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Volcanic glass spray shows promise in controlling mosquitoes:
The volcanic glass material used in this new intervention is perlite, an industrial mineral most frequently used in building materials and in gardens as a soil additive. The tested insecticide created from perlite, called Imergard WP, can be applied to interior walls and ceilings -- and perhaps even inside roofs -- as an indoor residual spray. The spray contains no additional chemicals, is not toxic to mammals and will be cost effective. Early results show that mosquitoes do not appear to have resistance to the perlite spray.
In the study, North Carolina State University entomologists worked with the Innovative Vector Control Consortium (IVCC) based at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and Imerys Filtration Minerals Inc. to test Imergard WP. Researchers used the spray in experimental huts in the Republic of Benin (West Africa) to test the effects of the spray on both wild and more susceptible strains of Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes, the primary malaria vector in sub-Saharan Africa.
[...] Results showed mortality rates of mosquitoes alighting on Imergard WP-treated walls were greater than 80% up to five months after treatments, and 78% at six months.
[...] "The statically transferred perlite particles essentially dehydrate the mosquito," said Mike Roe, William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor of Entomology at NC State and the corresponding author of the paper. "Many die within a few hours of contact with the treated surface. Mosquitoes are not repelled from a treated surface because there is no olfactory mechanism to smell rock."
Journal Reference:
Deguenon, Jean M., Azondekon, Roseric, Agossa, Fiacre R., et al. ImergardTMWP: A Non-Chemical Alternative for an Indoor Residual Spray, Effective against Pyrethroid-Resistant Anopheles gambiae (s.l.) in Africa, Insects (DOI: 10.3390/insects11050322)
(Score: 4, Interesting) by VLM on Monday June 15 2020, @01:17PM (1 child)
I use DE for insect control and looked into this topic before using it.
Being tiny little shells DE particle size is 10 to 100 uM and thats large enough to be ideal at killing bugs.
Your lungs have strange non-linear response to particle size. They haven't evolved to really understand how to clear (cough out) nanoparticles, which sucks if you inhale nanoparticles, but DE and even crushed DE is like 3 orders of magnitude larger. Its like being worried about being hit by a tennis ball instead of a car (must have bad SN automobile analogy in all posts...)
Asbestos fibers will cause cancer but there's something weird about the shape has to be long and fiber like to stick in the lungs and cause cancer, and they're about two orders of magnitude smaller than DE anyways.
Basically DE is too big by orders of magnitude to cause chronic lung problems.
When I google for this new trade secret insecticide, I find nothing about particle size. However, this is not rocket surgery. Put DE under a microscope and it looks cool. Simply put a drop of the magic new insecticide under a microscope and see how it compares to DE particle size. My guess, is seeing as it works the same way as DE, its gotta be about the same size as DE, and DE is of a harmless size, so ...
Put another way pollen is in between the sizes of smaller toxic nanoparticles and larger DE. If you can survive pollen season, you'll survive a little DE. Or if you "overdose" on DE, long before you die you'll feel like a dude with a pollen allergy. So it seems inherently safe to dose as people will avoid the area naturally if overdosed. Its not like organophospates where you discover an overdose because you stop breathing and die.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Tuesday June 16 2020, @11:06AM
This doesn't mean particulate matter can't create other troubles. E.g. hardwood dust can cause cancer to sinuses and throat [ccohs.ca].
DE is not risk free [orst.edu]
Better not get Covid19 when forced to inhale DE for 2 years, then (grin)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0