Summary of Innovation Adjuvant and Formulation Technologies for Biologicals: Powers Breakthroughs in Biologicals and Sustainable Agriculture Development

Editor's Note: Biological formulations are considered as one of the most promising tools for sustainable agriculture, remaining challenges, such as limited shelf life or inconsistent biological efficacy in the field, slow down their global adoption rate. In light of this, some key players in this field such as Syensqo, Momentive, Evonik, Croda, Borregaard, Ingevity, BASF, Evologic Technologies, and Jungbunzlauer Ladenburg launched new solutions for the stability, biological efficacy, and environmental compatibility of biologicals through their respective innovative technologies. The development of these technologies not only helps to improve the performance of biologicals but also provides strong support for the sustainable development of agriculture.

Syensqo

Biological formulations are considered as one of the most promising tools for sustainable agriculture, remaining challenges, such as limited shelf life or inconsistent biological efficacy in the field, slow down their global adoption rate. In light of those challenges, Syensqo has developed several biological formulations chassis: wettable powders and structured liquid carriers for better biological performances and shelf life extension.

Wettable Powders: overcoming wettability and dispersibility challenges through formulation

Many active ingredients based on microorganisms in the market are formulated as wettable powder (WP). It is a practical formulation type, especially for fungi, with low water activity. However, solid formulations usually cause some challenges upon dilution related to the hydrophobic nature of many fungal spores and their large distribution of particle sizes. This often results in a poor wettability of microbial particles and low suspensibility related to agglomeration, flocculation and/or sedimentation of spores. 

As a result, when making a WP, it is necessary to select high performance, compatible surfactants and polymers with a good adsorption affinity with the targeted actives for wetting agents, dispersants and binders. The formulation process is also very important, and so are the time of mixture and the addition order.

DV AgRHEA™ SA305 is a solid blend solution developed to facilitate the WP formulations of fungi, including wetting agents, co-dispersant and binder.

AgRHEA^® LifeXtend Plus to raise the bar in biological formulations

In terms of liquid formulations, Oil dispersion (OD) are often considered for conidia fungi, since they provide a medium free of water (or with low concentration of water), adequate to favor storage stability. Besides vegetable oil, ready-to-use OD chassis, such as AgRHEA™ OD-EASY, Syensqo has developed structured liquid carriers based on water-miscible polar liquid carriers to suit even the most sensitive fungal biopesticides. An additional benefit of using a water-miscible polar media instead of a nonpolar one is an improved and easier dilution, so that an emulsifying system is not needed.

Syensqo launched AgRHEA^® LifeXtend Plus, a technology disruptor for microbial-based formulations, that offers unmatched shelf life to accelerate the adoption of more sustainable agriculture methods.

AgRHEA^® LifeXtend Plus is a ready-to-use all-in-one solution, which includes a carrier, co-dispersant and rheology agent for the formulation of microorganisms, including beneficial fungi.

AgRHEA^® LifeXtend Plus is the latest addition to the AgRHEA^® range which includes solutions such as AgRHEA^® OD-EASY and AgRHEA^® SticGuard and demonstrates the strong commitment of Syensqo in supporting the agricultural sector on its path towards increased sustainability.

Momentive’s adjuvants toolbox for biologicals

Momentive offers an excellent portfolio of high-quality adjuvants for biocontrol spray applications, including specialized uses such as soil treatments and ultra-low volume applications like drone spraying (Table 1). Momentive adjuvants, such as Silwet super-spreaders, can boost the performance of biologicals beyond what conventional adjuvants can achieve, whether in tank-mix or in-can situations. They also support sustainability and regenerative farming with organic listed and biodegradable products. Choose Momentive adjuvants to deliver the best results for your biological solutions.

Table 1: Momentive’s Adjuvant Offerings for Biologicals.

(1) Biodegradability after 28 days - OECD 301B

(2) In-can for pH range of 6.5-7.5. In-can dose rates range from 5 to 20% wt/v.

(3) In-can stability: Silwet HS-312 (pH 3-12) and Silwet HS-604 (pH 4-10). In-can dose rates range from 5 to 20% wt/v.

