effectiveness of cotton candy. In addition, several tests were conducted with different amounts of sugar and straw without wind to evaluate whether the straw can itself make a contribution in terms of thermal insulation, as well as contribute to the protective effectiveness of cotton candy, minimizing energy use as well.

Highlights

Due to climate warming, the frequency and severity of extreme climate events such as drought, excessive temperature, and late frosts, are expected to increase [1,2]
Several tests were conducted with different amounts of sugar and straw without wind to evaluate whether the straw can itself make a contribution in terms of thermal insulation, as well as contribute to the protective effectiveness of cotton candy, minimizing energy use as well
In order to verify the contribution to the thermal insulation of the coating made with cotton candy and straw, it is necessary to know how much current circulated in the wire and how much electrical energy was consumed by the system

Summary

Introduction

The frequency and severity of extreme climate events such as drought, excessive temperature, and late frosts, are expected to increase [1,2]. Given the importance of the wine production in the worldwide agricultural sector and its relevant economic impact, especially in Italy, more and more efforts are being made to identify innovative techniques and methods to mitigate the effects of late frosts and minimize their damages as well. Within this framework, different technologies have been proposed such as active and passive defense methods. Straw is an available material in nature, inexpensive, and without impact on the straw caennvgirroenamtleynst.loInwthdeosewtensttsh, estdraewgrwaadsautisoedn toofccoovtetrotnhecawnhdoyleosuvrefracteimofecaonttodnthcaunsdyp.rTohmeorteesupltrsotection against slhaotewferdosthtsa.t straw can greatly slow down the degradation of cotton candy over time and promote protection against late frosts

The Experimental Facility

The Experimental Tests

Results and Discussion