A biochemical penetrant is a chemical that increases the ability of a poison to apply its toxic effect to a living organism.
Typically, the term penetrant when used for a biochemical agent, relates to an
agrichemical
An agrochemical or agrichemical, a contraction of ''agricultural chemical'', is a chemical product used in industrial agriculture. Agrichemical typically refers to biocides (pesticides including insecticides, herbicides, fungicides and nemat ...
that is used with a
weedkiller or
fungicide
Fungicides are pesticides used to kill parasitic fungi or their spores. Fungi can cause serious damage in agriculture, resulting in losses of yield and quality. Fungicides are used both in agriculture and to fight fungal infections in animals, ...
.
Approved Turfgrass Fungicides
/ref> The term seems to be used in relation to agrichemicals within English speaking countries rather than North American.
When mixed with a weedkiller (normally as an aqua solution) the penetrant chemical causes a plant to absorb the poison in a more effective manner and so succumb more readily. Penetrants are most often used against plants that would otherwise be able to resist the weedkiller. Often such plants have tough leaves or shiny leaves that shed water easily.
See also
* Surfactant
Surfactants are chemical compounds that decrease the surface tension or interfacial tension between two liquids, a liquid and a gas, or a liquid and a solid. The word ''surfactant'' is a Blend word, blend of "surface-active agent",
coined in ...
References
Agricultural chemicals
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