title: Preparation of uniform starch microcapsules by premix membrane emulsion for controlled release of avermectin.
abstract: In recent years, starch microparticles have gained interest in many fields. However, low production, uncontrollable size, and varying size distribution hinder their practical application. Here, we adopt a premix membrane emulsification (PME) method to prepare starch microcapsules at high production rates. The process conditions were optimized to fabricate uniform microcapsules with controllable sizes and narrow size distribution (PDI<0.1). Through encapsulating avermectin (Av), a kind of water-insoluble pesticide, into the shell of the microcapsules in situ during the process, we developed a pesticide delivery system that enabled a controlled and consistent release of Av over a period of 2 weeks. Kinetic analysis indicated that the mechanisms of Av release involved non-Fickian and Case-II transport. The diameters (0.70-4.8 μm) of the microcapsules and Av contents (16-47%) were adjusted to achieve suitable release profiles. The results will lay the foundation for further field experiments.
authors.affiliation: Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics & Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 2, 1st North Street, Zhongguancun, Beijing 100190, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: leedan@iccas.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Dan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics & Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 2, 1st North Street, Zhongguancun, Beijing 100190, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: liubaoxia@iccas.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Baoxia
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics & Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 2, 1st North Street, Zhongguancun, Beijing 100190, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: fyang@iccas.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Fei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics & Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 2, 1st North Street, Zhongguancun, Beijing 100190, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: wangxing@iccas.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Xing
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics & Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 2, 1st North Street, Zhongguancun, Beijing 100190, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: shenhong516@iccas.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.affiliation: Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics & Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 2, 1st North Street, Zhongguancun, Beijing 100190, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: dcwu@iccas.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Decheng
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wu
mesh_terms: D002214:Capsules / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000737:chemistry; D004655:Emulsions / Q000737:chemistry; D005898:Glass / Q000737:chemistry; D007306:Insecticides / Q000737:chemistry*; D007559:Ivermectin / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000737:chemistry; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D013213:Starch / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D002214:Capsules; D004655:Emulsions; D007306:Insecticides; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D007559:Ivermectin; C019264:avermectin; D013213:Starch
keywords: Control release; Membrane emulsion; Pesticide; Starch microcapsules; Uniform size