Hydrotropic Salt Pest Control Composition for Cold-Temperature Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current natural pest control products are often unstable at cold temperatures, require shaking before use, and provide inconsistent efficacy due to phase separation, while consumers seek stable and effective products with fewer and recognizable ingredients.
Innovation Solution
Aqueous pest control compositions comprising hydrotropic salts, surfactants, and essential oils form a lyotropic liquid crystalline microstructure, maintaining stability across a range of temperatures and enhancing efficacy by ensuring the active ingredients remain uniformly dispersed.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If inorganic salts are used to improve herbicidal efficacy, then the ability to interfere with plant physiological processes is enhanced, but the composition separates into multiple phases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameters by replacing inorganic salts with organic salts (e.g., ammonium salts, organic acid salts) and adjusts the ratio of surfactant to active ingredient to achieve both high herbicidal efficacy and phase stability across temperature ranges
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite formulation combining organic salts with specific surfactants (nonionic, anionic, or cationic) in optimized ratios, forming a stable multi-component system that maintains efficacy while preventing phase separation
2Device complexity
If natural pest control products are formulated with fewer ingredients, then consumer acceptance and recognizability improve, but stability at cold temperatures deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes the concentration parameters of natural ingredients and introduces organic salts as stabilizing agents that prevent phase separation at cold temperatures while maintaining a relatively simple formulation with recognizable components
3Productivity
If burn-down herbicides are used to rapidly kill above-ground plant parts, then weed control efficacy is improved, but below-ground plant tissue growth is not effectively inhibited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the chemical action parameters by using organic salts that can penetrate plant tissue more effectively than traditional burn-down herbicides, enabling both rapid above-ground kill and sustained root growth inhibition through enhanced translocation and cellular disruption
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The compositions remain phase-stable and effective against pests without shaking, providing consistent performance and uniform application, with fewer ingredients and reduced environmental impact.
Implementation Method 1
the hydrotropic salt has sufficient hydrophobicity to modify the surfactant into a microstructure that comprises a lyotropic liquid crystal that reduces the interfacial tension (as determined by receding contact angle) of the composition
Implementation Method 2
the hydrotropic salt has sufficient hydrophobicity to modify the surfactant into a microstructure that comprises a lyotropic liquid crystal
Implementation Method 3
is hydrophilic enough to help maintain physical stability of the composition across consumer relevant temperature ranges
Data Source
AI summary
A pest control composition includes from about 4 wt % to about 10 wt % of sodium lauryl sulfate; a C5 to C9 hydrotropic salt; from about 1 wt % to about 12 wt % of one or more active ingredients chosen from corn mint oil, peppermint oil, spearmint oil, rosemary oil, thyme oil, citronella oil, clove oil, cedarwood oil, cinnamon oil, geranium oil, eugenol, 2-phenylethyl propionate, menthol, menthone, thymol, carvone, camphor, methyl salicylate, p-cymene, linalool, geraniol, cinnamyl acetate, cinnamic alcohol, cinnamaldehyde, citronellol, eucalyptol/1,8-cineole, alpha-pinene, bornyl acetate, gamma-terpinene, or combinations thereof; and from about 60 wt % to about 95 wt % of water. The ratio of hydrotropic salt to sodium lauryl sulfate of from about 0.15 to about 0.9. The pest control composition exhibits a receding contact angle of less than 21 degrees.