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Energy transfer at the surface of clays and protection of pesticides from photodegradation

Nature volume 315, pages 658–659 (1985)Cite this article

Abstract

Certain potential pesticides are of limited use because of their sensitivity to sunlight. Previous attempts to overcome this limitation have been unsatisfactory because of impairment of insecticidal efficiency or unwanted toxic properties. The photosensitivity results from the balance between the processes, such as energy transfer and chemical reaction, by which photoexcited molecules can release excess energy and return to the ground state. The efficiency of the various energy transfer mechanisms1–5 depends, in some cases, on the specific spectroscopic characteristics of donor and acceptor molecules, the distance between them and their relative orientations. We present here an approach aimed at protecting compounds of agricultural interest (for example, pesticides) by exploiting the unique surface properties of certain clays in order to build systems in which fast energy transfer occurs before photodegradation starts.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Seagram Centre for Soil and Water Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, PO Box 12, Rehovot, 76-100, Israel

    Leon Margulies & Harel Rozen

  2. Department of Entomology, Faculty of Agriculture, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, PO Box 12, Rehovot, 76-100, Israel

    Ephraim Cohen

Authors
  1. Leon Margulies
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  2. Harel Rozen
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  3. Ephraim Cohen
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Margulies, L., Rozen, H. & Cohen, E. Energy transfer at the surface of clays and protection of pesticides from photodegradation. Nature 315, 658–659 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1038/315658a0

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