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THE PRODUCTION AND ANALYSIS OF PESTICIDE- INSECTICIDE

ABSTRACT

In this production, it was aimed to review differences, abundance and effects of insects, to produce an environmental friendly insecticide and the judicious ways it can be used. Using laboratory and analytical methods which involves quantifying and reacting the chemical reagents. After test analysis, the insecticide was obtained by decanting method. The result of the product was tested for and the insecticide proved effective. In conclusion; the organophosphate chemicals used in this production though toxic, but are much quicker to break down than its counter part carbamates and pyrethroids.

CHAPTER ONE

1.0  INTRODUTION

1.1DESCRIPTION

        Though often misunderstood and referred to only insecticide by some people, pesticide is basically a chemical or biological agents designed to control, incapacitate, kill, repel or prevent pest activities deemed undesirable or destructive.

Pesticides can also be considered as either

a)   Biodegradable pesticide; which can be broken down by microbes and other living beings into harmless compounds. Or

b)  Persistence pesticide; which may take months or years before they broken down. Example DDT.

Pesticides have become a widely accepted way to rid our homes and gardens relatively pest-free. The use of pesticide is so common that the term pesticide is often treated synonymous with plant protection product in agriculture use

1.2TYPES OF PESTICIDE

        There are many types of pesticide designed to control and manage all kinds of pest, these include:-

Insecticides

Herbicides

Avicides

Algaecides

Bactericides

Fungicides

Miticides

Nematicides

Virucides

Rodenticides

And their respective target pest groups are

Insects

Herbs/plants

Birds

Algae

Bacteria

Fungi

Mites

Nematodes

Virus and

Rodents.

        These pesticides listed above are chemical formulations intended for preventing, destroying, repelling or mitigating their respective pest group. It is also a mixture of substance that can be used as a plant regulation, defoliant and desiccant, and it can kill potential disease-causing organisms.

        Pests are considered undesirable and destructive because they are organisms that are harmful to us. Some of these pests eat our crops, while some spread diseases. Herbs are considered pest as well because they grow in the wrong places.

1.3HISTORICAL BENEFITS AND DANGERS

1.3.1BENEFITS

        One may stand to ask, why can’t all the farmers just grow their food organically?

The world population is 5billion and growing, of those about 700million is undernourished. Over one-third of our food is lost to pest and without pesticide incorporation; the losses will probably be even higher. So it will be very difficult to feed the world organically. The answer unfortunately, is that with current agricultural methods and technologies, it is not possible to produce the quantities currently needed for the number of people living in the earth surface. Pesticide allows us to increase our harvest and feed more people.

        In addition to applications in agriculture, pesticides have many other important uses. Many pests transmit diseases which are very dangerous to us. For example, in the past, malaria was one a serious disease that killed millions of people globally, to fight this problem, the use of pesticide DDT was incorporated to kill mosquitoes which transmitted the diseases. It was successful and the number of people who died from malaria reduced drastically.

        In the US, million of people have allergic reactions to the cockroaches in their homes, pesticides in insect sprays and baits helped reduced this problem a lot.

1.3.2DANGERS

Presently, we are using more pesticides than ever. Although most modern pesticides are much safer than their predecessors, a few of our commonly used pesticides are toxic.

Researchers indicated that youngsters in homes where household and garden pesticides are used are seven times as likely to develop childhood leukemia. Of the 80,000 pesticides and other chemicals in use today, 10% are recognized as carcinogeous. Farmers are prone to certain cancers, including stomach prostrate and brain cancers upon exposure to various kinds of toxic pesticides.

        Another NCI study found a link between breast cancer in women and elevated levels of DDE, a metabolite of the pesticide DDT, in their fat tissue. Women with the highest levels of exposure to DDT had four times the breast cancer risk to women with the least exposure. In laboratory tests where high doses of pesticides were given, researchers have observed some significant health effects like genetic damage, reproductive problems and possible links to cancer associated with pesticides.

As pesticide issue is a very complex one, there is definitely a need for certain pesticides in such areas as agriculture and disease prevention, and yet there are also some obvious health risks from some of these chemicals e.g. DDT. As a pesticide, DDT was first used during World War II. It was first made in a laboratory in 1873 and also effective as an insect killer that it was called the “atomic bomb” of pesticides. After World War II, it was realized that DDT could be used on farms to control some common agricultural pests. In addition, it was also used to control certain insects which carried diseases like malaria and yellow fever. By 1970, there were worries about DDT’s environmental and health effects, as it is an extremely persistent pesticide. Finally in June 1972, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cancelled all the use of DDT on crops and houses.