The fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is a key polyphagous pest because of the damage it causes to maize crops. The entomopathogenic fungi Metarhizium anisopliae AUMC2605 and Beauveria bassiana AUMC3563 were evaluated to manage S. frugiperda in the lab and field. Additionally, the toxicity of essential oils from Prunus amygdalus, Linum usitatissimum, Simmondsia chinensis, and Nigella sativa were detected against larvae S. frugiperda in the field. Using the drenches technique, the tested B. bassiana AUMC3563 and M. anisopliae AUMC2605 isolates were pathogenic to S. frugiperda and caused mortality ranging from 10.0 to 80.33%. The laboratory results indicated that B. bassiana AUMC3563 was more deadly than M. anisopliae AUMC2605. In the fifth instar larval stage S. frugiperda was not highly susceptible to the tested fungal isolates. However, the earlier instars larval of S. frugiperda were more susceptible to B. bassiana AUMC3563 and M. anisopliae AUMC2605. B. bassiana AUMC3563 caused the highest mortality of first, second, and third instar larvae at 5.6× 107 conidia ml−1 in the laboratory. The field trial results also indicated that the entomopathogenic fungus B. bassiana AUMC3563 was more effective than M. anisopliae AUMC2605. These results assert the potentiality of entomopathogenic fungi and natural products as effective tools in sustainable and integrated pest management.

Background Agriculture crops such as tomatoes and wheat are frequently targeted by insect pests which have a signifcant negative impact on the agricultural economies. The deployment of entomopathogenic fungi (EPF) for the control of the insect pests is an important alternative to synthetic insecticides. The EPF, Beauveria bassiana (Balsamo) Vuillemin, has been reported widely as a suitable biological control agent of many agricultural pests. Results In this study, B. bassiana SS-1 was isolated from local plant crops and its pathogenicity was assessed against the greater wax moth larvae Galleria mellonella (L.). The development of the pathogenic B. bassiana SS-1 on the insect was visualized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Results showed the ability of B. bassiana SS-1 to secrete extracellularly the important enzymes essential for insect cuticle penetration. B. bassiana SS1 recorded the maximum mean lipase (5.3 U/ml), protease (32.13 U/ml), and chitinase activities (2.95 U/ml). The endophytic pathogenic fungus B. bassiana SS-1 demonstrated pathogenicity against the fourth instar larvae of G. mellonella show‑ ing LC50 at 2.47× 102 conidia/ml and LC95 at 3.98× 105 conidia/ml. The SEM results showed physical contact with B. bassiana SS-1 hyphae on the surface of the G. mellonella larvae. Thus, the isolated EPF B. bassiana SS-1, even endo‑ phytic, could be a promising biocontrol agent to manage agricultural insect pests. Conclusion This study provided a comprehensive characterization of the pathogenicity of B. bassiana SS-1 with its microbiological characteristics. Future studies are needed to focus on the detection of highly virulent isolates against diferent insect pests and to assess their feld contribution as a favorable biological control agent.

Synthetic insecticides have a direct adverse effect on the natural enemies and long-term residual effects causing serious
environmental pollution as well. Public awareness of a clean environment increased the attention to developing alternative
eco-friendly approaches. The objectives of this study are the detection of the effect of Beauveria bassiana, Metarhizium
anisopliae, and natural products of plant-extract origin on the fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
under laboratory conditions. The drench-bioassay results showed that mortality of larvae by B. bassiana KACC40224
increased from 10 to 80% as the dose was increased from 10 × 105
to 10 × 109
conidia ml−
1. However, mortality by M.
anisopliae KACC40029 reached maximally 60% at the dose of 10 × 109
conidia ml−
1. All natural-extract products tested
against the insect pest were effective, except lavender oil, which caused mortality to vary between 10 and 100%. Rosemary
oil was found to be the most effective essential oil, showing 10% to 100% mortality indices at a concentration of 0.1 and
0.2% (v/v), respectively. S. frugiperda eggs tend to be more susceptible to entomopathogenic fungi rather than the larvae.
The essential oils exhibited significant insecticidal properties against the larvae of S. frugiperda. This study could help in
the development of potential biopesticides for the environment-friendly management of the fall armyworm S. frugiperda
pest and emphasize the advantages of entomopathogenic fungi application.