Click to view the following two articles to learn more about innovation solutions for Biologicals from Momentive.
- Optimization of Biological Applications with High-Performance Momentive Adjuvants for Tank-mixes and In-can Formulations
- Advancing Sustainable and Regenerative Agriculture with Momentive's Soil Adjuvants

Evonik 

Evonik's innovative composition process for stabilizing Gram-negative bacteria in agricultural applications is a significant advancement in the field of study for biofertilizers and biopesticides. This new two-step process creates an encapsulation of Gram-negative bacteria with silica (SIPERNAT^® 50) and with the adjuvant (BREAK-THRU^® SP 133) addresses the challenge of maintaining the viability of these bacteria outside their natural environment.

Key components and benefits of Evonik's composition process:

1. Encapsulation with SIPERNAT^® 50: This silica-based carrier helps to create a protective environment for the Gram-negative bacteria, keeping them dormant yet viable until they are ready to be used. The encapsulation process ensures that the bacteria are physically stable and protected from environmental stresses that could otherwise reduce their effectiveness.

   
   

2. BREAK-THRU^® SP 133: This adjuvant is crucial for maintaining a low moisture environment, which is essential for the longevity of the bacteria in storage. It does not have intentionally added water and causes low water activities. The adjuvant also serves as a delivery enhancer, improving the coverage of plant surfaces and adherence of the bacteria to plant surfaces during the application.

   
   

3. Sugar Carbon Source: The inclusion of a sugar has two functions:  1) Sugar glass layer to protect the microbes during storage; 2) Food source once the formulation is added to water during the application.  

   
   

4. OMRI Certification: Both SIPERNAT^® 50 and BREAK-THRU^® SP 133 are certified by the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI), indicating that they are suitable for use in organic agriculture. This certification is important for farmers who are looking to maintain organic status for their crops.

   
   

5. Sustainability and Biodegradability: The components of the composition are designed to be environmentally friendly. SIPERNAT^® 50 is microplastic-free and comparable to natural silica, while BREAK-THRU^® SP 133 is also microplastic-free, made from biobased building blocks, has no toxicology labeling, and is readily biodegradable according to OECD 301F standards.

   
   

6. Convenience and Compatibility: The liquid formulation offers ease of handling and is stable at ambient temperatures, making it convenient for farmers to store and use. It can be easily mixed with water without the need for additional emulsifiers and can be applied using standard agricultural sprayers. The quality of the product can be guaranteed, because contamination (even after opening the package) has a limited ability to grow.

   
   

7. Customizable Formulations: The process allows for the creation of hybrid solutions that can combine Gram-negative bacteria with other chemicals, offering flexibility to address specific agricultural needs.

Overall, Evonik's novel process represents a significant advancement in the practical application of beneficial Gram-negative bacteria in agriculture. Evonik’s products enhances the physical stability and microbial viability and enhance field efficacy. This is a good step forward for microbial formulations with Gram-negative bacteria and will allow growers to more effectively utilize products with this type of bacteria to promote plant health, improve soil quality, and potentially reduce the reliance on chemical fertilizers and pesticides.

Croda 

The biological market is increasing year by year, and the formulation industry must keep pace with this growth by delivering innovation and contributing to faster development, thereby streamlining processes within the biological industry. To help bring products to market at a faster pace, Croda launched Atlox™ BS-50, a new product specifically designed for biologicals, with the purpose of optimising the formulation process.

Atlox™ BS-50 is a ready-to-use powder delivery system for spore forming microbes. Its simplicity in use means only the addition of the microbe is required to complete a wettable powder (WP) formulation, reducing formulation development time.  Components of Atlox™ BS-50 have been carefully optimised by Croda’s scientists to provide the best performance and have undergone viability testing to ensure they are compatible with common microbes, and therefore providing versatility for its use.

Atlox™ BS-50 can incorporate fungi and bacteria propagules such as Trichoderma spp., Metarhizium spp., Beauveria bassiana and Bacillus spp. providing microorganism stabilisation while also enhancing physicochemical stability in the application tank.

Atlox™ BS-50 simplifies formulating microorganisms as only the addition of the microbe is required to complete a wettable powder (WP) formulation, therefore reducing development time. It is compatible with common microbes, such as Trichoderma spp., Metarhizium spp., Beauveria bassiana and Bacillus spp., therefore providing versatility for its use. The case study presented using Trichoderma asperellum exemplifies the great potential of Atlox™ BS-50 as a powder delivery system that provides exciting results in a number of CFU, viability, and vigour studies after 180 day stability period.

Borregaard

Borregaard's lignin-based biopolymers serve as a sustainable alternative to fossil based co-formulants. The lignin biopolymers are robust, bio-based dispersants and have excellent compatibility with a variety of biologicals. In addition, Borregaard’s unique product Activance UV can act as protector to shield the microbe from harmful UV-radiation. 

