ABSTRACT Concern for the environment has increased interest in reducing the amount of pesticides applied to agricultural land. This can be accomplished by immobilization of the pesticides in polymer supports, which prevents volatilization, degradation and leaching losses, and provides controlled release of the pesticides. In the present study, acetamiprid, a novel pesticide, was encapsulated in polylactide (PLA)-based micro-spheres using the solvent evaporation method via oil-in-oil (O/O) emulsion. Release studies showed that the amount of acetamiprid released from PLA microspheres was approximately 18 %. On the other hand, incorporation of poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) into the PLA microspheres resulted in increased amount of releasable pesticide (approximately 89 %). These results suggest that the PCL/PLA microsphere is a promising immobilization support of the acetamiprid for practical application.
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