Fruit protection bags
The fruit protection bag with photocatalyst-coated surfaces addresses internal cooling and disease reduction, enhancing fruit yield by up to 40.0% through antibacterial and insecticidal effects during summer.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- ENSHU CO LTD
- Filing Date
- 2024-11-25
- Publication Date
- 2026-06-04
AI Technical Summary
Existing fruit cultivation methods fail to effectively address internal cooling, disease reduction, and yield increase during summer months, particularly in fruit horticulture.
A fruit protection bag with a photocatalyst, preferably titanium(IV) oxide, attached to its inner and outer surfaces, which generates O2 upon sunlight irradiation, providing antibacterial and insecticidal effects while cooling the interior.
The photocatalyst-coated fruit protection bag reduces temperature, decreases disease occurrence, and increases fruit yield by 23.3% to 40.0% through antibacterial and insecticidal actions, particularly effective during summer.
Smart Images
Figure 2026091724000001_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The present disclosure relates to a fruit protection bag for fruit horticulture.
Background Art
[0002] Non-Patent Document 1 discloses the basic principle of the environmental purification effect by titanium oxide photocatalyst and specific examples of its practical development. That is, as an application of titanium oxide photocatalyst to environmental purification, decomposition and removal of nitrogen oxides (NO x ) in the atmosphere, detoxification and purification of polluted water, and antifouling, deodorizing, and antifogging functions are mentioned.
Prior Art Documents
Non-Patent Documents
[0003]
Non-Patent Document 1
Summary of the Invention
Problems to be Solved by the Invention
[0004] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a fruit protection bag that contributes to internal cooling, reduction of disease occurrence, and increase in yield in summer as an application of photocatalyst to fruit horticulture.
Means for Solving the Problems
[0005] The fruit protection bag of the embodiment of this disclosure has a photocatalyst attached to the surface of the bag. The surface, as used herein, refers to the outer surface, the inner surface, or both of the bag. It is desirable that the photocatalyst be attached to both the inner and outer surfaces of the bag. Furthermore, it is desirable that the photocatalyst be a metal oxide, specifically titanium(IV) oxide, tungsten(VI) oxide, copper(I) oxide, titanium(II) oxide, strontium titanate, tin(IV) oxide, zinc oxide, vanadium(V) oxide, iron(III) oxide, or copper(II) oxide, particularly tungsten(VI) oxide. In addition, it is desirable that the bag be made of paper. [Effects of the Invention]
[0006] As the embodiments of this disclosure are configured as described above, a fruit protection bag is provided that contributes to internal cooling, reduction of disease occurrence, and increase of yield during the summer months, as an application of photocatalysis to fruit tree horticulture. [Brief explanation of the drawing]
[0007] [Figure 1] Fruit protection bags for pears. [Figure 2] Fruit protection bags for Shine Muscat grapes. [Figure 3] This is a schematic diagram showing a cross-sectional view of a part of the structure of the fruit protection bag according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] This is a schematic diagram showing a cross-sectional view of part of the structure of another example of the fruit protection bag of the embodiment. [Figure 5] This is a schematic diagram showing a cross-sectional view of part of the structure of another example of the fruit protection bag of the embodiment. [Figure 6] This is a schematic diagram showing the surface structure of the fruit protection bag according to the embodiment. [Figure 7] This graph shows the weight of pears grown using the fruit protection bags in the example, compared to the weight of pears in the comparative example. [Figure 8] This graph shows the weight of Shine Muscat grapes grown using the fruit protection bags in the example, in comparison with that of the comparative example. [Modes for carrying out the invention]
[0008] Embodiments of this disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. Reference numerals appearing in all drawings refer to the same components or members, even if not specifically mentioned in the description of each drawing. Also, the dimensions of each part in each schematic diagram do not necessarily reflect the actual dimensions.
[0009] Figure 1 shows a fruit protection bag 10 for pears. Figure 2 shows a fruit protection bag 10 for Shine Muscat grapes. Both fruit protection bags 10 are formed as a bag body 20 sized to correspond to the fruit to be contained. The bag body 20 includes a storage section 21 for containing the fruit and an opening 22 for inserting and removing the fruit. A wire fastening section 23 is attached to one end of the opening 22. From the viewpoint of durability, the material of the bag body 20 is preferably a synthetic resin such as polyethylene or polypropylene, but from the viewpoint of not hindering the respiration of the contained fruit, paper is preferable.
