WO2016151468A1

WO2016151468A1 - Method and apparatus for the treatment of hives

Info

Publication number: WO2016151468A1
Application number: PCT/IB2016/051568
Authority: WO
Inventors: Piercarlo GUERINI
Original assignee: CGC Di Guerini E Carrara SNC
Current assignee: CGC Di Guerini E Carrara SNC
Priority date: 2015-03-23
Filing date: 2016-03-21
Publication date: 2016-09-29
Anticipated expiration: 2017-09-23
Also published as: EP3273774A1

Abstract

Method and related treatment apparatus of a hive comprising a colony of bees inside a hive, the method comprising blowing in the hive an air flow having a flow rate greater than or equal to about 2 m³/h, where in said air flow an amount of ozone is dispersed.

Description

DESCRIPTION

"METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR THE TREATMENT OF HIVES"

The present invention relates to the field of apiculture, and, in particular, to a method and an apparatus for the treatment of a hive, i.e. the whole of a colony of bees and the relative hive that contains it.

Bee colonies are subject to a numerous diseases and parasites, among which there are the varroa disease (Varroa destructor), the American and European plague, the nosema disease (Nosema Apis), the small hive beetle (Aethine tumida), the mite diseases (Acarapis woodi), the sacbrood, the amoebiasis (Malpigha-moeba mellificae), the mycosis, the lice bees (Braula coeca), the wax moth, and others.

Such diseases or parasites can affect the colony with a variable degree of seriousness, resulting in a reduction of the overall vitality of the colony until, in the most serious cases, its complete extinction.

Moreover, the environment in which the colony lives is per se characterized by a high presence of biological contaminants, such as bacteria, viruses, moulds, fungi, yeast, etc., which, although they are not able to endanger the health of the colony, they decrease its vitality/activity. The production of a colony of bees (honey, pollen, royal jelly, propolis, beeswax, etc.) is determined by several factors, among which the health and vitality of the colony of bees play a crucial role.

Therefore, the problem of the disease and bee parasite prevention, treatment and cure, which mainly occurs chemically or pharmaceutically, is a very real problem in apiculture.

For example for the treatment of the varroa disease, formic acid or oxalic acid are used inter alia.

However, the applicant has noted that such substances, in addition to pollute the environment where bees live and work and potentially their products, require complex administration protocols, including, for example, the dose depending on the hive population. Therefore, the applicant considered the problem of treating a hive, in particular, but not only, for the containment or eradication of the varroa disease, in a simple, fast, effective and ecological manner.

The applicant has found that ozone (O3) is widely used for sanitizing or deodorizing the environment or waters, or for sterilizing instruments or also in the food industry for preserving fruit, vegetables, meats, fishes, cereals , etc. or for cheese aging.

Such uses are made possible in virtue of the high oxidizing power of ozone, which is able to degrade and eliminate the pollutants or harmful elements such as viruses, mites, insects, spores, moulds, harmful chemicals, and also smoke and odours, in a totally natural way.

Since ozone is an unstable gas, when released into the air in a few minutes it turns into oxygen, without leaving any traces or chemical residues, and without leaving any unpleasant odours.

Despite these properties, the applicant has found that there is a strong prejudice in the veterinary field, according to which it is impossible to use ozone in the presence of live bees.

In fact, it is known that ozone, precisely for its oxidizing power, is a highly poisonous gas for living beings, already at relatively low concentrations, and also for short exposure times.

According to the above prejudice, this venomousness would make impossible the ozone treatment of a hive inclusive of the colony of bees, as it would cause the bee death.

In fact, the applicant, during her extensive experimentations in which ozone has been administered to hives with different and various methods, noted a mortality of bees in some ozone administration conditions.

However, after having widely experienced varying dose, time and mode of administration, the applicant has finally come to an ozone administration protocol and to a related apparatus of the present invention, which are able to produce benefits to the bee colony in terms of general health and/or vitality conditions, while ensuring a minimal or no impact in terms of mortality of bees as a direct result of the same administration.

The result of such experimentations are the method and the apparatus of the present invention, as better specified in the claims and in the following aspects and embodiments.

In a first aspect, the invention relates to a method of treatment of a hive comprising a colony of bees within a hive, the method comprising:

- blowing in the beehive an air flow having a flow rate greater than or equal to about 2 m³/h, preferably greater than or equal to about 3 m³/h, where in said air flow is dispersed an amount of ozone.

