2022-2023

Semester 2

SEHH2008: Chemistry and Modern Living

Lecturer: Mr. Baldur Woo
BNurs, RN, MSc in Mkt and Sales Mgt, MMedSC

Lecture 5: Agricultural and Household Chemicals

27/2/2023
Objectives

• Understand the chemistry relating to agriculture

• Understand the chemistry relating to household affairs

Agricultural Chemicals
Photosynthesis: How the Plants make their own food

• Green plants contain chloroplasts (葉綠素) that can absorb the solar energy and it is essential
for the plants to make their own food

• Photosynthesis (光合作用) is the process by which plants use sunlight, water, and carbon
dioxide to create oxygen and energy in the form of sugar---glucose (葡萄糖)

6 CO2 + 6 H2O + solar energy → C6H12O6 (glucose) + 6 O2

• In early agricultural societies, people grew plants for food energy

Fertilizers (1)

• Fertilizers are used to replace plant nutrients that agricultural activities

remove from the soil. There are three primary plant nutrients, nitrogen(N),
potassium(K), and phosphorus(P)

• Nitrogen:

• Nitrogen is largely responsible for the growth of leaves on the plant

• Legumes (莢果) contain bacteria in root nodules capable of fixing

nitrogen from atmosphere

• Lightning can provide energy for the conversion of nitrogen into nitric
acid

• Anhydrous ammonia or nitrogen-containing fertilizers are used to

replace nitrogen removed from soil by crops
Fertilizers (2)
Fertilizers (3)

• Phosphorus:

• Phosphorus is largely responsible for root growth and flower and fruit development

• Animal bones and the ore rock phosphate are a source of phosphates that can be
converted to fertilizer.

• Modern phosphate fertilizers are often produced by treating phosphate rock with
phosphoric acid to make water-soluble calcium dihydrogen phosphate
Fertilizers (4)

• Potassium:

• Potassium is a nutrient that helps the

overall functions of the plant perform
correctly

• The most common form of potassium in

commercial fertilizers is Potassium
Chloride (KCl)

• In addition to the three major nutrients, three

secondary plant nutrients, magnesium, calcium,
and sulfur are needed in moderate amounts

• Eight micronutrients are needed in smaller

amounts
Fertilizers (5)

• The “complete fertilizers” that are purchased by farmers and home gardeners
usually only contain the three major plant nutrients

• The numbers on the fertilizer bags/boxes, such as 5-10-5, give the

percentage of N, P, and K, respectively

• The fertilizer numbers can be used to calculate how much of a fertilizer needs
to be applied to equal 1 pound (453.5 g) of the nutrient you are trying to add
to the soil

• If the numbers on the fertilizer are 10-10-10, you can divide 100 by 10 and
this will tell you that you need 10 pounds (4.5 kg) of the fertilizer to add 1
pound (453.5 g) of the nutrient to the soil.

• If the fertilizer numbers were 20-20-20, you divide 100 by 20 and you know
that it will take 5 pounds (2 kg) of the fertilizer to add 1 pound (453.5 g) of
the nutrient to the soil
Insecticides (1)

• Insecticides are used to kill insect that may cause problem to our food
products

• DDT (Dichloro-Diphenyl-Trichloroethane) (滴滴涕) was developed shortly

before World War II and was at one time considered to be an ideal
insecticide.

• DDTcan affects the nervous system by interfering with normal nerve

impulses of insects

• Its widespread use has saved many human lives at the same time has
caused much environmental damage

• DDT is a persistent chemical substance, meaning it does not break down in

the environment. It is fat-soluble and concentrates in fatty tissues.

• It is biologically magnified and causes the disruption of calcium metabolism.

Its use has been documented to cause the decline of fish-eating birds
Insecticides (2)

• Organic phosphorus insecticides have been developed that are less persistent than DDT. Most are more toxic
to mammals than DDT. Malathion is less toxic than DDT in this class.

• Organic phosphorus insecticides also affects the nervous system of insects

• Carbamates are another family of insecticides. They are also nerve poisons and act over a shorter span of
time

• Most of the carbamates are narrow-spectrum insecticides that are only directed at one or a few insect pests
They break down easily in the environment and do not accumulate in fatty tissue
Insecticides (3)

• The release of sterile insects to ineffectively mate can reduce an insect population.

• Pheromones (費洛蒙) can be used to attract and trap certain insects.

