Transition toward Eco-Efficiency of Two Synthesis Methods for Nano-Enabled Pesticides

Abstract

Nanoparticle synthesis methodologies have been developed over the last decades for reducing the concentrations of pesticides such as atrazine in the environment. In this work, life cycle assessment (LCA) and economic performance analysis tools were used to evaluate the eco-efficiency transition of two laboratory-scale synthesis processes for polymeric nanoparticles (NPo) containing atrazine (ATZ), namely, a double emulsion process (DEm) and a nanoprecipitation process (NPr). Life cycle inventories for both synthesis processes included the flows of matter and energy at a laboratory scale, complementing information from the Ecoinvent database. LCA used the ReCiPe 2016 methodology with a midpoint (H) to produce NPo + ATZ at a concentration of 1 mg ATZ mL–1 of final solution (functional unit). For both processes, freshwater ecotoxicity stood out among the impact categories evaluated, due to significant electricity consumption. The DEm process had a 61% higher total environmental impact, compared to the NPr process. The total cost of the DEm process per functional unit was 5% higher than that of the NPr process. Therefore, NPr achieved a gain of 54% for the eco-efficiency transition, in relation to DEm, for the production of NPo + ATZ. Two steps influenced this result that only occurred in the DEm process: sonication and the use of dichloromethane. Therefore, eco-efficiency enabled identification of the greener production process and the steps that had greater environmental and economic impacts in two NPo synthesis processes.

Impact of collection from indigenous lands on the municipal solid waste management system: A case study in the Amazon

“…In this methodological approach, a compilation of the inputs and outputs of matter and energy underlies the assessment of the potential environmental impacts of a product system, throughout its life cycle (Paes et al, 2020a). Research involving LCA has applications in evaluating scenarios for different sectors of society, such as agriculture (Costa et al, 2018), education (Dutra et al, 2019), laboratory processes (Melo et al, 2023) and in the MSW management (Paes et al, 2020a, Oliveira et al, 2022.…”

Fostering Inclusive Scientific Communities: A Pathway to Innovation in Agriculture

“…A very recent paper by Ristroph et al on novel scalable nanocarrier formulations for pesticides has quickly received a large number of views. Examples of other papers on nanomaterials relevant for pesticide formulations are as follows: sustainable nanomaterial approaches to essential oil delivery for disease prevention in soy; pesticide formulation processes using polymeric nanoparticles; metal–organic frameworks for controlled release insecticide formulations; utilizing plant virus nanoparticles as delivery vehicles in soil; and bacteria-based nanobiopesticides for plant disease management . Other examples of novel applications that have been published this year are smart gene delivery systems for plants using amine-functionalized carbon dots, nitrogen-doped carbon dots to address drought stress in maize, and nanoparticles doped with micronutrients and P to reduce nutrient leaching to groundwater .…”

“…Additional thanks go out to our Editorial Advisory Board members who have provided important guidance and peer reviews and have published their own research this year. The wide range of topics published by our EAB members illustrates their broad expertise ranging from plant science , to soil science and agronomy, − sustainable nanomaterials and formulants, ,,− pesticide discovery, environmental chemistry, − and food safety …”