Sorption-Desorption Characteristics of Benzimidazole Based Fungicide 2-(4-fluorophenyl)-1H-benzimidazole on Physicochemical Properties of Selected Pakistani Soils

A batch equilibrium method has been utilized to investigate the sorption-desorption behavior of a versatile cost-effective fungicide2-(4-fluorophenyl)-1H-benzimidazole) FBNZ on four Pakistani soils geographically distant, from hilly to desert areas. FBNZ is a newly synthesized fungicide prepared in the laboratory and is cost effective than the commercially available fungicides. The adsorption and desorption data were fitted to the Freundlich equation, with values of na>1, which points to a C-type isotherm. Sorption increases with soil organic carbon content, with greater degree of adsorption for hilly soil and least adsorption on sandy soil of Multan, Punjab. Desorption studies reveal that the adsorbed fungicide are firmly retained by soil particles and present a certain degree of irreversibility. The results indicate that the soil organic matters followed by clay content are the most important soil properties governing the fungicide sorption capacity.