Insecticides: Feedstocks
How bromine and fluorine end up in crop sprays
What this tab covers What it is made from and what it feeds: the raw materials and energy per tonne with their share of cost (linked to the commodity table), who is low-cost and why, and the chemicals made from it.Insecticides are built from aromatics and heterocycles (pyridine, pyrazole), chlorine, phosphorus and sulphur, bromine and fluorine. Cost is dominated by intermediates and solvents rather than by any single raw material, so producers who make their own key intermediates, such as CCMP or pyrethroid acid chlorides, set the cost curve.
Inputs per tonne
| Input | Quantity per tonne | Role | Share of cost | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oil Crude oil | not published | carbon skeletons and solvents | about 10-20% (indicative) | indicative |
| Br Bromine | about 0.15-0.2 t Br per t chlorantraniliprole (stoichiometric: one Br in 483 g/mol) | pyrazole intermediate for diamides | small | stoichiometry |
| F Fluorspar | lambda-cyhalothrin about 12% fluorine by mass (stoichiometric) | CF3 groups in lambda-cyhalothrin, bifenthrin, fipronil, flubendiamide | small to moderate (indicative) | stoichiometry |
| S Sulfur | about 0.09 t S per t chlorpyrifos (stoichiometric) | phosphorothioates | small | stoichiometry |
| P Phosphate rock | about 0.09 t P per t chlorpyrifos (stoichiometric) | organophosphates | small | stoichiometry |
| Chlorine (chlorine tile) | several chlorinated steps | chlorinated pyridines and acid chlorides | about 5-10% (indicative) | indicative |
Who is low-cost, and why
Chinese makers integrated into CCMP, pyrethroid acids and diamide intermediates are lowest cost. Indian makers compete where they are integrated (Gharda in chlorpyrifos, Heranba in pyrethroids) and through custom synthesis for innovators (PI Industries).