Pedospheric Adsorption–desorption of Anti-Moulting Agent Chlorfluazuron and Transfer in Agriculturally Significant Arcadian Soils

Agrochemical-based soil and water contamination has been posing serious threats to ecological balance. Current research investigates the sorption and mobility behaviour of a Benzylurea insecticide, Chlorfluazuron (CFZ), by a standard batch equilibrium method. After investigation of soils’ physical and chemical properties, sorption assays have been performed on five soils from agriculturally significant regions where CFZ can probably occur. CFZ expressed poor adsorption on the selected soils with linear adsorption coefficient, i.e. K d(ads) , ranging between 6.08 and 9.57 µg/mL and Freundlich adsorption coefficient K f(ads) having a range of 4.18–9.01 µg/mL. Linear and Freundlich models displayed correlation coefficient R 2 value to be > 0.84 and 0.83, respectively, reflecting the goodness of fit of the experimental data. Furthermore, the mobility of CFZ was assessed using the McCall classification based on K oc values. CFZ expressed high mobility in soils with less adsorption. The adsorptive and desorptive interactions were highly dependent upon soil physicochemical characteristics. Based on the current investigation, CFZ can be predicted to be a potential threat for soils with a low adsorptive affinity towards it. Future investigations in this regard can consider the use of sustainable materials and procedure for CFZ decontamination in vulnerable soils.