Diatomaceous earths as alternatives to chemical insecticides in stored grain

Diatomaceous earth （DE） is a natural inert dust used to control insect pests in stored grain as an alternative to synthetic residual insecticides. Various DE formulations are now registered as a grain protectant or for structural treatment in many different countries throughout the world. The mode of action of DE is through the absorption of cuticular waxes in the insect cuticle, and insect death occurs from desiccation. The main advantages of using DE are its low mammalian toxicity and its stability. The main limitations to widespread commercial use of DE are reduction of the bulk density and flowability of grain, irritant hazards during application and reduction in efficacy at high moisture contents. This paper is an updated review of published results of researches related to the use of DEs and discusses their potential use in large-scale, commercial storage and in small scale applications.

Potential of the neonicotinoid imidacloprid and the oxadiazine indoxacarb for controlling five coleopteran pests of stored grain

The potential for using imidacloprid （a neonicotinoid） and indoxacarb （an oxadiazine） as grain protectants was investigated in bioassays against resistant strains of five stored grain beetles. The species investigated were Rhyzopertha dominica （E） （the lesser grain borer）, Sitophilus oryzae （L.） （the rice weevil）, Tribolium castaneum （Herbst） （the rust-red flour beetle）, Oryzaephilus surinamensis （L.） （the saw tooth flour beetle）, and Cryptolestesferrugineus （Stephens） （the fiat grain beetle）. Each of these species has developed resistance to one or more protectants, including organophosphorus insecticides, synthetic pyrethroids and the juvenile hormone analogue methoprene. Mortality and re- production after a 2-week exposure of adults to treated wheat depended on species, dose and insecticide. Imidacloprid had no effect on S. oryzae at any dose, but none of the other species produced any live progeny at 10 mg/kg. Indoxacarb had no effect on T. castaneum at any dose, but none of the other species produced any live progeny at 5 mg/kg. The results show that although both imidacloprid and indoxacarb can control at least four of the five key pests tested at doses comparable to those used for organophosphorus protectants, more potent neonicotinoid or oxadiazine insecticides would be needed than either of these to provide broad spectrum protection of stored grain .

Classified denoising method for laser point cloud data of stored grain bulk surface based on discrete wavelet threshold

Surfaces of stored grain bulk are often reconstructed from organized point sets with noise by 3-D laser scanner in an online measuring system.As a result,denoising is an essential procedure in processing point cloud data for more accurate surface reconstruction and grain volume calculation.A classified denoising method was presented in this research for noise removal from point cloud data of the grain bulk surface.Based on the distribution characteristics of cloud point data,the noisy points were divided into three types:The first and second types of the noisy points were either sparse points or small point cloud data deviating and suspending from the main point cloud data,which could be deleted directly by a grid method;the third type of the noisy points was mixed with the main body of point cloud data,which were most difficult to distinguish.The point cloud data with those noisy points were projected into a horizontal plane.An image denoising method,discrete wavelet threshold(DWT)method,was applied to delete the third type of the noisy points.Three kinds of denoising methods including average filtering method,median filtering method and DWT method were applied respectively and compared for denoising the point cloud data.Experimental results show that the proposed method remains the most of the details and obtains the lowest average value of RMSE(Root Mean Square Error,0.219)as well as the lowest relative error of grain volume(0.086%)compared with the other two methods.Furthermore,the proposed denoising method could not only achieve the aim of removing noisy points,but also improve self-adaptive ability according to the characteristics of point cloud data of grain bulk surface.The results from this research also indicate that the proposed method is effective for denoising noisy points and provides more accurate data for calculating grain volume.

Point cloud simplification algorithm based on particle swarm optimization for online measurement of stored bulk grain

The simplification of 3D laser scanning point cloud is an important step of surface reconstruction and volume estimation of bulk grain in granary.This study presented an adaptive simplification algorithm based on particle swarm optimization(PSO).It introduced PSO into the average distance method,a conventional simplification method.The basic idea of this algorithm was to adaptively determine the optimal point reducing intervals of scanning lines according to original point cloud density by PSO.By using the 3D point cloud scanned from bulk grain surface in granary,the proposed algorithm was validated.Compared with the average distance method,the proposed algorithm obtained more evenly distributed point set,smaller reduction ratio(6.96%)and higher volume estimation accuracy(relative error was less than 3‰).The 3D laser scanner(GSLS003,Jilin University and SkyViTech Co.,Ltd.,Hangzhou,China)used in this study could scan the complete picture of the grain surface in a granary in one time,so the acquired point cloud data do not have to be jointed.For the good simplification performance and capability of updating the reducing interval at any moment,the proposed algorithm and the 3D laser scanner could be used to realize online real-time measurement of stored bulk grain volume in granary.

Does cypermethrin affect enzyme activity, respiration rate and walking behavior of the maize weevil （Sitophilus zeamais）？

Insecticides cause a range of sub-lethal effects on targeted insects, which are frequently detrimental to them. However, targeted insects are able to cope with insecti- cides within sub-lethal ranges, which vary with their susceptibility. Here we assessed the response of three strains of the maize weevil Sitophilus zeamais Motschulsky （Coleoptera.＂ Curculionidae） to sub-lethal exposure to the pyrethoid insecticide cypermethrin. We ex- pected enzyme induction associated with cypermethrin resistance since it would aid the resistant insects in surviving such exposure. Lower respiration rate and lower activity were also expected in insecticide-resistant insects since these traits are also likely to favor survivorship under insecticide exposure. Curiously though, cypermethrin did not affect ac- tivity of digestive and energy metabolism enzymes, and even reduced the activity of some enzymes （particularly for cellulase and cysteine-proteinase activity in this case）. There was strain variation in response, which may be （partially） related to insecticide resistance in some strains. Sub-lethal exposure to cypermethrin depressed proteolytic and mainly cellulolytic activity in the exposed insects, which is likely to impair their fitness. However, such exposure did not affect respiration rate and walking behavior of the insects （except for the susceptible strain where walking activity was reduced）. Walking activity varies with strain and may minimize insecticide exposure, which should be a concern, particularly if associated with （physiological） insecticide resistance.