WO2021033049A1

WO2021033049A1 - Biodegradable herbicide composition comprising anionic surfactants, alcohols, hygroscopic components, organic acids and micronutrients

Info

Publication number: WO2021033049A1
Application number: PCT/IB2020/056985
Authority: WO
Inventors: Luis Miguel Cote Gómez
Original assignee: Cote Gomez Luis Miguel
Priority date: 2019-08-22
Filing date: 2020-07-24
Publication date: 2021-02-25
Also published as: CO2019009062A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a biodegradable, non-selective, post-emergent, desiccant, defoliant, residual-effect herbicide composition made using mainly natural products, which does not pollute soils or water sources and is harmless (when used properly) to many animals and to humans. The herbicide composition comprises: surfactants; alcohols, preferably 1,2,3-propanetriol; hygroscopic elements; acids; and, additionally, micronutrients.

Description

BIODEGRADABLE HERBICIDE COMPOSITION INCLUDING ANIONIC SURFACTANTS. ALCOHOLS. HYGROSCOPIC COMPONENTS. ORGANIC ACIDS AND MICRONUTRIENTS

TECHNICAL FIELD

This technology is related to the field of herbicides. In particular, the present invention relates to herbicides used for the eradication of illicit coca, marijuana and poppy plant crops, as well as for the control of grasses, weeds and weeds in both conventional and organic licit crops.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

According to the Washington Office for Latin American Affairs WOLA, strategies to combat drugs must take into account structural causes in order to adopt comprehensive, systematic and sustainable solutions, including environmental, cultural, ethnic, social, political and economic variables.

In Colombia, agriculture plays a very important role in the national economy, however, it has been affected by the economic and social crisis exacerbated by the armed conflict, therefore, illicit crops are a consequence of this crisis in the Colombian countryside. .

To confront this problem of illicit crops, Colombia has used glyphosate as a chemical eradication tool. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), as of December In 2006, there were 78,000 hectares planted with coca in Colombia, that is, a reduction of 9% compared to 2005. As of 2005, there was a strategy of forced manual eradication without major results in the face of the problem. In 2006, an aerial spraying strategy with glyphosate was started, however, although results were achieved in terms of eradication, it was not beneficial for the environment.

This is how the National Government suspended the aerial spraying with glyphosate through the National Narcotics Council and through resolution 0006 of May 29, 2015, after a series of studies developed by the WHO (World Health Organization), where demonstrates the effects on environmental pollution and its high levels of damage to the health of people who have contact with this substance. For this reason, countries like Colombia and others in the world prohibit its use and restrict themselves in seeking solutions to resume aerial spraying as an effective strategy for eradication.

For its part, illicit crops have been increasing over the last few years according to the report issued by the authorities of the US Government, in charge of fighting and monitoring organizations and countries dedicated to the cultivation, processing and distribution of leaf coca, as well as cocaine hydrochloride trafficking. This study shows that the growth of coca crops during 2017 has reached figures of more than 200,000 planted hectares. Doubling the figures obtained in the studies of 2014.

Glyphosate is a weak organic acid consisting of a glycine and a phosphonomethyl fraction, whose chemical formula is C3H8NO5P, its purity in a technical grade generally it is 90%, it is a white crystalline powder that has a high solubility, a systemic and non-selective post-emergence widely used in agricultural and non-agricultural areas of the world for the control of deep-rooted perennial species.

The State of the Art discloses documents with herbicidal compositions, such as US patent application: US 2016/0338348 by ADJUVANTS UNLIMITED LLC., Which provides methods for reducing the viscosity of highly active alkyl ether sulfates (for example, lauryl ether sodium sulfate or ammonium lauryl ether sulfate) by mixing said high-active alkyl ether sulfates with one or more solvents and compositions with the reduced viscosity of surfactants before use. These compositions do not use a preservative. The resulting surfactant and solvent mixtures can be used to formulate cleaning products or pesticides, including herbicides.

