The biological activity of a pesticide, be it chemical or biological in nature, is determined by its active ingredient (AI - also called the active substance). Pesticide products very rarely consist of the pure active ingredient. The AI is usually formulated with other materials (adjuvents and co-formulants) and this is the product as sold, but it may be further diluted in use. Formulations improve the properties of a chemical for handling, storage, application and may substantially influence effectiveness and safety. [1]
Formulation terminology follows a 2-letter convention: (e.g. GR: granules) listed by CropLife International (formerly GIFAP then GCPF) in the Catalogue of Pesticide Formulation Types (Monograph 2); see: download page. Some manufacturers do not follow these industry standards, which can cause confusion for users.
By far the most frequently used products are formulations for mixing with water then applying as sprays. Water miscible, older formulations include:
Newer, non-powdery formulations with reduced or no use of hazardous solvents and improved stability include:
Other common formulations include granules (GR) and dusts (DP), although for improved safety the latter have been replaced by microgranules (MG e.g. for rice farmers in Japan). Specialist formulations are available for ultra-low volume spraying, fogging, fumigation, etc. Very occasionally, some pesticides (e.g. malathion) may be sold as technical material (TC - which is mostly AI, but also contains small quantities of, usually non-active, by-products of the manufacturing process; TGAC - "technical grade active constituent" means the same.).
A particularly efficient form of pesticide dose transfer is seed treatment and specific formulations have been developed for this purpose. A number of pesticide bait formulations are available for rodent pest control, etc.
In reality many formulation codes are used: AB, AE, AL, AP, BB, BR, CB, CF, CG, CL, CP, CS, DC, DL, DP, DS, DT, EC, ED, EG, EO, ES, EW, FD, FG, FK, FP, FR, FS, FT, FU, FW, GA, GB, GE, GF, GG, GL, GP, GR, GS, GW, HN, KK, KL, KN, KP, LA, LS, LV, MC, ME, MG, MV, OD, OF, OL, OP, PA, PB, PC, PO, PR, PS, RB, SA, SB, SC, SD, SE, SG, SL, SO, SP, SS, ST, SU, TB, TC, TK, TP, UL, VP, WG, WP, WS, WT, XX, ZC, ZE and ZW. [2]
A tablet is a pharmaceutical oral dosage form or solid unit dosage form. Tablets may be defined as the solid unit dosage form of medication with suitable excipients. It comprises a mixture of active substances and excipients, usually in powder form, that are pressed or compacted into a solid dose. The main advantages of tablets are that they ensure a consistent dose of medicine that is easy to consume.
Instant coffee is a beverage derived from brewed coffee beans that enables people to quickly prepare hot coffee by adding hot water or milk to coffee solids in powdered or crystallized form and stirring. The product was first invented in Invercargill, the largest city in Southland, New Zealand, in 1890. Instant coffee solids refers to the dehydrated and packaged solids available at retail used to make instant coffee. Instant coffee solids are commercially prepared by either freeze-drying or spray drying, after which it can be rehydrated. Instant coffee in a concentrated liquid form, as a beverage, is also manufactured.
Fenvalerate is a synthetic pyrethroid insecticide. It is a mixture of four optical isomers which have different insecticidal activities. The 2-S alpha configuration, known as esfenvalerate, is the most insecticidally active isomer. Fenvalerate consists of about 23% of this isomer.
Dicofol is an insecticide, an organochlorine that is chemically related to DDT. Dicofol is a miticide that is very effective against spider mite. Its production and use is banned internationally under the Stockholm Convention.
Excipient is a substance formulated alongside the active ingredient of a medication. Excipients serve various purposes, including long-term stabilization, bulking up solid formulations containing potent active ingredients in small amounts, or enhancing the therapeutic properties of the active ingredient in the final dosage form. They can facilitate drug absorption, reduce viscosity, or enhance solubility. Excipients can also aid in the manufacturing process by improving the handling of active substances, facilitating powder flowability, or preventing denaturation and aggregation during the expected shelf life. The selection of excipients depends on factors such as the route of administration, dosage form, and active ingredient.
A biopesticide is a biological substance or organism that damages, kills, or repels organisms seen as pests. Biological pest management intervention involves predatory, parasitic, or chemical relationships.
Dimethoate is a widely used organophosphate insecticide and acaricide. It was patented and introduced in the 1950s by American Cyanamid. Like other organophosphates, dimethoate is an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor which disables cholinesterase, an enzyme essential for central nervous system function. It acts both by contact and through ingestion. It is readily absorbed and distributed throughout plant tissues, and is degraded relatively rapidly. One of the breakdown products of dimethoate is omethoate, a potent cholinesterase inhibitor, is ten times more toxic than its parent compound.
