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Biocide
 
 
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A biocide is a chemical substance
Chemical substance

A chemical substance is a material with a specific Empirical formula. It is a concept that became firmly established in the late eighteenth century after work by the chemist Joseph Proust on the composition of some pure chemical compounds such as basic copper carbonate....
 capable of killing living organisms
Life

Life is a characteristic of organisms that exhibit certain biological processes such as chemical reactions or other events that results in a transformation....
, usually in a selective way. Biocides are commonly used in medicine
Medicine

Medicine is the art and science of healing. It encompasses a range of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
, agriculture
Agriculture

Agriculture refers to the production of food and goods through farming and forestry. Agriculture was the key development that led to the rise of civilization, with the animal husbandry of domestication animals and plants creating food surpluses that enabled the development of more Population density and Social stratification societies....
, forestry
Forestry

Forestry is the art and science of managing forests, tree plantations, and related natural resources. Silviculture, a related science, involves the growing and tending of trees and forests....
, and in industry
Industry

An industry is the manufacturing of a Good or Service within a category. Although industry is a broad term for any kind of economic production, in economics and urban planning industry is a synonym for the secondary sector, which is a type of economic activity involved in the manufacturing of raw materials into goods and products....
 where they prevent the fouling of water and oil pipelines. Some substances used as biocides are also employed as anti-fouling agents or disinfectants under other circumstances: chlorine, for example, is used as a short-life biocide in industrial water treatment but as a disinfectant in swimming pools.






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A biocide is a chemical substance
Chemical substance

A chemical substance is a material with a specific Empirical formula. It is a concept that became firmly established in the late eighteenth century after work by the chemist Joseph Proust on the composition of some pure chemical compounds such as basic copper carbonate....
 capable of killing living organisms
Life

Life is a characteristic of organisms that exhibit certain biological processes such as chemical reactions or other events that results in a transformation....
, usually in a selective way. Biocides are commonly used in medicine
Medicine

Medicine is the art and science of healing. It encompasses a range of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
, agriculture
Agriculture

Agriculture refers to the production of food and goods through farming and forestry. Agriculture was the key development that led to the rise of civilization, with the animal husbandry of domestication animals and plants creating food surpluses that enabled the development of more Population density and Social stratification societies....
, forestry
Forestry

Forestry is the art and science of managing forests, tree plantations, and related natural resources. Silviculture, a related science, involves the growing and tending of trees and forests....
, and in industry
Industry

An industry is the manufacturing of a Good or Service within a category. Although industry is a broad term for any kind of economic production, in economics and urban planning industry is a synonym for the secondary sector, which is a type of economic activity involved in the manufacturing of raw materials into goods and products....
 where they prevent the fouling of water and oil pipelines. Some substances used as biocides are also employed as anti-fouling agents or disinfectants under other circumstances: chlorine, for example, is used as a short-life biocide in industrial water treatment but as a disinfectant in swimming pools. Many biocides are synthetic, but a class of natural biocides, derived from e.g. bacteria and plants, includes brassica oleracea, brassica oleracea gemmifera, and clostridium botulinum bacteria.

A biocide can be:
  • A pesticide
    Pesticide

    A pesticide is a substance or mixture of substances used to kill a pest .A pesticide may be a chemical substance, biological agent , antimicrobial, disinfectant or device used against any pest ....
    : this includes fungicides, herbicide
    Herbicide

    A herbicide is used to kill unwanted plants. Selective herbicides kill specific targets while leaving the desired crop relatively unharmed. Some of these act by interfering with the growth of the weed and are often synthetic "imitations" of plant hormones....
    s, insecticide
    Insecticide

    An insecticide is a pesticide used against insects in all developmental forms. They include ovicides and larvicides used against the Egg and larvae of insects respectively....
    s, algicides, molluscicide
    Molluscicide

    Molluscicides, also known as snail baits and snail pellets, are pesticides against molluscs, which are usually used in agriculture or gardening to control slugs and snails that can damage crops by feeding on them....
    s, miticide
    Miticide