In a second aspect, the invention relates to an apparatus of treatment of a hive comprising a colony of bees within a hive, the apparatus comprising:

- an ozone generator for generating an ozone flow;

- at least one blowing device having a first input adapted to be connected to said ozone generator to receive said ozone flow, a second input and an outlet mouth, and comprising blowing means to draw air from said second input, to disperse said ozone flow in said drawn air, and to emit from said outlet mouth an air flow having a flow rate greater than or equal to about 2 m³/h, preferably greater than or equal to about 3 m³/h, in which said ozone flow is dispersed.

According to the applicant, the forced introduction of ozone dispersed inside an air flow having a minimum volumetric flow rate equal to about 2 m³/h, allows to obtain a substantially homogeneous concentration of ozone inside the hive, in such a way that all the areas of the hive substantially undergo the same effects by ozone. In fact, such air flow distributes the ozone in a substantially homogeneous manner throughout the free volume inside the hive, as the air flow, tending to come out of all the interstices of the hive, which are well distributed on its peripheral surface, carries the ozone in all the available internal volume. Furthermore the ozone transport from the point of blowing to the peripheral areas with respect to such point of blowing takes place in a sufficiently short time so that the ozone does not degrade completely before reaching such peripheral areas.

The applicant has found that, on the contrary, when the ozone is introduced in the hive dispersed in a reduced air flow, i.e. below about 2 m³/h, it tends to 'stagnate' in a confined area (also because the ozone is heavier than air) until its complete degradation, on the one hand producing a too high concentration of ozone in such confined area (with a potential toxicity for to bees), on the other hand, leaving the remaining hive portions without sufficient ozone and/or with a too low ozone exposure time.

The applicant also experimentally verified that, beyond the control/prevention/elimination of one or more diseases afflicting bees, the above method and apparatus have the additional effect of increasing the strength and vitality of the colony of bees. For example as a result of autumn treatments, it has been found the presence of broods until the month of January. Such effect could be due to the sanitation of the environment inside the hive (e.g. bacterial load reduction) which increases its overall healthiness with benefits for the overall health of the bees and, thus, for their production.

The choice of specific values of said flow rate of air flow, of said amount of ozone and of the duration of blowing of the air flow with the ozone dispersed, depend on the intercorrelation of said parameters (for example, typically, the greater the flow rate of the air flow, the higher the specific flow rate of ozone flow dispersed therein, or the lower the amount of ozone, and the longer the duration of the treatment) as well as on additional factors such as, for example, one or more of the following factors: the desired effects of the treatment intervention with ozone and/or the degree of seriousness of these diseases (for example for a simple sanitization smaller amount of ozone will be sufficient, while to eradicate parasites such as the varroa greater quantities of ozone will be needed), on the external and, especially, internal temperature of the hive (for example, the greater the temperature, the faster the ozone degradation time, and therefore the greater the amount of ozone required), on the internal hive free volume (which depends, for example, on the number of present supers), on the degree of 'breathability' of the hive (i.e. the degree of the present drafts), on the blowing mode of the air flow (for example on the number of points of blowing and/or on their cross section, on the fact that the blowing takes place with a complete or partial blockage or without blockage of the hive entrance door), etc.

For example, the applicant has verified that the external and/or internal temperature of the hive is a major factor, since the greater the reaction rate and ozone degradation, the higher the temperature. Therefore, for equal flow rate of said air flow and amount of ozone dispersed therein, the applicant has experimentally verified that the ozone concentration obtained in the hive in a midsummer day, with a temperature of 30°C, is significantly less than the concentration obtained in a winter day, with a temperature close to 0°C.

Below, some solutions that the applicant has verified to be particularly advantageous for some applications and/or in some treatment conditions are described, although the invention should not be considered limited to such solutions.

It is noted, for example, that the invention contemplates the blowing of an air flow composed of two or more partial air flows separate from each other and/or blown in distinct positions of the hive, each of said partial flows having dispersed therein a respective partial amount of ozone, where the minimum total flow rate of such partial flows is in accordance with what is described herein with reference to the flow rate of the air flow.

Preferably said amount of ozone is such that the ozone concentration in at least one point inside the hive is greater than or equal to about 3 ppm, more preferably greater than or equal to 5 ppm, and/or less than or equal to 30 ppm, more preferably less than or equal to 20 ppm, for a time greater than or equal to about 3 minutes, more preferably greater than or equal to

5 minutes, and/or less than or equal to about 30 minutes, more preferably less than or equal to 20 minutes. The applicant has found that such concentration (which as mentioned above substantially is the same in all the points of the beehive thanks to the forced blowing of the ozone dispersed in the air flow) for such range of exposure is sufficient to control the varroa infestation and/or other parasites. Moreover, above 30 ppm of concentration the risk of mortality of bees increases.

