A Water-Based Nanoformulation for the Pesticide Delivery of Lambda-Cyhalothrin with High Retention on Foliage by Using Aerosol OT Vesicles as Carriers

Lambda-cyhalothrin (LC) is a highly efficient broad-spectrum pesticide in agricultural production, yet its application is limited by weak solubility and poor adhesion to foliage. To develop effective utilization and enhance pesticide adhesion to targets, LC was loaded into a water-based vesicle system formed by aerosol OT (AOT) with a double hydrocarbon chain. The LC-loaded AOT vesicles (LC-AOT) had a high encapsulation efficiency (EE) of 97%. Dynamic light scattering (DLS) and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) measurements showed that LC-AOT vesicles had uniform morphology with a particle size of around 200 nm. The zeta potential and polydispersity index (PDI) values of LC-AOT vesicles were −70.3 mV and 0.20, respectively. Compared with commercial LC formulations, LC-AOT vesicles exhibited better wettability and retention on cabbage leaves. In addition, an insecticidal activity study demonstrated that LC-AOT vesicles exhibited prominent toxicity against Aphis craccivora. This research provided a valuable approach for solving problems of low utilization and little deposition on foliage for water-insoluble LC pesticides