On the other hand, the US patent application: US 2017/0013829 of the Center National de la Recherche Scientifique CNRS Universite de Montpellier IRodia Operations SAS, reveals agricultural adjuvant compositions, pesticide compositions and methods for using such compositions, wherein the adjuvant composition understands:

One or more anionic surfactant compounds,

One or more fatty acid alkyl ester compounds, and One or more salts; with an aqueous solution comprising an effective amount of pesticide.

For its part, document WO 2014/003202 mentions a benzoylpyrazole compound of formula (I) or its salt used with herbicide and that may be with various additives that can be, for example, a surfactant, a carrier, a solvent, a vegetable oil, a mineral oil, an anti-sedimentation product. agent, a thickener, an antifoam agent, an antifreeze agent, an antioxidant agent, an oil absorbing agent, a gelling agent, a filler, a dispersion stabilizer, a protector, an anti-mold agent, a binder, a stabilizer, a disintegrator, a preservative agent, and an inorganic ammonium salt.

EP 0388239 by Albright and Wilson Ltd. teaches a suspension comprising an aqueous structured surfactant having particles or droplets of a biocidal or agrochemical active substance suspended therein substantially insoluble in water or poorly soluble in a surfactant weight ratio. total to said active substance less than 20: 1.

Likewise, the U.S. document US9247731 refers to emulsifiable herbicide concentrates containing an active herbicide for the grass, a non-petroleum adjuvant and a surfactant. Such emulsifiable concentrates exhibit improved herbicidal efficacy on weeds in flooded paddy rice crops. The herbicidal active ingredient is derived from aryloxyphenoxypropionic acid.

The State of the Art reveals that herbicidal compositions require an active ingredient to be effective, but they are also observed to cause environmental damage. This is why there is a need to offer biodegradable herbicide that allows the eradication of illicit crops and the control of grasses, weeds and weeds in both conventional and organic licit crops. The present invention arises then from the need to find an alternative method in the fumigation of illicit crops, which today are one of the problems of insecurity due to drug trafficking that many countries in Latin America and the world experience. It is also observed that the proliferation of coca crops is causing irreversible environmental damage such as deforestation among others; For this reason one of the main purposes of this invention is to favor the environment, mitigating problems such as soil erosion and contamination of liquid and solid waste, avoiding as much as possible compromising or altering the ecosystems in which it is desired to apply and the affectation in people's health, without losing efficacy in the eradication of the coca plant.

Taking as reference all the studies carried out on glyphosate and the interest on the part of research centers and laboratories to develop a synthetic herbicide that allows the eradication of coca crops without affecting the ecosystem or human health, the idea of elaborate a herbicide based on natural products in 80% of its manufacture, thus reducing the high rates of damage to the environment, soil erosion and damage to people's health, and on the contrary that it serves as a fertilizer for the soil, being a product free of contamination and toxicity.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention refers to biodegradable herbicides intended for the eradication of illicit coca, marijuana and poppy plant crops, as well as for the control of grasses, weeds and weeds in both conventional and organic licit crops. The biodegradable herbicide according to the present invention is a non-selective post-emergent herbicidal composition based on natural products in 80% of its preparation. This herbicide can be used by residual foliar spraying and by contact in its fumigation.

The composition of the present invention makes it possible to reduce the degrees of contamination due to the fact that the components used in the production of the herbicide are natural, mostly suitable for human consumption and biodegradable, since these when mixed with the elements that make up the soils for the Sowing of illegal crops and rainwater create a reaction that slightly fertilizes the land where it is applied, without leaving toxic residues and / or high acidity levels. Additionally, the application of the product is made at the foliar and stem level, which dries the leaves in the first instance and then dehydrates the stem, thus allowing the organic decomposition of the plant, which is used as compost for subsequent soil nutrition. .

Likewise, the composition according to the invention is a non-toxic phytosanitary product in which its components, based on natural substances and acids, such as white vinegar, citric acid, salt and water, among others, comply its objective in the fumigation of crops, effectively eliminating the plant in its respective growth and forage stages.