Preferably said flow rate of said air flow is less than or equal to about 20 m³/h, more preferably less than or equal to 15 m³/h. In this way, a too high flow rate of the air flow, besides disturbing the bees too much, is prevented to cause an air exchange inside the hive resulting in an excessive ozone evacuation to the external environment prior to its reaction.

Preferably said amount of ozone dispersed in said air flow corresponds to an ozone flow dispersed in said air flow having a flow rate greater than or equal to 1 g/h and/or less than or equal 4 g/h, more preferably less than or equal to 3 g/h. The applicant has found that such flow rate of ozone flow dispersed in said air flow results in an adequate internal ozone concentration for optimum flow rate of such air flow. However, as explained above one skilled in the art may obtain the desired ozone concentration inside the hive via the ozone introduction with flow rates lower than 1 g/l or greater than 4 g/h with respect to several factors that influence the administration dynamics, such as the flow rate of the air flow, the free internal volume of the hive, the external and/or internal temperature of the hive, etc.

Preferably, it is provided to blow said air flow with said amount of ozone dispersed therein for a period of time greater than or equal to about 3 minutes, more preferably greater than or equal to 5 minutes, and/or less than or equal to about 30 minutes, more preferably less than or equal to 20 minutes. The applicant has found that for more than 30 minutes of bowing, a mortality of bees occurs and for periods shorter than 3 minutes there were no significant effects. Preferably, it is provide to blow said air flow with said amount of ozone dispersed therein through a lower inlet slot of the hive, more preferably said inlet slot being almost completely occluded in communication with the outside. In this way, advantageously the air flow and the ozone dispersed in it are introduced from the bottom of the internal volume of the hive and move towards the most internal part of the hive with a limited emission at the inlet slot.

Preferably, it is provided to blow said air flow with said amount of ozone dispersed therein by means of the above treatment apparatus.

Preferably said ozone generator is adapted to generate an ozone flow having a flow rate greater than or equal to 1 g/h and/or less than or equal to 4 g/h, more preferably less than or equal to 3 g/h.

Preferably said ozone generator is adapted to generate a carrier air flow in which said generated ozone flow is dispersed, said carrier air flow having a flow rate greater than or equal to 0.2 m³/h, more preferably greater than or equal to 0.4 m³/h, and/or less than or equal to 1 m³/h. In this way, said ozone flow is generated and handled easily for the purpose of the treatment.

Preferably in use said carrier air flow in which said ozone flow is dispersed is received at said first input of the blowing device.

Preferably, said outlet mouth of the blowing device has a height of less than or equal to 4 mm. This will prevent the bees from entering the blowing device.

Preferably, the said outlet mouth of the blowing device has a width greater than or equal to 10 cm. This partially block the inlet slot of the beehive and the air flow is advantageously widened.

Preferably, said blowing device is separate and distinct from said ozone generator. In this way, blowing is easier and it is also possible to connect more blowing devices to a single ozone generator.

Advantageously, the blowing device is electrically connected to the ozone generator for receiving power from this latter. Preferably, the apparatus comprises a small tube, preferably flexible, arranged to connect said ozone generator with said first input. Preferably, said small tube has a length less than or equal to 2 m, more preferably less than or equal to 1 .5 m. This limits the amount of ozone that degrades before reaching the blowing device.

Preferably, said blowing means are adapted to aspirate from said second input an amount of air greater than or equal to 2 m³/h, more preferably greater than or equal to 3 m³/h, and/or less than or equal to about 15 m³/h, more preferably less than or equal to 10 m³/h. In this way, the said air flow with the ozone dispersed is easily generated.

Preferably, said treatment comprises the sanitization of an internal environment of the hive, for example, the reduction of its bacterial load. Preferably, said treatment comprises the treatment of varroa disease and/or of the small hive beetle (Aethina tumida) and/or of the nosema disease.

Preferably, it is provided to repeat said method of treatment at least once per month per hive, at least in the months from March to November, more preferably at least once every three weeks per hive.

Further characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the description of an exemplary, but not exclusive, and therefore non-limiting preferred embodiment of an apparatus and a method of treatment of a hive comprising a colony of bees inside a hive in accordance with the present invention. Such description will make use of the attached drawings, in which:

- Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of an embodiment of a hive treatment apparatus according to the present invention;

- Figure 2 is a schematic perspective view of a blowing device according to the present invention.

