Biomass-derived, Target Specific, and Ecologically Safer Insecticide Active Ingredients
Date
2024-08-21
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Chemistry-Sustainability-Energy-Materials
Abstract
With the continuous increase in food production to support the growing population, ensuring agricultural sustainability using crop-protecting agents, such as pesticides, is vital. Conventional pesticides pose significant environmental risks, prompting the need for eco-friendly alternatives. This study reports the synthesis of new amide-based insecticidal active ingredients from biomass-derived monomers, specifically furfural and vanillin. The process involves reductive amination followed by carbonylation. The synthesis of the furfural-based carbamate yield reaches a cumulative 88%, with catalysts Rh/Al2O3 and La(OTf)3 being recyclable at each stage. Insecticidal activity assessments reveal that the furfural carbamate exhibits competitive performance, achieving an LC50 of 6.35 μg/cm², compared to 6.27 μg/cm² for carbofuran. Ecotoxicity predictions indicate significantly lower toxicity levels toward non-target aquatic and terrestrial species. The importance of the low octanol-water partition coefficient of the biobased carbamate, attributed to the oxygen heteroatom and electron density of the furan ring, is discussed in detail. Building on these promising results, the synthesis strategy was extended to six other biobased aldehydes, resulting in a diverse portfolio of biomass-derived carbamates. A techno-economic analysis reveals a minimum selling price of 11.1$/kg, only half that of comparable carbamates, demonstrating the economic viability of these new biobased insecticides.
Description
This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: T. Goculdas, M. Ramirez, M. Crossley, S. Sadula, D. G. Vlachos,“Biomass‐derived, Target Specific, and Ecologically Safer Insecticide Active Ingredients.” ChemSusChem 2024, e202400824. https://doi.org/10.1002/cssc.202400824 , which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/cssc.202400824. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions. This article may not be enhanced, enriched or otherwise transformed into a derivative work, without express permission from Wiley or by statutory rights under applicable legislation. Copyright notices must not be removed, obscured or modified. The article must be linked to Wiley’s version of record on Wiley Online Library and any embedding, framing or otherwise making available the article or pages thereof by third parties from platforms, services and websites other than Wiley Online Library must be prohibited.
© 2024 Wiley-VCH GmbH. This article will be embargoed until 08/21/2025.
This research was featured in UDaily on 9/24/2024 at: https://www.udel.edu/udaily/2024/september/ecologically-safer-biobased-insecticidal-ingredients-Dionisios-Vlachos-Michael-Crossley/
Keywords
biopesticides, biomass, insecticides, green synthesis, technoeconomics, zero hunger, good health and well-being, life on land
Citation
T. Goculdas, M. Ramirez, M. Crossley, S. Sadula, D. G. Vlachos,“Biomass‐derived, Target Specific, and Ecologically Safer Insecticide Active Ingredients.” ChemSusChem 2024, e202400824. https://doi.org/10.1002/cssc.202400824