Studies on physico-chemical properties of synthetic Pyrethroids Fenvalerate and Alphamethrin

The increasing pressure to increase food production to meet current demand requires protection of crops from pests. The use of pesticides is therefore inevitable and constitutes an integral part of modern crop management practice. Manufacturers design pesticide formulations with several active substances of different chemical classes with different mechanisms of action and direction. Pesticide formulations are broken down into active ingredients and inert ingredients. Uncontrolled technical impurities accompanying any active substance or base material used for the formulation could worsen the toxicological properties of final products and thereby cause additional adverse health and environmental effects. By the same token, inappropriately defined concentrations can lead to overuse and misuse of pesticides by the user. Regular quality control of pesticide is essential to facilitate their safe and efficient use and for increasing agricultural productivity while at the same time protects the farmers, consumers and the environment. The biological activity of a pesticide to the target pest species is greatly influenced by its physical and chemical properties. In the present studies the physico-chemical properties of various commercially available EC formulations of synthetic pyrethroids like Alphamethrin and Fenvalerate insecticides, which are widely used for plant protection, are determined as per BIS specifications. The results of the present studies will be further utilized for selection and also for it’s application

Author(s): Rashmi Urkude and Sonika R. Kochhar

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