Pharmaceutical formulation, in pharmaceutics, is the process in which different chemical substances, including the active drug, are combined to produce a final medicinal product. The word formulation is often used in a way that includes dosage form.
Azoxystrobin is a broad spectrum systemic fungicide widely used in agriculture to protect crops from fungal diseases. It was first marketed in 1996 using the brand name Amistar and by 1999 it had been registered in 48 countries on more than 50 crops. In the year 2000 it was announced that it had been granted UK Millennium product status.
Cyhalothrin is an organic compound that, in specific isomeric forms, is used as a pesticide. It is a pyrethroid, a class of synthetic insecticides that mimic the structure and properties of the naturally occurring insecticide pyrethrin which is present in the flowers of Chrysanthemum cinerariifolium. Pyrethroids such as cyhalothrin are often preferred as an active ingredient in agricultural insecticides because they are more cost-effective and longer acting than natural pyrethrins. λ-and γ-cyhalothrin are now used to control insects and spider mites in crops including cotton, cereals, potatoes and vegetables.
Calcium dobesilate is a vasoprotective. It is the calcium salt of dobesilic acid. It is a synthetic molecule with the ability to reduce capillary permeability in the body. In Switzerland the drug is sold by the pharmaceutical company OM Pharma under the trade name of Doxium in capsules containing 500 mg of active ingredient.
Agricultural spray adjuvants are part of integrated pest management, and during pesticide application are used to enhance the effectiveness of pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, fungicides and other agents that control or eliminate unwanted pests. As with medical adjuvants, agricultural spray adjuvants are not themselves active in controlling or killing pests. Instead, these additives modify some property of the spray solution, which improves the ability of the pesticide to penetrate, target or protect the target organism. Among the typical types of ingredients used are surfactants, emulsifiers, oils and salts. Each of these ingredients, and others, modifies the spray solution itself to improve such properties as spreading, penetration, droplet size or other characteristics.
Pesticide application refers to the practical way in which pesticides are delivered to their biological targets. Public concern about the use of pesticides has highlighted the need to make this process as efficient as possible, in order to minimise their release into the environment and human exposure. The practice of pest management by the rational application of pesticides is supremely multi-disciplinary, combining many aspects of biology and chemistry with: agronomy, engineering, meteorology, socio-economics and public health, together with newer disciplines such as biotechnology and information science.
Bromacil is an organic compound with the chemical formula C9H13BrN2O2, commercially available as a herbicide. Bromacil was first registered as a pesticide in the U.S. in 1961. It is used for brush control on non-cropland areas. It works by interfering with photosynthesis by entering the plant through the root zone and moving throughout the plant. Bromacil is one of a group of compounds called substituted uracils. These materials are broad spectrum herbicides used for nonselective weed and brush control on non-croplands, as well as for selective weed control on a limited number of crops, such as citrus fruit and pineapple. Bromacil is also found to be excellent at controlling perennial grasses.
A wettable powder (WP) is an insecticide or other pesticide formulation consisting of the active ingredient in a finely ground state combined with wetting agents and sometimes bulking agents. Wettable powders are designed to be applied as a dilute suspension through liquid spraying equipment. As wettable powders are not mixed with water until immediately before use, storing and transporting the products may be simplified as the weight and volume of the water is avoided. Wettable powders may be supplied in bulk or in measured sachets made from water-soluble film to simplify premixing and reduce operator exposure to the product.
Pharmaceutical manufacturing is the process of industrial-scale synthesis of pharmaceutical drugs as part of the pharmaceutical industry. The process of drug manufacturing can be broken down into a series of unit operations, such as milling, granulation, coating, tablet pressing, and others.
Copper naphthenate is a copper derivative of naphthenic acid. Although commonly called salts of naphthenic acid, copper naphthenate is not ionic, but is a covalent coordination complex, hence its lipophilic character. Copper naphthenate is most widely used in wood preservation and for protecting other cellulosic materials such as textiles and cordage from damage by decay fungi and insects. Other metal naphthenates are used as paint driers, rubber adhesion promoters, lubricant additives, and catalysts where oil solubility is required.
Triazofos is a chemical compound used in acaricides, insecticides, and nematicides.
Cyproconazole is an agricultural fungicide of the class of azoles, used on cereal crops, coffee, sugar beet, fruit trees and grapes, and peanuts, on sod farms and golf course turf and on wood as a preservative. It has been used against powdery mildew, rust on cereals and apple scab, and applied by air or on the ground or by chemigation.
Agglomerated food powder is a unit operation during which native particles are assembled to form bigger agglomerates, in which the original particle can still be distinguished. Agglomeration can be achieved through processes that use liquid as a binder or methods that do not involve any binder.
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