Use of hydrophobic, self-emulsifying polyglycerol esters as adjuvants and anti-spray-drift agents

1. A self-emulsifying composition, comprising:

at least one hydrophobic, at least partially water-insoluble polyglycerol ester in combination with at least one emulsifier,

wherein the at least one hydrophobic, at least partially water-insoluble polyglycerol ester has an HLB value of 8 or less and is of Formula 2:

M a D b T c   Formula 2

wherein

M=[C 3 H 5 (OR) 2 O 1/2 ],

D=[C 3 H 5 (OR) 1 O 2/2 ],

T=[C 3 H 5 O 3/2 ],

a=1 to 10,

b=0 to 10,

c=0 to 3,

wherein the sum total of a+b+c is 1 to 20,

wherein the radicals R independently of one another are identical or different radicals of the formula R′—C(O)— or H,

wherein R′ is a monovalent aliphatic, saturated or unsaturated hydrocarbon radical having 3 to 39 C atoms,

wherein at least one radical R corresponds to a radical of the formula R′—C(O)—, and

wherein the acyl radicals are fatty acid mixtures comprising at least 70% by weight of oleic acid.

2. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the at least one hydrophobic, at least partially water-insoluble polyglycerol ester has an HLB of from 4 to 6.5 and an arithmetic mean of 2.9 to 3.1 radicals R of the formula R′—C(O)—.

3. The self-emulsifying composition of claim 1 , comprising an emulsifier with an HLB of 9 or greater.

4. The self-emulsifying composition of claim 3 , comprising at least one sorbitan fatty acid ester as emulsifier.

5. An additive for a crop protection formulation, comprising the self-emulsifying composition of claim 1 .

6. A method for avoiding spray drift, the method comprising adding the additive of claim 5 to a crop protection formulation.

7. A method for enhancing the efficacy of a pesticide and simultaneously for avoiding spray drift, the method comprising adding the additive of claim 5 to a crop protection formulation.

8. A method for enhancing the efficacy of a pesticide, simultaneously for avoiding spray drift and for increasing the yield of an agricultural crop, the method comprising adding the additive of claim 5 to a crop protection formulation.

9. The self-emulsifying composition of claim 1 , wherein the at least one hydrophobic, at least partially water-insoluble polyglycerol ester is triglycerine trioleate.

10. The self-emulsifying compositions of claim 1 , wherein the sum total of a+b+c is 2 to 5.

11. A spray mixture, comprising water and from 0.001 to 1 v % of the self-emulsifying composition of claim 1 .

12. The spray mixture of claim 11 , comprising 0.01 to 0.5 v % of the self-emulsifying composition.

13. The spray mixture of claim 11 , comprising 0.02 to 0.15 v % of the self-emulsifying composition.

14. The spray mixture of claim 11 , wherein, when the spray mixture is sprayed to produce a spray using a flat-spray nozzle of the type XR 11003 from TeeJet at a pressure of 1 bar and a temperature of 25° C., a volume fraction of droplets with a droplet diameter of less than 150 μm in the spray is 10% less than a volume fraction of droplets with a droplet diameter of less than 150 μm in a spray that is produced identically and is identical other than comprising none of the anti-adrift additive.

15. The spray mixture of claim 11 , wherein, when the spray mixture is sprayed to produce a spray using a flat-spray nozzle of the type XR 11003 from TeeJet at a pressure of 1 bar and a temperature of 25° C., a maximum of the droplet size distribution of the spray is at least 5% more than a maximum of the droplet size distribution of a spray that is produced identically and is identical other than comprising none of the anti-adrift additive.

16. The spray mixture of claim 11 , wherein, when the spray mixture is sprayed to produce a spray using a flat-spray nozzle of the type XR 11003 from TeeJet at a pressure of 1 bar and a temperature of 25° C., a volume-related median of the droplet size distribution of the spray is at least 5% more than a volume-related median of the droplet size distribution of a spray that is produced identically and is identical other than comprising none of the anti-adrift additive.

17. The spray mixture of claim 11 , wherein, when the spray mixture is sprayed to produce a spray using a flat-spray nozzle of the type XR 11003 from TeeJet at a pressure of 1 bar and a temperature of 25° C., a volume-related median of the droplet size distribution of the spray is at least 5% more than a volume-related median of the droplet size distribution of a spray that is produced identically and is based on fully-demineralized water.