    Miticides or acaricides are pesticides that kill mites. Antibiotic miticides, carbamate miticides, formamidine miticides, mite growth regulators, organochlorine, permethrin and organophosphate miticides are all in this category....
    s and rodenticides.
  • An antimicrobial
    Antimicrobial

    An antimicrobial is a substance that kills or inhibits the growth of microbes such as bacteria, fungi, protozoals or viruses. Antimicrobial drugs either kill microbes or prevent the growth of microbes ....
    : this includes germicides, antibiotic
    Antibiotic

    In common usage, an antibiotic is a substance or compound that kills or inhibits the growth of bacteria. Antibiotics belong to the group of antimicrobial compounds used to treat infections caused by microorganisms, including fungus and protozoa....
    s, antibacterials, antiviral
    Antiviral

    Antiviral may refer to:*Antiviral drug*Antiviral protein *Antivirus software*Antiviral Therapy, an academic journal...
    s, antifungals, antiprotozoal
    Antiprotozoal agent

    Antiprotozoal agents is a class of pharmaceuticals used in treatment of protozoan infection....
    s and antiparasites. See also spermicide
    Spermicide

    Spermicide is a substance that kills spermatozoon, inserted vaginally prior to intercourse to prevent pregnancy. As a contraceptive, spermicide may be used alone....
    .


Uses

Biocides can be added to other materials (typically liquid
Liquid

Liquid is one of the principal states of matter. A liquid is a fluid that has the particles loose and can freely form a distinct surface at the boundaries of its bulk material....
s) to protect them against biological infestation and growth. For example, certain types of quaternary ammonium compounds (quat
Quat

Quat may refer to:* Quaternary ammonium cation, a class of chemical molecules* Quaternion, a non-commutative extension of the complex numbers...
s) are added to pool
Swimming pool

A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is an artificially enclosed body of water intended for swimming or water-based recreation....
 water
Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
 or industrial water systems to act as an algicide, protecting the water from infestation and growth of algae
Algae

Algae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms. The largest and most complex marine forms are called seaweeds....
. Chlorine
Chlorine

Chlorine...
 is also added during wastewater
Wastewater

Wastewater is any water that has been adversely affected in quality by anthropogenic influence. It comprises liquid waste discharged by domestic residences, commercial properties, industry, and/or agriculture and can encompass a wide range of potential contaminants and concentrations....
 treatment to kill micro-organisms, algae, and so on. It is often impractical to store and use poisonous chlorine gas for water treatment, so alternative methods of adding chlorine are used. These include hypochlorite
Hypochlorite

The hypochlorite ion is ChlorineOxygen-. A hypochlorite compound is a chemical compound containing this group, with chlorine in oxidation state +1....
 solutions, which gradually release chlorine into the water, and compounds like sodium dichloro-s-triazinetrione (dihydrate or anhydrous), sometimes referred to as "dichlor", and trichloro-s-triazinetrione, sometimes referred to as "trichlor". These compounds are stable while solid and may be used in powdered, granular, or tablet form. When added in small amounts to pool water or industrial water systems, the chlorine atoms hydrolyze from the rest of the molecule forming hypochlorous acid
Hypochlorous acid

Hypochlorous acid is a weak acid with the chemical formula HClO. It bonds when chlorine dissolves in water. It cannot be isolated in pure form due to rapid equilibration with its precursor ....
 (HOCl) which acts as a general biocide killing germs, micro-organisms, algae, and so on. Halogenated hydantoin
Hydantoin

Hydantoin, which is also known as glycolylurea, is a heterocyclic organic compound that can be thought of as a cyclic "double-condensation reaction" product of glycolic acid and urea....
 compounds are also used as biocides.

