# Effect of Controlled Defoliant Application on Cotton Fiber Quality
## 4 Conclusions  
In conclusion, the results from this study indicated that the autonomous ground sprayer with any duty cycles (i.e., 20%, 40%, or 60%) could be used safely for cotton defoliation without affecting the fiber quality. The defoliant dosages did not significantly affect most of the fiber quality parameters. Meanwhile, some parameters showed significant results. In field 1; nep/gm, length (Ln), L (5%), SFC, trash content, and in field 2; micronaire, nep size, length (Ln), L (5%), SFC, and fiber fineness were significant. In the big picture of the research, while studying the result closely, the parameter with the significant result has a better result on our newly developed sprayer (i.e., on the research plot) compared to the control plot where spraying was done by conventional tractor mounted boom sprayer. Thus, the combined application of an unmanned ground vehicle and a controlled sprayer has a great potential to contribute to the advancement of precision technology in the agricultural sector. Moreover, the research results could guide further study of autonomous ground sprayers, and this technology is useful not only for cotton, but also for any other agricultural crops. Conceptualization, J.M.M., J.N. and G.M. ; methodology, J.M.M., J.N., J.L., G.M., M.M. and M.C. ; software, J.N. and J.M.M. ; validation, J.N. and J.L. ; formal analysis, J.N. and J.L. ; investigation, J.N., J.M.M., G.M., M.M., M.C. and J.L. ; resources, J.M.M., G.M., M.M. and M.C. ; data curation, J.N. ; writing--original draft preparation, J.N. and J.M.M. ; writing--review and editing, J.N., J.M.M., G.M., M.M., M.C. and J.L. ; visualization, J.M.M. ; supervision, J.M.M., G.M., M.M., M.C. and J.L. ; project administration, J.M.M. ; funding acquisition, J.M.M. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript. This work was partially supported by a grant from Cotton Inc., Project No. 17-209 and is based on work supported by NIFA/USDA under project number SC-1700611. The authors thank Clemson University Professional Internship and Co-op Program (UPIC). Student engagement is one of Clemson University's areas of investment. To meet this goal, Clemson developed an on-campus internship and co-op program (UPIC) in 2012 to allow students to work closely with a member or members of Clemson's faculty or administration in an on-campus or Clemson-affiliated position. Not applicable. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c c c} \hline \hline \multirow{2}{*}{**Treatments**} & \multicolumn{3}{c}{**Field 1**} & \multicolumn{3}{c}{**Field 2**} \\ \cline{2-7}  & **Fine (m tex)** & **IFC (\%)** & **Mat Ratio** & **Fine (m tex)** & **IFC (\%)** & **Mat Ratio** \\ \hline
20\% & 165.87 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 6.31 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 0.86 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 158.66 \({}^{\text{ab}}\) & 7.38 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 0.84 \({}^{\text{a}}\) \\
40\% & 160.37 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 6.51 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 0.86 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 158.00 \({}^{\text{ab}}\) & 7.43 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 0.83 \({}^{\text{a}}\) \\
60\% & 167.37 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 5.83 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 0.88 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 161.83 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 7.50 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 0.84 \({}^{\text{a}}\) \\ \hline Control & 163.00 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 6.97 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 0.84 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 156.66 \({}^{\text{ab}}\) & 7.25 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 0.83 \({}^{\text{a}}\) \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table} 
Table 8: Effect of defoliant dosage on fiber maturity ratio, fineness, and immature fiber content. (Values not sharing a common letter within treatments are significantly different (\(p\leq 0.05\))). **Acknowledgments:** The authors would like to thank [PERSON] of Cotton Inc. for funding our project. We would also like to thank Wilger Inc. for providing sprayer materials and the Edisto-REC Shop ([PERSON] and [PERSON]) for the help with the spraying equipment. Likewise, the authors would like to extend our gratitude to [PERSON] and the staff of the Cotton Inc. Product Evaluation Laboratory for processing the cotton samples.