Brazil: Embrapa obtains patent for nanocomposite for controlled release of agrochemicals, pheromones

Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) Agroenergia obtained a patent for the process to obtain the nanocomposite of calcium carbonate and kraft lignin from gaseous emissions. The nanostructure obtained during this process can release, in a controlled or slow manner, various compounds for agricultural use, such as fertilizers, pesticides, pheromones or their combinations. The nanocomposite from the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation can fix agrochemical molecules on its surface, while lignin, a natural macromolecule present in plants, is used to improve this fixation.

Controlled release reduces the amount of agrochemicals applied, which generates savings for producers and has less environmental impact, by increasing the efficiency of transported compounds. For example, the process for obtaining the nanocomposite captures carbon dioxide from thermoelectric plants, helping in the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. 

The invention is the outcome of the AgriCarbono project, which started in 2019 and ended in the first half of 2023. The research aimed to use carbon dioxide (CO₂) to support the controlled release of agrochemical molecules. In the work, semiochemicals, which are chemical substances used in the communication between living beings in nature, such as insects, and are used in pest management, were tested as the main agrochemicals.

″The objective was to increase the effectiveness of applications through controlled release and reduce environmental pollution, compared to the use of conventional agrochemicals,″ said Embrapa researcher Silvio Vaz Júnior, leader of the project.

The project also included a partnership with researchers from Embrapa Genetic Resources and Biotechnology. ″At Embrapa Agroenergia, the development of the nanocomposite and the formulation prepared using this nanocomposite and the semiochemical was carried out. We passed it on to researchers at Embrapa Genetic Resources, who carried out their trials in the laboratory. It was seen that it had potential for use in the field, so they then carried out trials in the field against various types of insects,″ Vaz Junior said.

According to him, the patented process and product benefit thermoelectric plants and agriculture both directly and simultaneously. ″The production process for calcium carbonate and kraft lignin nanocomposite is related to the use of gaseous CO₂ emissions and, therefore, helps to reduce global warming by mitigating greenhouse gases by helping the decarbonization of the electricity sector,″ Vaz Junior further said.

Embrapa researcher Émerson Leo Schultz, a specialist in industrial property, stressed that ″the patent protects the technology, giving its holder the right to prevent third parties, without their consent, from improperly disposing of it. Therefore, when the technological asset is patented, its value increases, which strengthens negotiations with partners.″

With the patent granted, Embrapa Agroenergia will seek partners to develop the asset and, therefore, advance the Technology Readiness Levels/Manufacturing Readiness Levels (TRL/MRL) scale, explained Patrícia Abdelnur, Deputy Head of Technology Transfer. 

″Technology scaling is very important to launching an asset in the market, but to advance from pilot scale (TRL6) to industrial scale (TRL9), we need industrial partners,″ she said.

(Editing by Leonardo Gottems, reporter for AgroPages)

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