Hazards and environmental risks

Because biocides are intended to kill living organisms, many biocidal products pose significant risk to human health and welfare. Great care is required when handling biocides and appropriate protective clothing and equipment should be used. The use of biocides can also have significant adverse effects on the natural environment. Anti-fouling paints, especially those utilising organic tin
Tin

Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn and atomic number 50. Tin is obtained chiefly from the mineral cassiterite, where it occurs as an oxide, SnO2....
 compounds such as TBT
Tributyltin

"TBT" redirects here. For the high school located in Tampa, Florida, see Tampa Bay Technical High School.Tributyltin compounds are a group of compounds containing the 3Sn moiety....
, have been shown to have severe and long-lasting impacts on marine eco-systems and such materials are now banned in many countries for commercial and recreational vessels (though sometimes still used for naval
Navy

A navy is the branch of a nation's military forces principally designated for naval warfare and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions....
 vessels).

Disposal of used or unwanted biocides must be undertaken carefully to avoid serious and potentially long-lasting damage to the environment.

Classification


European Community Classification

The Biocidal Products Directive 98/8/EC (BPD), the classification of biocides, is broken down into 23 product types (i.e. application categories), with several comprising multiple subgroups:

MAIN GROUP 1: Disinfectants and general biocidal products

  • Product-type 1: Human hygiene biocidal products
  • Product-type 2: Private area and public health area disinfectants and other biocidal products
  • Product-type 3: Veterinary hygiene biocidal products
  • Product-type 4: Food and feed area disinfectants
  • Product-type 5: Drinking water disinfectants


MAIN GROUP 2: Preservatives

  • Product-type 6: In-can preservatives
  • Product-type 7: Film preservatives
  • Product-type 8: Wood preservatives
    Wood preservation

    All measures that are taken to ensure a long life of wood fall under the definition wood preservation . Apart from structural wood preservation measures, there are a number of different preservatives and processes that can extend the life of wood, timber, wood structures or engineered wood....
  • Product-type 9: Fibre, leather, rubber and polymerised materials preservatives
  • Product-type 10: Masonry preservatives
  • Product-type 11: Preservatives for liquid-cooling and processing systems
  • Product-type 12: Slimicides
  • Product-type 13: Metalworking-fluid preservatives


MAIN GROUP 3: Pest control

  • Product-type 14: Rodenticides
  • Product-type 15: Avicide
    Avicide

    An avicide is any substance which can be used to kill birds.Commonly used avicides include strychnine, DRC-1339 and CPTH , and 4-Aminopyridine ....
    s
  • Product-type 16: Molluscicide
    Molluscicide

    Molluscicides, also known as snail baits and snail pellets, are pesticides against molluscs, which are usually used in agriculture or gardening to control slugs and snails that can damage crops by feeding on them....
    s
  • Product-type 17: Piscicides
  • Product-type 18: Insecticide
    Insecticide

    An insecticide is a pesticide used against insects in all developmental forms. They include ovicides and larvicides used against the Egg and larvae of insects respectively....
    s, acaricides and products to control other arthropods
  • Product-type 19: Repellent
    Repellent

    Repellent can refer to:* Insect repellent* Animal repellent...
    s and attractants


MAIN GROUP 4: Other biocidal products

  • Product-type 20: Preservatives for food or feedstocks
  • Product-type 21: Antifouling products
  • Product-type 22: Embalming
    Embalming

    File:Embalming fluid.jpgEmbalming, in most modern cultures, is the art and science of temporarily preserving human remains to forestall decomposition and to make them suitable for display at a funeral....
     and taxidermist fluids
  • Product-type 23: Control of other vertebrates


Literature

  • Wilfried Paulus: Directory of Microbicides for the Protection of Materials and Processes. Springer Netherland, Berlin 2006, ISBN 1-4020-4861-0.
  • Danish EPA (2001):


See also

  • Non-pesticide management
    Non-pesticide management

    Non-pesticidal Management describes various pest-control techniques which do not rely on pesticides. It is used in organic production of foodstuff, as well as in other situations in which the introduction of toxins is undesirable....
  • Ecological pesticides
    Ecological pesticides

    In agroecology, pesticides are evaluated for minimal adverse environmental effects. Biocides include germicides, antibiotics, antibacterials, antivirals, antifungals, antiprotozoals and antiparasites....


External links