Figure 1 shows a treatment apparatus 1 of a hive comprising a colony of bees within a hive 20, this latter not further described as known per se. The apparatus comprises an ozone generator 2 adapted to generate an ozone flow and at least one blowing device 3. The ozone generator will not be further described as known per se.

Preferably, as shown in Figure 1 , the blowing device is separate and distinct from the ozone generator: however, the present invention also contemplates the case in which they are a whole.

Preferably the blowing device is electrically connected, for example by an electric cable 12, to the ozone generator to receive power from this latter. The blowing device has a first input 4 connected to the ozone generator, for example via a small tube 5, to receive the generated ozone flow, a second inlet 6 and an outlet mouth 7.

Exemplarily the outlet mouth has a height h equal to about 4 mm and a width L equal to about 10 cm. In one embodiment, not shown, the outlet mouth is provided with a network or grid to prevent the access of bees in the device.

The blowing device comprises blowing means 8 adapted to draw air from the second inlet 6, to disperse (in an internal chamber of the blowing device) the ozone flow in the drawn air, and to emit an air flow in which the ozone flow is dispersed.

Preferably, the ozone generator is adapted to generate a carrier air flow in which an ozone flow is dispersed, having having a flow rate greater than or equal to 1 g/h and less than or equal to 3 g/h, where the carrier air flow has flow rate greater than or equal to 0.2 m³/h and less than or equal to 1 m³/h.

Preferably, the blowing means 8 are able to aspire from the second inlet an amount of air greater than or equal to 2 m³/h, more preferably greater than or equal to 3 m³/h, and/or less than or equal to about 15 m³/h, more preferably less than or equal to 10 m³/h.

The method of treatment of the present invention may be realized by means of the treatment apparatus 1 . Such apparatus 1 is advantageously portable and is typically powered by electricity as symbolically indicated by the electrical socket cable 1 1 , which is typically connected to a portable electric generator.

The operator connects one or, preferably, more blowing devices 3 to the ozone generator and inserts the respective outlet mouth 7 in the inlet slot of the respective hive. Preferably, a remaining part of the inlet slot is occluded (except for a few centimetres to prevent bees from feeling the complete closure) so as to limit the ozone emission from the point of blowing.

After that, the operators starts the ozone generator and leaves it on for the preset time.

In use, the ozone generator 2 generates and blows into the small tube 5 a carrier air flow in which an ozone flow is dispersed, the whole being received at the first input 4 of the blowing device.

The blowing means 8 aspire from the second inlet 6 an amount of air, they mix it with the carrier air flow and emit to the outlet mouth 7 a resulting air flow in which the ozone flow is dispersed.

Exemplarily the carrier air flow has a flow rate equal to 0.6 m³/h.

Exemplarily the blowing means 8 aspire from the second inlet an amount of air equal to 7 m³/h, so that the flow rate of the resulting air flow is equal to 7.6 m³/h.

Exemplarily the ozone flow generated and dispersed in the carrier air flow and, subsequently, in the resulting air flow, is equal to 2 g/h (neglecting the small ozone percentage which degrades in the range that goes from generation to the blowing in the hive).

EXAMPLE 1 :

The treatment apparatus 1 has been used as exemplarily described above on three hives, each treatment being performed for a blowing time equal to 10 minutes, with a flow rate of the resulting air flow equal to 7.6 m³/h in which an ozone flow equal to 2 g/h is dispersed. The resulting ozone concentration inside the beehive was equal to 10 ppm.

In such conditions, no mortality of bees has been observed.

The table shows the number of varroa examples found.

The table above shows that, with no damage observed to the individuals of the colony of bees, a mortality of varroa examples occurs.

Furthermore, this mortality of parasites has occurred both just before the treatment and in the immediately following days, in certain cases even to a greater extent compared to the treatment day.

By careful observation of the varroa examples removed in the days following the treatment, it was found that many of them were in an early state of evolution, i.e. pre-adult stage (white coloured examples), and the greater the number of examples, the greater the number of day passed from the treatment. It is therefore considered that ozone succeeded in penetrating the opercula that seals the brood cells and in suppressing the immature varroa on the pupae or on the bee larvae.

Moreover, it was observed that the treated colonies exhibited more extensive broods and which prolonged longer compared to the untreated colonies.

