Interaction between herbicides applied in mixtures alters the conception of its environmental impact

Herbicide mixtures have often been used to control weeds in crops worldwide, but the behavior of these mixtures in the environment is still poorly understood. Laboratory and greenhouse tests have been conducted to study the interaction of the herbicides diuron, hexazinone, and sulfometuron-methyl which have been applied alone and in binary and ternary mixtures in the processes of sorption, desorption, half-life, and leaching in the soil. A new index of the risk of leaching of these herbicides has also been proposed. The sorption and desorption study has been carried out by the batch equilibrium method. The dissipation of the herbicides has been evaluated for 180 days to determine the half-life (t(1/2)). The leaching tests have been carried out on soil columns. The herbicides isolated and in mixtures have been quantified using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to the mass spectrometer. Diuron, hexazinone, and sulfometuron-methyl in binary and ternary mixtures have less sorption capacity and greater desorption when compared to these isolated herbicides. Dissipation of diuron alone is slower, with a half-life (t(1/2)) = 101 days compared to mixtures (t(1/2) between 44 and 66 days). For hexazinone and sulfometuron-methyl, the dissipation rate is lower in mixtures (t(1/2) over 26 and 16 days), with a more pronounced effect in mixtures with the presence of diuron (t(1/2) = 47 and 56 and 17 and 22 days). The binary and ternary mixtures of diuron, hexazinone, and sulfometuron-methyl promoted more significant transport in depth (with the three herbicides quantified to depth P4, P7, and P7, respectively) compared to the application of these isolated herbicides (quantified to depth P2, P4, and P5). Considering the herbicides' desorption and solubility, the new index proposed to estimate the leaching potential allowed a more rigorous assessment concerning the risk of leaching these pesticides, with hexazinone and sulfometuron-methyl presenting a higher risk of contamination of groundwater.

Automated summary

This study focused on the interactions and leaching risk of three herbicides when applied alone or in mixtures in soil. The results showed that the mixtures had lower sorption capacity, higher desorption, and different dissipation rates compared to individual herbicides. A new index was proposed to assess the leaching potential and groundwater contamination risk of these herbicides.