Characters of Pine Oleoresin-Based Plant Oils as Solvents for Pesticide Formulation

The flash point, volatility, pesticide solubility and stability of the pine oleoresin-based plant oils were measured for the purpose of development of natural alternatives of aromatic solvents in pesticide formulation. The results showed that the flash points of the 4 types of pine oleoresin-based plant oils were all above 35 ℃, which were obviously higher than that of the control solvent xylene. Under test temperature of 25 ℃, the volatility of the pine oleoresin-based plant oils for 8 h were less than 45.9%, with 2.1% of the least volatility of ND-100, whereas the volatility of xylene was 100%. The solubility of pine oleoresin-based plant oil ND-60 against the technical materials of 47 pesticides showed that 6 pesticides (12.8%), namely emamectin benzoate，fenbutatin-oxide, flusilazole, tebuconazole, lambda-cyhalothrin and azocyclotin, had remarkablely higher solubility than that in the control solvent of xylene, while 15 pesticides (31.9%）, including spinosad and methidathion, were relatively less soluble in comparison with that in xylene. Measurements of the qualities of 42 emulsifiable concentrate preparations indicated that 30 preparations (71.4%)，especially the preparations of deltamethrin, lambda-cyhalothrin and chlorpyrifos, exhibited qualified compatibility and stability in ND-60. These results suggested a positive potential of pine oleoresin-based plant oils as natural alternatives of aromatic solvents in the application of pesticide formulation.