• Juvenile hormones (保幼激素) have been used to control mosquitoes and fleas. They prevent
the non-reproducing larvae stage from forming adults

• The synthesis of juvenile hormones is difficult and expensive, and they are only effective when
used against insects that become pests at the adult stage
Herbicides and Defoliants

• Herbicides (除草劑) are used to kill weeds. They can by inhibiting cell division, photosynthesis
or amino acid production or by mimicking natural plant growth hormones

• Defoliants (落葉劑) cause leaves to fall off plants. They can promote the formation of the
abscission layer between petiole and stems
Household Chemicals
Soap (1)

• Soap is made by reacting animal fat or vegetable oil with

lye/sodium hydroxide (NaOH)

• How it work?

a. Head of the molecule of soap is hydrophilic (water

attracting) and tail is hydrophobic (water repelling)

b. The hydrophobic “tail” dissolves into oil, leaving the

hydrophilic “head” on the outside. This spherical
structure is called a micelle (微胞)

c. Oil and soapy water form an emulsion, with the soap

acting as the emulsifying agent (乳化劑)
Soap (2)
 Soap (3)

• Water that contains calcium, magnesium, and iron ions is called hard water

• These ions will react with and precipitate soap, reducing its effectiveness

• Additives such as washing soda (Na2CO3 . 10 H2O) and trisodium phosphate (TSP = Na3PO4) can
let the water less soft because it will work with the metal ions. They are called water softeners

• Water softening tanks contains a polymeric material that holds the calcium, magnesium, and iron
ions and replaces them with sodium ions
 Synthetic Detergents (1)
• Synthetic detergents were developed with cleansing action similar to soap, but without the
negative effects of hard water

• ABS Detergents: The first synthetic detergents were alkylbenzenesulfonates (ABS) detergents.
Unfortunately, they are nonbiodegradable

• LAS Detergents: Linear alkylsufonates (LAS) detergents have linear chains of carbon atoms that can
be broken down by microorganisms. They are biodegradable
Synthetic Detergents (2)
 Laundry Usage (1)
• Laundry detergents contain a variety of compounds designed for specific functions that included:

1. Surfactants emulsify the soil and oils. They can be either anionic, cationic, nonionic, or amphoteric. Amphoteric
surfactants carry both a positive and negative charge on the same molecule. A betaine is an example of an
amphoteric surfactant.

2. Builders are added to detergent formulas to increase the detergency of the surfactant. It works by precipitation
of the calcium and magnesium ions

3. Brighteners are added to detergent formulations to make clothing appear bright and new
 Laundry Usage (2)
• Quaternary ammonium salts with two long alkyl chains are used as fabric softeners. They attach to
clothing fibers, forming a layer with one molecule thick, which gives the clothing a smooth flexible
softness

• Bleaches are oxidizing agents that react with colored stains on fabrics. The more common bleaches
are chlorine bleaches containing sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl). It works by breaking the chemical
bonds of natural pigments
 Laundry Usage (3)
• Caution when using bleach:

1. Don’t explore under sunlight as the sunlight may provide energy for breakdown of sodium
hypochlorite to chloride gases

2. Don’t add with the acid such as HCl as NaClO + 2HCl(aq) → NaCl + H2O + Cl2 and irritant chlorine
gas will be produced
 Home Cleaner
• Sodium Hydroxide is a powerful home cleaner as:

1. Drain cleaners to saponify grease. Some contain bits of aluminum that react with the NaOH to
release hydrogen gas to agitate the clog. Many contain bleach to degrade hair

2. Oven cleaners to cut the greasy material on oven walls

 Cosmetic (1)
• The U.S. Food Drug and Cosmetic Act of 1938 defined cosmetics as “articles intended to be rubbed,
poured, sprinkled, or sprayed on, introduced into, or otherwise applied to the human body or any part
thereof, for cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering the appearance…”

• Skin Creams and Lotions:

1. A lotion is an emulsion of oil droplets dispersed in water

2. A cream is an emulsion of water droplets dispersed in oil

 Cosmetics (2)
• Deodorants:

1. Contain perfume to mask body odor and a germicide to kill odor-causing bacteria

2. The germicide is usually a long-chain quaternary ammonium salt or triclosan (三氯生)

• Antiperspirants (止汗劑)

1. Perfume

2. Germicide

3. Also contains aluminum chlorohydrate [Al2(OH)5Cl . 2 H2O], which are astringents (收斂劑) that
constrict the pores of sweat glands to prevent perspiration
Cosmetics (3)
• Perfumes may contain many ingredients. Their components are divided into
three notes. Notes are categories of volatility. The first note is the most volatile
fraction and the third or end note is the least volatile fraction.

• Colognes are perfumes that have been diluted with alcohol or alcohol/water
mixtures
Cosmetics (3)
• Hair Chemistry:
1. Hair color is determined by melanin (brownish-black) and phaeomelanin (red-
brown). Hair color can be lightened by oxidizing with hydrogen peroxide or
changed by dying.
2. Hair treatments contain lead acetate [Pb(CH3COO)2]. The lead ions penetrate
the hair shaft and react with the sulfur to form black lead sulfide
3. Perms are accomplished by breaking the disulfide bonds in hair proteins with
reducing agents, such as thioglycolic acid. The hair is then curled on rollers
and treated with hydrogen peroxide to re-establish new disulfide linkages
Cosmetics (4)