A Ph.D. student has helped develop a "Trojan horse" method of delivering pesticides to plants, and the technology could prevent millions of tons of toxic chemicals from leaching into the environment while lowering operating costs for farmers.
According to a Stockholm University media release, Matilda Andersson has created a nanoparticle from lignin — a natural polymer in wood and an "underutilized by-product" in wood-related industries.
Under the guidance of associate professor Mika Sipponen and the Department of Chemistry, Andersson used fatty acid derivatives to transform lignin into a particle that can stick to plants' waxy surfaces and get past the protective layer of their leaves.
This not only helps provide plants with long-term pest protection for up to 60 days but also reduces the possibility of environmental contamination. As it stands, less than 25% of the 4 million tons of pesticides sprayed globally each year impact their intended target.
The cost of this waste is evident. According to MIT News, farms shell out approximately $60 billion on pesticides each year.
Moreover, it has significant implications for future food security. As Pesticide Action Network explains, synthetic chemicals such as pesticides are typically derived from dirty fuels.
Therefore, they are part of a "vicious cycle" in which heat-trapping pollution associated with them contributes to rising global temperatures, creating increasingly favorable conditions for crop-destroying pests and more intense extreme weather events.
Fortunately, there are proven ways to control pests without chemicals. At home, some people are turning to trap crops. Steam pasteurization is also an emerging commercial solution. However, any method that reduces chemical dependence is worth exploring, as pesticides are also linked to cancer, brain damage in children, and other severe health complications.
The Stockholm University team is now planning to test its "Trojan horse" pesticide delivery on growing crops, and it will monitor the data to confirm its long-term effectiveness.
"This method has the potential to reduce the amount of pesticides required, which benefits not only farmers but also the environment. Our next step is to test the lignin-based nanoparticles under practical conditions," Andersson said in the university's media release.
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All the time 😨 "Our goal is to further develop sustainable technologies that can solve the real challenges faced by agriculture," Sipponen added.
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