Scientometric trends and knowledge maps of global polychlorinated naphthalenes research over the past four decades.

Polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCNs) were included in the banned list of the Stockholm Convention due to their potential to provoke a wide range of adverse effects on living organisms and the environment. Many reviews have been written to clarify the state of knowledge and identify the research needs of this pollutant class. However, studies have yet to analyse the scientometric complexities of PCN literature. In this study, we used bibliometric R and vosviewer programs as a scientometric tool to fill this gap by focusing on articles indexed on Web of Science and Scopus databases and those published between 1973 and 2022. A total of 707 articles were published within this period with a publication/author, author/publication, and co-authors/publication ratios of 0.45, 2.19, and 4.86, respectively. Developed countries dominated most scientometric indices (number of publications, citations, and collaboration networks) in the survey period. Lotka's inverse square rule of author productivity showed that Lotka's laws do not fit PCN literature. An annual percentage growth rate of 7.46% and a Kolmogorov-Smirnoff goodness-of-fit of 0.88 suggests that more output on PCNs is likely in years to come. More research is needed from scholars from developing countries to measure the supremacy of the developed nations and to effectively comply with the Stockholm Convention agreement.

Ecotoxicological impact of dinotefuran insecticide and its metabolites on non-targets in agroecosystem: Harnessing nanotechnology- and bio-based management strategies to reduce its impact on non-target ecosystems.

The class of insecticides known as neonicotinoid insecticides has gained extensive application worldwide. Two characteristics of neonicotinoid pesticides are excellent insecticidal activity and a wide insecticidal spectrum for problematic insects. Neonicotinoid pesticides can also successfully manage pest insects that have developed resistance to other insecticide classes. Due to its powerful insecticidal properties and rapid plant absorption and translocation, dinotefuran, the most recent generation of neonicotinoid insecticides, has been widely used against biting and sucking insects. Dinotefuran has a wide range of potential applications and is often used globally. However, there is growing evidence that they negatively impact the biodiversity of organisms in agricultural settings as well as non-target organisms. The objective of this review is to present an updated summary of current understanding regarding the non-target effects of dinotefuran; we also enumerated nano- and bio-based mitigation and management strategies to reduce the impact of dinotefuran on non-target organisms and to pinpoint knowledge gaps. Finally, future study directions are suggested based on the limitations of the existing studies, with the goal of providing a scientific basis for risk assessment and the prudent use of these insecticides.

Determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon levels of groundwater in Ife north local government area of Osun state, Nigeria.

This study determined the presence and levels of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) of groundwater in Moro, Edun-Abon, Yakoyo and Ipetumodu communities in Ife-North Local Government Area of Osun State. This was with a view to create public awareness about the safety of groundwater as a source for domestic purposes (e.g., drinking, cooking etc.) in non-industrial area. Water samples were collected on seasonal basis, comprising of three months (August-October) in the wet season and three months (December-February) in the dry season. The PAHs in the water samples were extracted with n-hexane using liquid-liquid extraction method, while their qualitative identifications and quantitative estimations were carried out with the use of gas chromatography. Levels of PAHs detected showed predominance of light PAHs (less than four fused rings) for both wet and the dry seasons. Higher concentrations of PAHs were recorded during the wet season than the dry season. The study concluded that the groundwater in the communities was contaminated with light PAHs and the total PAHs in this area exceeded the maximum permissible limit of 10 µg L-1 recommended by World Health Organization (WHO) for safety of groundwater.