Glyphosate is an organophosphate that is currently being manufactured for commercial pesticide use. The primary issue with this chemical is that it pollutes the water and soil, and has health hazards which harm most organisms that come in contact with it. When aquatic life is exposed to glyphosate, it is absorbed through the semi-permeable fish skin membrane, which can lead to genotoxicity oxidative stress, endocrine disruption, and eventually premature death. In humans, glyphosate is primarily absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract. The effect of this is increased acetylcholine neurotransmission, which can result in very unpleasant negative health effects, while large doses have the potential to be fatal. As a potential remedy for the contaminated water that the effected fish inhabit, a chelate treatment for the contaminated water is being proposed. Glyphosate has the potential to act as a polydentate chelating ligand, binding tightly to a metal center. Various metal compounds were tested in an aqueous solution with glyphosate to determine the reactivity and likelihood of chelate formation under ideal circumstances. The results of the chelation tests as well as a plan for intercepting glyphosate through chelation will be presented.

Detoxification of glyphosate in aqueous solution through the formation of a chelate

ACS Spring 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.