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Starch, whey, and soy proteins and paraffin wax were tested as potential controlled-release carriers for insect sex pheromones used for mating disruption of orchard pests. Geranyl propionate was used as a model pheromone in preliminary experiments. Geranyl propionate and Oriental fruit moth pheromone release-rates from various carrier materials were measured in laboratory experiments by extraction of residual pheromone from biopolymer films and by trapping pheromone released from carrier materials into an air stream using Super Q traps. The carrier materials could be applied to tree bark or foliage at ambient temperature as aqueous emulsions. After drying, the film or coating would release the entrapped pheromone, then slowly erode from the bark, and degrade in soil. Paraffin performed better than starch or protein as a controlled-release carrier for the compounds studied because of better initial entrapment and a more constant release-rate.

The Department Chemistry and Physics at Western Carolina University has added an environmental focus to its curriculum, and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was identified as an essential tool in environmental analysis. GC-MS is used in undergraduate chemistry courses in: (i) the identification of synthesized compounds and natural products, (ii) monitoring compounds and their degradation in the environment, and (iii) analytical method development. In Organic Chemistry, the GC-MS is used to characterize natural products and the products of an environmentally benign chemical synthesis. In Environmental Chemistry, the GC-MS is used to identify compounds of environmental interest, such as pesticides in soil samples, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in water, and hydrocarbons in gasoline samples. In Instrumental Analysis I, students characterize numerous compounds in cigarette smoke using GC-MS. In Instrumental Analysis II, students are presented with an analytical chemistry problem for which they research protocols, collect samples, and perform the analyses. The GC-MS has been used to identify volatile compounds in a number of complex mixtures. Also, research in chemistry is a significant part of our curriculum, and numerous undergraduate students have used the GC-MS in their research. The addition of GC-MS has enhanced many of our undergraduate laboratory courses and student-led research projects.

Small-plot (approximately 0.1 ha) studies were used to evaluate different pheromone dispensing systems, application rates, and point-source densities for mating disruption of the tufted apple bud moth, Platynota idaeusalis (Walker). Using polyvinyl chloride spirals impregnated with tufted apple bud moth pheromone (1:1 ratio of E11-tetradecenyl alcohol/E11-tetradecenyl acetate), pheromone rates of > or = 1,482 spirals per hectare (74.1 g pheromone per hectare) were superior to a rate of 988 spirals per hectare (49.4 g pheromone per hectare) in decreasing male response to pheromone traps in 1995, whereas no differences were detected among rates of 988, 1,482 and 1,975 spirals per hectare in 1996. Within a range of 370-988 pheromone dispensers per hectare, point source densities were equally effective in suppressing male response to pheromone traps. Pheromone-impregnated paraffin disks were equally effective at inhibiting male response to pheromone traps compared with polyvinyl chloride spirals. However, a paraffin emulsion formulation of pheromone applied with a hand-held grease gun provided longer residual communication disruption effects than polyvinyl chloride spirals. Dilution of paraffin emulsion pheromone formulations in water for application with a backpack sprayer and airblast sprayer rendered them ineffective in reducing male response to pheromone traps. The releases of pheromone from polyvinyl chloride spirals and paraffin disks aged in the field were described by a linear and negative logarithmic curve, respectively, indicating that dispenser life time should be longer for spirals. The ratio of acetate to alcohol components of pheromone released from spirals increased over time, whereas the release ratio remained more constant for paraffin disks. This suggests that the disruption efficacy of spirals may be prematurely reduced because of imbalance of the released components.