A Note on the Absorption and Retention of HCN by Oil Seeds

Abstract

Conservation of agricultural produce like food grains, pulses, oilseeds, etc, has been a problem from time immemorial since the loss caused by insects is sometimes colossal. Infested stocks often require a drastic measure of treatment by way of fumigation Calcium cyanide, Carbon-di-sulphide, Methyl bromide, Killoptera, etc., are some of the fumigants in vogue. Of these, the first mentioned chemical, though highly dangerous if inhaled, is about the most popular in this State by virtue of its high efficacy, cheapness as well as ease in its application. But the most important hazard involved in the use of this fumigant is that the poisonous element is absorbed and retained by fatty material, moist food stuffs, vegetables, etc., rendering their consumption dangerous. It is even surmised that the absorbed HCN may undergo a chemical reaction with the fatty acids forming stable compounds with are not easily got rid of by aeration or sundrying. There are very few publications on the absorption and retention of HCN by seed material having a high oil content. A few exploratory trials were, therefore, undertaken to study the advisability of using Calcium cyanide in the treatment of oil seeds.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.29321/MAJ.10.002424

Pages

279 - 282

Creative Commons

Copyright

© The Author(s), 2026. Published by Madras Agricultural Students' Union in Madras Agricultural Journal (MAJ). This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited by the user.

Keywords