Sorption of diazinon and other chemical vapors by mushrooms and agricultural substrates in enclosed systems

Glass desiccators are used as a model for various enclosed systems and in which conditions of minimal ventilation are simulated. Agricultural substrates including mushrooms sorb various amounts of diazinon vapor when grown in or placed into atmospheres that maximize the concentration of diazinon in the vapor state. In only one test in several that simulated the worst possible case situation was the tolerance of 0.75 ppm (mg/kg) for diazinon residues on or in mushrooms exceeded. The walls of the desiccator act both as a sink and as a mobile reservoir for the chemical vapors introduced. The relative amounts of vapors that may become sorbed by a particular sorbent not only depend on the vapor pressure of the particular agrochemical sorbate, but more importantly on the degree of ventilation of the particular enclosed system. Environmental considerations are implied by the data.