[0010] After placing the fruit tree growing on the tree into the containment section 21 through the opening 22, the side of the opening 22 that does not have the fastening section 23 attached is narrowed, and then the fastening section 23 is wrapped around the fruit stalk, thereby attaching the fruit protection bag 10 to the fruit.
[0011] As shown in the partial schematic cross-sectional view in Figure 3, a photocatalyst 30 is attached to both the inner and outer surfaces of the bag 20. While metal oxides such as titanium(IV) oxide, tungsten(VI) oxide, copper(I) oxide, titanium(II) oxide, strontium titanate, tin(IV) oxide, zinc oxide, vanadium(V) oxide, iron(III) oxide, or copper(II) oxide can be used as the photocatalyst 30, tungsten(VI) oxide (hereinafter referred to as "tungsten trioxide") is preferred. Specifically, the photocatalyst 30 is fixed to both the inner and outer surfaces of the bag 20 by spraying, for example, a solution containing the photocatalyst as an aerosol onto the bag 20 and drying it. On each of the inner and outer surfaces of the paper bag 20, as shown in the schematic diagram in Figure 6, the photocatalyst 30 is attached with paper fibers 25 intertwined with the photocatalyst particles. Furthermore, while it is desirable to attach the photocatalyst 30 to both the inner and outer surfaces of the bag 20 as described above, it may also be attached only to the outer surface of the bag 20 as shown in the partial schematic cross-sectional view of Figure 4, or only to the back surface of the bag 20 as shown in the partial schematic cross-sectional view of Figure 5.
[0012] As described above, the photocatalyst 30 is attached to the surface of the bag body 20 that constitutes the fruit protection bag 10, and when the metal oxide as the photocatalyst 30 is irradiated with sunlight, O2 is generated by the principle of action described in Non-Patent Document 1. - The oxidative power of the superoxide anion radical provides antibacterial and insecticidal effects. Simultaneously, the reduction reaction cools the inside of the bag 20, reducing heat damage during the summer fruit growth period and contributing to larger fruit growth. [Examples]
[0013] The experimental results of the fruit protection bag 10 of this disclosure, based on an example, are shown below.
[0014] (1) Cooling effect of oxidation catalyst The cooling effect of the fruit protection bag 10 of the present disclosure was verified as follows. That is, the fruit protection bag 10 with the photocatalyst 30 adhered only to the outer surface of the bag body 20 was taken as Example 1. Also, the fruit protection bag 10 with the photocatalyst 30 adhered only to the inner surface of the bag body 20 was taken as Example 2. Further, the fruit protection bag 10 with the photocatalyst 30 adhered to both the inner and outer surfaces of the bag body 20 was taken as Example 3. Also, the bag body 20 without any photocatalyst 30 adhered was taken as the comparative example.
[0015] In each of the examples, tungsten trioxide aerosol (visible light-responsive photocatalyst "Lunecat", Toshiba Materials) was sprayed onto the surface of the paper bag body 20 where the photocatalyst 30 was to be adhered, and dried in the open air for 3 hours or more. For each of these examples and the comparative example, a thermometer was placed inside the bag body 20, the opening 22 was closed, and the temperature was measured by hanging it so that direct sunlight hit it. The temperature measurement was carried out on August 21, Reiwa 6, when the weather was sunny, with 12:30 as the elapsed time 0 hour until 17:30 of the elapsed time 5 hours. The results every 1 hour of the elapsed time are shown in Table 1 below.
[0016]
Table 1
[0017] As shown in Table 1 above, at the time point of the elapsed time 2 hours, which is the time zone when the outside air temperature is the highest in summer, in Example 1, the temperature inside the bag body 20 was lower than that in Comparative Example 1, in Example 2 it was lower than that in Example 1, and in Example 3 it was lower than that in Example 2. Particularly in Example 3, from the elapsed time 1 to 3 hours, the temperature inside the bag body 20 was 1.7 to 4.3 degrees lower than that in the comparative example. Here, the temperature in the comparative example is considered to be almost the same as the outside air temperature.
[0018] Based on these results, it is considered that each example, particularly the fruit protection bag 10 of Example 3 in which the photocatalyst 30 is attached to both the inner and outer surfaces of the bag 20, can lower the temperature inside the bag 20 by an average of 2.7 degrees Celsius compared to the ambient temperature during the afternoon hours when ambient temperatures are highest, which is the fruit growth period in summer. As a result, each example, particularly the fruit protection bag 10 of Example 3, may contribute to reducing high-temperature damage in fruit tree cultivation.
