Pesticide desorption from soils facilitated by dissolved organic matter coming from composts: experimental data and modelling approach

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) interaction with pesticides was examined studying the ability of DOM to desorb 8 pesticides previously sorbed to soil. DOM was originating from municipal waste composts at two maturity degrees, recovered at 20°C and by hot-pressurised subcritical water. Pesticide desorption depended on their previous sorption on soil. When sorption was low (K oc ≤ 50, sulcotrione, metalaxyl), water was more efficient than DOM for desorption. On the contrary, when sorption was high (K oc ≥ 2000, trifluraline), little effect of DOM was observed. For the moderately sorbed pesticides, DOM favoured pesticide desorption compared to water. For the lowest sorbed pesticides (K oc ≤ 100), hysteresis was increased with larger proportions of DOM extracted with subcritical-water. Dissolved organic matter extracted from fresh-immature compost had larger capacity to mobilize the sorbed pesticides than the DOM from the mature compost. The pesticide desorption resulted from the positive and competitive interactions between pesticide, DOM and soil surfaces. These interactions were modelled considering separate partitioning coefficients. A general equation allowed the deduction of specific coefficients describing interactions in solution between pesticides and the non-sorbed fraction of DOM remaining in solution. This fraction was supposed to contain the most hydrophilic fraction of DOM and was able to interact with the most polar pesticide (amitrol). When pesticide hydrophobicity increased, the partitioning between pesticide and DOM decreased. Modelling the three-phase system (liquid, DOM and solid phases) pointed out that the solid phase played the most important role on pesticide behaviour through the sorption process of DOM and pesticide.