Borregaard’s lignin-based biopolymers can serve as multipurpose co-formulants for a wide variety of biocontrol formulations. In addition to dispersing and binding abilities, the lignin biopolymers have excellent microbial compatibility and the unique Activance UV can offer UV-protection to the microbial active. Moreover, Borregaard’s lignin biopolymers are derived from 100% natural sources, are OMRI-listed and approved for use in organic farming.

Ingevity

Based on kraft lignosulfonate technology, Ingevity’s legacy Reax^®, Polyfon^® and Kraftsperse^® are well known brand names in the marketplace for multi-actives and high active loading, both for chemical and biological (or combined) formulations, providing crystal growth inhibition and excellent UV protection, both in liquid and dry formulations, even at extremely low dispersant use rates.

AltaBio is designed specifically to address challenging biological formulations and hard-to-formulate conventionals. Beauveria bassiana is an extremely hard to formulate, hydrophobic biological species. Using 1% AltaBio 200 as the only dispersant delivers granular product that can easily disintegrate in water at 1% or 10% dilution ratio, meaning the water use quantity can be effectively cut down to only 1/10 of its original rate. With only 1/10 water being used in the diluted product, the resulting suspension has very similar particle size, and even slightly higher suspensibility comparing to the 1% dilution. In addition, Beauveria bassiana extruded water dispersible granules (WDG) with AltaBio 200 provides very high suspensibility (>80%) at only ¼ use rate of industrial benchmarks, including sulfite lignosulfonate and styrene acrylate copolymer and provides faster granular disintegration comparing to alternates. 

Evologic Technologies

The most successful microbial products in the agricultural input market are based on a single Gram-positive species of bacteria – Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). Bt-based products occupy about 95% percent of the biopesticide market, with CAGR of 6.4% during the forecast period 2024-2032. This might not come as a surprise looking from the formulation perspective, as Bt is a highly stable organism, with considerable tolerance to various stressors. Formulation of Gram-negative bacteria and fungi poses a more demanding engineering challenge due to the sensitive nature of their cell structures. The lack of formulation expertise and capacity for these organisms, as well as high production costs, greatly limit the introduction of new microbial products to the market.

Evologic has identified this gap and created BioShield^® – a platform technology to economically stabilize microbes in capsules that meet the specifications required by the industry and farmers.

Evologic’s Bioshield technology serves to solve the critical challenges in stabilization and application of difficult-to-produce microbes like Gram-negative bacteria and fungi. Delivering a highly concentrated, stable product with customizable particle size, Bioshield enables seamless incorporation of microbial products to a wide range of agricultural applications. Bioshield effectively stabilizes even the most difficult-to-produce microbes and achieves up to 12 months of shelf life.

Jungbunzlauer Ladenburg

CITROFOL^® AI, as a carrier fluid for microbial,serves as a sustainable co-formulant, is highly safe, and exhibits favourable physicochemical characteristics. Notably, it combines the low water activity of an oily carrier with partial water solubility, eliminating the need for emulsifiers and preservatives and simplifying formulations. CITROFOL^® AI is fully compatible with plants and has substantial potential to enhance the shelf life of liquid microbial formulations, as demonstrated with all organisms tested in this study (B. velezensis, T. harzianum, B. bassiana). It aids in maintaining high cell viability even at elevated temperatures, which is crucial for farmers operating in warm climates or where continual cooling of the product during transport and storage is impractical. Ensuring high cell viability and prolonged shelf life is a significant advancement in overcoming obstacles in the commercialisation of microbials. Viable microbial cells are essential for achieving satisfactory results in the field, thereby increasing confidence in the benefits and economic viability of these sustainable crop inputs. 

BASF

BASF launched a new line of adjuvants, named Agnique^® BioHance, which has been developed to increase the effectiveness of biological pesticides.

The adjuvants from the Agnique^® BioHance line have shown effective results in trials for pathogens such as downy mildew, powdery mildew, scab, white mold, gray mold, leaf spots, rust, bacterial spot, and late blight.

Using between 0.5% and 1.0% of Agnique BioHance in biologicals can achieve results comparable to, and in some cases superior to, when only traditional chemical pesticides are used. Examples include Agnique^® BioHance 100 for controlling sweet corn rust or Agnique^® BioHance 200 for controlling gray mold in strawberries.

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