In-depth understanding: the development status of glyphosate category and combination ratio efficacy

Paraquat in China has been completely abandoned due to medical problems. Glyphosate has been banned internationally. Other existing herbicide glufosinate and diquat cannot support the market demand. The cost performance of glyphosate still determines its further development. Glyphosate products in the market are multifarious. What are the differences among different categories? Dosage forms are powder, granule and aqua. What is the drug effect?

Classification and Comparison of Glyphosate

In this paper, the classification and comparison of glyphosate as well as the development of its combination and proportioning effects are further studied to facilitate better application in weed control.

1. Glyphosate is divided into ammonium salt, isopropylamine salt, dimethylammonium salt, sodium salt, potassium salt, etc. What is the specific difference? There are two contents on the product label, what does that mean?

Glyphosate is insoluble in water, its salt is soluble in water, glyphosate salt can be potassium salt, sodium salt, ammonium salt, isopropylamine salt, etc. Glyphosate belongs to glyphosate acid, ammonium glyphosate salt and isopropylamine glyphosate salt are obtained by reacting glyphosate acid with ammonia gas and isopropylamine respectively. Its herbicidal active groups are the same, but different salts have differences in the absorption process of plants, thus affecting the drug effect.

According to the experimental data provided by the Ministry of Agriculture, the order of herbicidal activity is: glyphosate potassium salt? Glyphosate isopropylamine salt? Ammonium glyphosate? Phosphine sodium salt; Dimethylammonium glyphosate is unknown.

The activity of glyphosate salt does not mean that the weed killing spectrum is wider, but it is more prominent in weed killing speed, thoroughness and resistance to various unfavorable factors.  

Special reminder

As glyphosate is acid, it is common for farmers to add washing powder to increase the drug effect when using drugs. However, the reduction of drug effect often occurs due to incorrect operation steps. The correct sequence of adding washing powder is: a small amount of water is added to the sprayer, then a spoonful of washing powder is added, and the mixture is fully stirred and dissolved, so that the water basically reaches a neutralized state, and glyphosate medicine is added to blend the liquid medicine, thus achieving the purpose of increasing efficiency.

In recent years, the emergence of weed resistance has brought new requirements for the use of glyphosate. Plant essential oil can be added for synergistic treatment when using glyphosate. After all, organic silicon is outdated.

The standardization of pesticide labels has confused many people. Product labels indicate the content of two components. Many people do not understand what glyphosate means.

One of the contents marked on the label is low glyphosate content, whether potassium salt, ammonium salt or sodium salt, collectively referred to as glyphosate. According to the content of glyphosate ions, 30% glyphosate ≈33% ammonium glyphosate ≈34% sodium glyphosate ≈37% potassium glyphosate ≈40.5% isopropylamine glyphosate, and dimethylammonium glyphosate is unknown.

Therefore, whether the national standard or the enterprise standard is implemented, the product label must be marked with two contents, and the other high content is glyphosate * salt content, so we can further determine its activity. If only 30% glyphosate aqueous solution is marked, everything is possible and any salt may exist, which is also not in conformity with the prescribed product mark.  

2. Glyphosate has different dosage forms such as aqua, powder, granule, etc. What is the effect of glyphosate on the development of drug effect?

Glyphosate preparation develops to a high content, thus avoiding the generation of more wastes and promoting the development of ecological society. Moreover, the development of aqua to powder and water granules extends the execution of green ecology.

The evolution of dosage forms will also affect the efficacy of glyphosate. The activity of aqua is higher than that of powder and water dispersible granule. Therefore, the exploration of exerting the efficacy will be the next research direction of glyphosate. With the abandonment of paraquat, farmers are in urgent need of alternative products to meet the busy and expensive social expenses.

Compared with the drug effect of glyphosate preparation, aqua is the most prominent on the whole. Powder and water granule are the same. To achieve the ideal effect, it is often done by increasing the dosage or special additives.

The international debate on the carcinogenicity of glyphosate is endless. It is also widely reported in China that glyphosate is seriously harmful to soil. However, there are few substitutes for biocides. The author believes that glyphosate will still exist for a period of time in the domestic market.

As we all know, glyphosate's weed killing spectrum focuses on gramineous weeds, and the dead grass is slow, so it has been in a disadvantage in paraquat era. For some perennial weeds, glyphosate has the function of internal absorption and transmission, which can effectively reduce the continuous hazards, and if properly used, it will be gradually eradicated, so it is also widely recognized.

Development and Application of Glyphosate

1. The development of glyphosate is a diversified direction from compounding and mixing. The first goal is to increase the grass killing spectrum and speed up grass killing.

→ Mixed use of contact killing agents

The mixture with fluoroglycofen and dicamba, which have obvious contact killing effect on broadleaf weeds, not only improves the weed killing spectrum qualitatively, but also significantly increases the speed of grass death, with the ratio of active ingredient content to glyphosate being about 1:19.

The combination of glufosinate+glyphosate, the author thinks, is only continuing the vitality of glufosinate.

→ Addition of Hormonal Herbicides

Hormonal herbicides have obvious promotion effect on glyphosate. Some experts do not recommend mixing glyphosate with hormone herbicides such as dimethicone. However, it is found from numerous domestic registered formulas that this suggestion is not valid. Hormonal herbicides such as sodium dimethyltetrachloro (isooctyl ester), tetracarboxylic acid, isooctyl chlorofluoroxyacetic acid, and trichloro-pyridoxyacetic acid have brought glyphosate into a new era. They have greatly improved the cost-performance ratio of glyphosate and endowed it with new vitality, not to mention increasing the efficiency and speed of broadleaf weeds.

→ Addition of Gramineae Agents

Glyphosate is better than broadleaf weeds in controlling gramineous weeds, but it is not omnipotent. In the past two years, reed, thatch and bermudagrass have seriously damaged the reputation of glyphosate, not to mention the effect of low temperature on glyphosate. In normal summer, reed, thatch and bermudagrass are controlled and removed, which makes many people have a headache. The addition of quizalofop-p-ethyl, high-efficiency flupirfenacet and other excellent drugs for controlling gramineous weeds, a powerful combination, has solved the problem.

2. Another development direction of glyphosate is the change of environmental protection dosage forms

From the treatment of wastewater from the synthesis of raw drugs to the acid harm of preparation products to soil, glyphosate research has been continuing. In view of the current domestic glyphosate market, the agricultural law enforcement department has clearly stipulated that the sale and use of glyphosate with a content of less than 30% is prohibited. For environmental protection requirements and the pursuit of differentiation, apart from the development of multiple combinations, more glyphosate has evolved into high-content, powder or water-dispersible dosage forms. The international crusade against glyphosate and glyphosate's "cruelty" to soil will also affect its development. The author thinks that glyphosate is already at the end of the road in the domestic market and expects the emergence of new inactivated products.

Another point is the refinement of glyphosate. From the choice of raw medicines (mother liquor or powder), emulsifiers, synergists, etc., all require manufacturers to keep improving. The full manifestation of the drug effect will make the market competition of glyphosate white-hot, not comparing price, but comparing quality. The labor cost of farmers is also the booster of its development.

The "selling point" gimmick is no longer the only one. "Quick-acting Glyphosate", "Blue upon Water", "Potassium-supplementing Glyphosate" and "Land Reclamation Artifact" ... The product homogeneity is serious, the efficacy demonstration will become more important, farmers need real effects, and in the future market, the author foresees that glyphosate will give birth to certain domestic enterprise brand products.