Currently, four varieties of coca leaf are mainly cultivated, which differ in the concentrations of alkaloids, namely:

> Bitter or caucana (Erythroxylum coca var. Coca): average production between 20 and 25 grams of base per arroba. > Bolivian or sweet (Erythroxylum coca var. Coca) · production between 20 to 26 grams per arroba of coca leaf.

> Peruvian or Tingo María (Erythroxylum novogranatense var. Truxillense and / or Erythroxylum novogranatense var. Novogranatense): 22 to 30 grams of alkaloid per arroba of coca leaf.

> Pajarito (Erythroxylum coca var. Ipadu) \ production between 18 and 24 grams of alkaloid per arroba of leaf.

The above varieties can be eradicated with the biodegradable herbicidal composition of the present invention.

The biodegradable herbicidal composition according to the invention comprises the following components:

1 . Surfactant elements up to 40% of the total weight of the formula, which are used to enhance the activity of the herbicide, given that they are antipathetic molecules made up of a hydrophobic and a hydrophilic component that allow to increase, under certain conditions, penetration and decrease the losses of the molecules in it (Sprankle et al., 1975). This effect is derived from the decrease in surface tension where surfactants are applied (Nitschke and Pastore, 2002).

2. Alcohols up to 20% of the total weight of the formula, in order to create a semi-permeable surface that repels water and allows the adhesion of the different elements of the herbicidal compound to be maintained. 3. Hygroscopic elements up to 50% of the total weight of the formula, which allow breaking the equilibrium humidity of the plant, thus drying leaves and stems, thanks to its drying properties.

4. Acids up to 80% of the total weight of the formula, whose purpose is to break the molecular structure of the plant at the foliar level, resulting in the decomposition of leaves, stems and, thanks to the residual dripping of the product, the root.

5. Micronutrients in a percentage of 5% of the total weight of the formula and whose purpose is to help the recovery of nutrients from the soil together with the compost that the plant forms when it falls dry.

The herbicidal composition of the present invention has important physicochemical properties compared to other known herbicides, since:

1. The invention uses an alcohol-based surfactant substance in a percentage not greater than 40% of the product and its purpose is to help the penetration of the acid elements of the herbicide, reducing the surface tension of the plant molecules. In contrast, commercial products that comprise glyphosate use a surfactant substance as an active ingredient based on ethoxylated fatty amines, in order to poison the plant due to the high degree of phytotoxicity, which, according to some Regulatory Entities, are dangerous chemicals capable of cause gastrointestinal irritation, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

2. The composition of the invention comprises hygroscopic elements (such as sodium chloride) that help in the dehydration process. of the plant at the foliar level. In contrast, glyphosate-based compositions comprise N- (phosphonomethyl) glycines, in isopropylamine salt, which constitute a family of compounds well known for their phytotoxic activity, used to poison plants.

3. The composition of the invention eradicates the plant due to the effect of natural acids, while commercial herbicides poison the plant due to its high degree of phytotoxicity.

Among the possible surfactants for the herbicidal composition are the anionic surfactants selected from: alkyl sulfates, alkyl sulfonates, ethoxy sulfates, or mixtures of these.

The alcohol used in the herbicidal composition of the invention comprises three hydroxyl groups, specifically it is 1,2,3-propanetriol.

The hygroscopic components are selected from: wheat flour, corn flour, barley flour, salts such as sodium chloride, magnesium chloride, sodium hydrogen carbonate, barium chloride, or mixtures of these.

The acids used in the herbicidal composition of the invention correspond to C2-C8 organic acids, and are selected from: acetic acid, propionic acid, benzoic acid, citric acid, or mixtures of these.

The micronutrients of the herbicidal composition of the present invention correspond to: zinc stearate, silica, potassium, phosphorus, or mixtures of these. In particular, the present invention relates to a biodegradable herbicidal composition comprising:

- Between 5% and 40% of sodium lauryl ether sulfate;

- Between 5% and 20% of 1,2,3-propanetriol;

- Between 10% and 50% of a mixture of sodium chloride and corn flour in a 4: 1 ratio;

- Between 35% and 80% of acetic acid and citric acid in a 1: 1 ratio;

- 5% sodium stearate and silica in a 1: 1 ratio.