EXAMPLE 2:

The treatment apparatus 1 has been used as exemplarily described above on a hive with a flow rate of the resulting air flow equal to 7.6 m³/h in which an ozone flow equal to 2 g/h is dispersed.

In such conditions, no mortality of bees has been observed.

The table shows the duration of treatment and the number of varroa examples found.

Day Treatment Duration Hive No. 1

3rd October Yes 10 min 54

4th October No 30

5th October No 22

6th October No 3

7th October Yes 5 min 25

8th October No 42

9th October No 52

10th October No 48

3rd November Yes 5 min 41

4th November No 48

5th November No 32

6th November Yes 5 min 92

7th November Yes 10 min 128

8th November Yes 10 min 83

9th November No 42

10th No 52

1 1 th No 59

12th No 59

13th No 52

14th No 69

15th No 57

16th No 62

17th No 51 18th Yes 5 min 82

19th No 23

20th No 20

21 st No 60

23rd Yes 7 min 52

24th No 38

25th No 27

26th No 26

27th No 17

28th No 15

29th No 21

30th No 9

3rd December Yes 5 min 20

4th December No 25

5th December No 15

6th December No 12

7th December No 7

8th December No 3

9th December No 7

10th No 10

The detected data denote the effectiveness of the treatment in controlling varroa.

Also in this case, it was observed a great number of varroa examples in an early state of evolution eliminated in the days following the treatment. Furthermore, according to the applicant, the duration of 10 min has proved more effective compared to a period of 7 min or 5 min (although these latters also produce some useful effect).

Claims

1 . Method of treatment of a hive comprising a colony of bees within a beehive (20), the method comprising:

2. Method according to claim 1 , wherein said amount of ozone is such that the ozone concentration in at least one point inside the beehive is greater than or equal to about 3 ppm and/or less than or equal to 30 ppm, for a period of time greater than or equal to about 3 minutes, and/or less than or equal to about 30 minutes.

3. Method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said amount of ozone dispersed in said air flow corresponds to an ozone flow dispersed in said air flow having a flow rate greater than or equal to 1 g/h and/or less than or equal to 4 g/h, preferably less than or equal to 3 g/h.

4. Method according

to any one of the preceding claims, comprising blowing said air flow with said amount of ozone dispersed therein for a period of time greater than or equal to about 3 minutes, preferably greater than or equal to 5 minutes, and/or less than or equal to about 30 minutes, preferably less than or equal to 20 minutes.

5. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, comprising blowing said air flow with said amount of ozone dispersed therein through a lower inlet slot of the beehive, said inlet slot being almost completely occluded in communication with the outside.

6. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, said treatment comprising the sanitization of an internal environment of the beehive and/or the treatment of varroa disease and/or of the small hive beetle (Aethina tumida) and/or of the nosema disease.

7. Apparatus (1 ) of treatment of a hive comprising a colony of bees within a beehive (20), the apparatus comprising:

- an ozone generator (2) for generating an ozone flow; - at least one blowing device (3) having a first input (4) adapted to be connected to said ozone generator to receive said ozone flow, a second input (6) and an outlet mouth (7), and comprising blowing means (8) adapted to draw air from said second input, to disperse said ozone flow in said drawn air, and to emit from said outlet mouth an air flow having a flow rate greater than or equal to about 2 m³/h, preferably greater than or equal to about 3 m³/h, in which said ozone flow is dispersed.

8. Apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said ozone generator is adapted to generate an ozone flow having a flow rate greater than or equal to 1 g/h and/or less than or equal to 4 g/h, preferably less than or equal to 3 g/h, and wherein said ozone generator is adapted to generate a carrier air flow, in which said ozone flow generated is dispersed, said carrier air flow having a flow rate greater than or equal to 0.2 m³/h and/or less than or equal to 1 m³/h, and wherein said blowing means (8) are suitable to aspirate from said second input an amount of air greater than or equal to 2 m³/h and/or less than or equal to about 15 m³/h.

9. Apparatus according to claim 7 or 8, wherein said outlet mouth (7) of the blowing device has a height less than or equal to 4 mm and/or a width greater than or equal to 10 cm, and where the apparatus (1 ) comprises a small tube (5) arranged to connect said ozone generator with said first input, said small tube having a length less than or equal to 2 m, preferably less than or equal to 1 .5 m.

10. Method according to any of claims 1 to 6 or apparatus according to any of claims 7 to 9, wherein said flow rate of said air flow is less than or equal to 20 m³/h, preferably less than or equal to 15 m³/h.