Three bis(3-schiff base-indoline-2-one) derivatives, 3(a-c), and two bis-spirotriazole-indole derivatives, 5(a,b), were synthesized and were evaluated as inhibitors for the corrosion of Al in 1.0 M HCl at 303 K. Weight loss (WL) method was applied for evaluation of the inhibition efficiencies (% IEs) of all synthesized compounds while WL in addition to potentodynamic polarization (PDP) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) were employed in case of the compound that has the highest% IE values. The collected results illuminated that the synthesized compounds were discovered to be efficient inhibitors and their% IEs were set to vary with their concentrations, structures, and the corrosive medium concentration. WL outcomes revealed that, the order of% IEs of the synthesized compounds was: 5a ≈ 5b > 3a > 3b ≥ 3c. The acquired high% IEs of such compounds were attributed to their potent adsorption on the Al surface and production of a protective film, and this adsorption was agreed with Langmuir adsorption isotherm. The kinetics of corrosion inhibition by the synthesized compounds appeared a negative-first order process confirming the gained higher values of% IEs of such compounds. PDP results indicated that the compound 5a behaves as a mixed inhibitor with a cathodic majority. The results acquired from the three utilized tools were set to be in a good agreement with each other’s confirming the validity of the obtained results.

Metal surfaces can become damaged by corrosion when they interact with their surround‑ ings, leading to huge financial losses. The use of corrosion inhibitors is one of the most crucial ways to combat the risky and hazardous effects of corrosion. In the present research, electrochemical tech‑ niques and surface analysis have been used to characterize the inhibition properties of (3‑hydroxy‑ 4‑((4‑nitrophenyl)diazenyl)‑5‑(phenylamino)thiophen‑2‑yl)(phenyl)methanone for the corrosion of carbon steel in an aerated 1.0 M HCl solution. Steel’s corrosion resistance was discovered to be im‑ proved by the presence of the examined inhibitor in 1.0 M HCl medium through the adsorption of the inhibitor species to create a barrier layer. The findings showed that when inhibitor concentrations increased and solution temperatures decreased, the inhibition performance (%IE) of the compound under study enhanced. In the light of inhibitor probe’s chemical makeup and theoretical analysis, the mechanism of the inhibition process was addressed. In a 1.0 M HCl solution containing 5 × 10−5 M of the inhibitor, the inhibition performance, at room temperature, was found to be almost 97%. The electrochemical results revealed that the examined compound successfully prevented carbon steel corrosion as a mixed‑type inhibitor. The Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms are pursued by the adsorption of the examined inhibitor. Additionally, using Arrhenius and transition state equations, the activation thermodynamic parameters ∆Ea, ∆H*, and ∆S* were determined and explained. The adsorption process was illustrated using DFT computation and MC simulations. The experimen‑ tal findings and theoretical simulations concurred surprisingly well. Finally, the paper presents a discussion of the inhibitory mechanism.

During the mandatory acidification process in the oil and gas industry, carbon steel unfortunately suffers significant corrosion damage. From this perspective, for the first time a new ionic liquid called 1-(2-(4-bromophenyl)-2-oxoethyl)-4-(tert-butyl)pyridin-1-ium bromide (ILB) has been used as an effective inhibitor for the carbon steel corrosion in aggressive HCl solution (15%) at 298 K. The experiments were managed with a number of different chemical and electrochemical techniques including weight loss, potentiodynamic polarization (PDP), and impedance spectroscopy (EIS). ILB has good inhibitory performance as an acidizing corrosion inhibitor for carbon steel even at low dosing levels of 1 × 10−3 M. The findings were promising as an inhibition efficiency of about 97% was achieved when ILB was added at low concentrations to the corrosive media. EIS results showed a significant rise in charge transfer resistance (Rct) values with increasing doses of ILB. PDP studies confirmed that ILB is a mixed type and obey Langmuir adsorption isotherm with chemical nature. The metal surface morphologies were inspected using a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and an Atomic Force Microscope (AFM). Additionally, Density Functional Theory (DFT) and Molecular Dynamic Simulation (MDS) indicates that ILB molecules function as inhibitors more successfully. There is a high degree of concordance between practical and theoretical studies