Gas-phase degradation of the herbicide ethalfluralin under atmospheric conditions

International audienceThe gas-phase degradation of ethalfluralin, N-ethyl-a,a,a-trifluoro-N-(2-methylallyl)-2,6-dinitro-p-toluidine,a widely used herbicide, was investigated under atmospheric conditions at the large outdoor Europeansimulation chamber (EUPHORE) in Valencia, Spain. The photolysis of ethalfluralin was investigatedunder solar radiation and the mean photolysis rate coefficient was determined: J(ethalfluralin)= (1.3 ± 0.2) 103 s1 (JNO2 = 8 103 s1). The rate coefficients for the reactions of hydroxyl radicalsand ozone with ethalfluralin in the dark were also measured under atmospheric conditions usingthe relative rate and the absolute rate technique, respectively. The rate coefficients values for the reactionsof kOH(ethalfluralin) = (3.5 ± 0.9) 1011 cm3 molecule1 s1, and kO3(ethalfluralin)= (1.6 ± 0.4) 1017 cm3 molecule1 s1 were determined at 300 ± 5 K and atmospheric pressure.The results show that removal of ethalfluralin from the atmosphere by reactions with OH radicals(s 4 h) or ozone (s 25 h) is slow compared to loss by photolysis. The available kinetic data suggestthat the gas-phase tropospheric degradation of ethalfluralin will be controlled mainly by photolysisand provide an estimate for the tropospheric lifetime of approximately 12 min. The atmospheric implicationsof using ethalfluralin as a herbicide are discussed