[0019] (2) Effects in pear cultivation The fruit protection bag 10 of Example 3, which showed the best results in (1) above, was used in actual pear cultivation along with the bag 20 of the comparative example to verify its effectiveness. Specifically, the bag 20 of Example 3 and the bag 20 of Comparative Example 3 were each placed over 100 immature fruits, and the items shown in Table 2 below were verified at the harvest period 50 to 90 days later. The results were as follows.
[0020] [Table 2]
[0021] The number of bags containing insects decreased from 37 in the comparative example to 19 in Example 3, a reduction of 51.4%. The number of bags with mold decreased from 4 in the comparative example to 1 in Example 3, a reduction of 25%. The number of soiled bags decreased from 63 in the comparative example to 33 in Example 3, a reduction of 52.4%. The number of bags with diseases including black spot decreased from 9 in the comparative example to 2 in Example 3, a reduction of 22.2%. These effects were presumed to be due to one or a combination of the radical generation effect, anti-fouling effect, and cooling effect of the photocatalyst 30.
[0022] Furthermore, as shown in Table 2 and Figure 7 above, the maximum fruit weight in the comparative example was 396.5g, while in Example 3 it was 489.0g, representing a 23.3% increase in maximum fruit weight compared to the comparative example. In addition, the average fruit weight in the comparative example was 267.0g, while in Example 3 it was 373.7g, representing a 40.0% increase in average fruit weight compared to the comparative example. This was presumed to be mainly due to the cooling effect of the photocatalyst 30, which allows the temperature inside the bag 20 to be lower than the ambient temperature during the summer, the fruit growth period, thus increasing the likelihood of avoiding high-temperature damage.
[0023] (3) Effects in Shine Muscat cultivation The fruit protection bag 10 of Example 3, which showed the best results in (1) above, was used in actual Shine Muscat cultivation along with the bag 20 of the comparative example to verify its effectiveness. Specifically, the bag 20 of Example 3 and the bag 20 of Comparative Example 3 were each placed over 20 bunches of immature fruit, and the items shown in Table 3 below were verified at the harvest period 50 to 90 days later. The results were as follows.
[0024] [Table 3]
[0025] In the comparative example, damage to fruit trees from birds and animals within the bags 20 was 3 bags, compared to 0 bags in Example 3, showing a 100% reduction. The number of bags 20 affected by brown sugar disease decreased from 7 bags in the comparative example to 2 bags in Example 3, a reduction of 28.6%. The number of bags 20 affected by mold decreased from 6 bags in the comparative example to 4 bags in Example 3, a reduction of 66.7%. The number of bags 20 affected by pesticide stains decreased from 20 bags in the comparative example to 15 bags in Example 3, a reduction of 75%. These effects were presumed to be due to one or a combination of the radical generation effect, anti-fouling effect, and cooling effect of the photocatalyst 30.
[0026] As shown in Table 3 and Figure 8 above, the maximum fruit weight in the comparative example was 800.5g, while in Example 3 it was 850.5g, representing a 6.2% increase in maximum fruit weight compared to the comparative example. Furthermore, the average fruit weight in the comparative example was 576.9g, while in Example 3 it was 669.0g, representing a 16.0% increase in average fruit weight compared to the comparative example. This was presumed to be mainly due to the cooling effect of the photocatalyst 30, which allows the temperature inside the bag 20 to be lower than the ambient temperature during the summer, the fruit growth period, thus increasing the likelihood of avoiding high-temperature damage. [Explanation of symbols]
[0027] 10 Fruit protection bags 20 Bag body 21 Storage Unit 22 Opening 23 Fixing part 25 fibers 30 Photocatalyst
Claims
1. A fruit protection bag with a photocatalyst attached to its surface.
2. The fruit protection bag according to claim 1, wherein the photocatalyst is a metal oxide.
3. The fruit protection bag according to claim 2, wherein the metal oxide is titanium(IV) oxide, tungsten(VI) oxide, copper(I) oxide, titanium(II) oxide, strontium titanate, tin(IV) oxide, zinc oxide, vanadium(V) oxide, iron(III) oxide, or copper(II) oxide.
4. The fruit protection bag according to claim 3, wherein the metal oxide is tungsten(VI) oxide.
5. The fruit protection bag according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the photocatalyst is attached to both the inner and outer surfaces of the bag.
6. The fruit protection bag according to claim 5, wherein the bag body is made of paper.