1-Octanol/Water Partition Coefficient (K_ow) and pK_afor Ionisable Pesticides Measured by apH-Metric Method

Abstract

pKa values for a wide range of commonly used ionisable pesticides, together with the log Kow values of the most lipophilic form of each, have been measured using pH-metric techniques. Examples of acids, bases and multiprotic compounds from the major classes of herbicides, and a number of insecticides and fungicides that contain ionisable groups, are included. The pKa and log Kow values so obtained were generally in good agreement with values taken from the literature that were measured by other methods. The lower limit of log Kow that could be measured by the pH-metric method lay below the -0·97 obtained for amitrole, but the method could not be applied to glyphosate for which shake-flask measurements indicated log Kow below -3. The highest log Kow obtained in this study was 5·12 for pentachlorophenol. The pH-metric technique offers a rapid and convenient method to determine pKa and log Kow for ionisable compounds, especially when utilising an automatic titration system linked to a dedicated computer.