Transformation and Transport of Vinclozolin from Soil to Air

Abstract

A laboratory chamber was designed and used to determine the headspace flux of the fungicide vinclozolin (3-(3,5-dichlorophenyl)-5-methyl-5-vinyl-oxzoli-dine-2,4-dione) and its three degradation products from chamber surfaces, 20–30 mesh Ottawa sand, and sterilized and nonsterile North Carolina Piedmont aquic hapludult soils following fungicide spray applications. Results indicate that vinclozolin and its degradation products are influenced by the presence of soil particles, fluid-filled pore space, soil organic matter and clay content, and microbes. The formation of 2-[(3,5-dichlorophenyl)-carbamoyl]oxy-2-methyl-3-butenoic acid (“M1”), was highest in pore water with elevated pH levels, and the degradation is enhanced by the presence of microbes. M1 was also released from lower pH soil pore water, especially when the fungicide was incorporated into the soil. Unlike prior studies of vinclozolin degradation in solutions, this study found that, in soil, both M1 and 3