EXAMPLES

CONTROLLED TEST IN EXPERIMENTAL CROP

The effectiveness of the herbicidal composition according to the invention is tested, that is:

- Between 5% and 40% of sodium lauryl ether sulfate;

- Between 5% and 20% of 1,2,3-propanetriol;

- Between 10% and 35% of vegetable carbon and animal fat in a 1: 2 ratio;

- Between 25% and 50% of acetic acid and citric acid in a 1: 1 ratio;

- 5% sodium stearate and silica in a 1: 1 ratio.

This composition is applied in controlled samples of plants variety Erythoxylum coca. The plantation measures 6 m wide x 20 m long, which has a drip irrigation system in climatic conditions (summer) adverse that do not allow a favorable condition of the plants. The plantation was divided into 3 rows each with 16 plants.

GROOVE # 1

With an ambient temperature of 32 ° C and in sprinkling mode using an atomizer, the herbicide is applied and its effectiveness is checked for a period of two weeks. During this time, soil erosion is not observed and the ecosystem is not affected. For its part, the composition of the invention has, on average, a concentration of 52 drops per sheet that dries the same when adhering to it. The components have a residual effect after foliar spraying that is of great benefit. The eradication of 11 plants out of 16 was observed at the end of the two weeks.

It should be noted that this substance is non-selective and it was limited to the maximum applied directly to the plant.

GROOVE # 2

In the second row, the humidity and temperature were increased from 32 ° C to 40 ° C during the day, covering it with black greenhouse-type plastics, with the sole purpose of observing its effectiveness in a more adverse climate. Irrigation continuity is increased and after two weeks the eradication of 12 plants out of 16 was observed, resulting in a better percentage than the fumigation of Furrow # 1.

GROOVE # 3

In this groove, some modifications are made to the sub-base of the formula, especially in the inhibitors and other components, within which the charcoal and animal fat are eliminated, and in turn the proportion of acids in it, achieving a balance that does not affect the environment, soils and is not toxic to human management.

The herbicide is applied in winter in the region with an average humidity of 74%, where the conditions are more adverse than the initial ones in rows # 1 and 2.

After two weeks, an increase in eradication is observed, unlike furrow # 1 and 2 where finally, out of 16 plants, 14 die completely and no secondary effects are observed in the ecosystem, soils and in toxicity levels.

Claims

1. A herbicidal composition characterized in that it comprises: a. Between 5% and 40% of long chain anionic surfactants derived from C12-C18 fatty acids; b. Between 5% and 20% of alcohols with three hydroxyl groups; c. Between 10% and 50% of a mixture of hygroscopic components; d. Between 35% and 80% of organic acids C2-C8; and. Micronutrients.

2. The herbicidal composition of claim 1, characterized in that the anionic surfactants are selected from: alkyl sulfates, alkylsulfonates, ethoxy sulfates, or mixtures of these.

3. The herbicidal composition of claim 2, characterized in that the surfactant is sodium lauryl ether sulfate.

4. The herbicidal composition of claim 1, characterized in that the alcohol is 1,2,3-propanetriol.

The herbicidal composition of claim 1, characterized in that the hygroscopic components are selected from: wheat flour, corn flour, barley flour, salts such as sodium chloride, magnesium chloride, sodium acid carbonate, barium chloride , or mixtures of these.

6. The herbicidal composition of claim 1, characterized in that the organic acids are selected from: acetic acid, propionic acid, benzoic acid, citric acid, or mixtures of these.

7. The herbicidal composition of claim 1, characterized in that among the micronutrients are: zinc stearate, silica, potassium, phosphorus, or mixtures of these.

8. The herbicidal composition of claim 1, characterized in that it comprises: a. Between 5% and 40% sodium lauryl ether sulfate; b. Between 5% and 20% of 1,2,3-propanetriol; c. Between 10% and 50% of a mixture of sodium chloride and corn flour in a 4: 1 ratio; d. Between 35% and 80% of acetic acid and citric acid in a 1: 1 ratio; and. 5% sodium stearate and silica in a 1: 1 ratio.