Breakdown of [14C]dimethylamine in soils

The degradation of dimethylamine, used extensively in herbicide formations, was monitored in three Saskatchewan soil at 85% of field capacity under laboratory conditions at 20 o C using [ 14 C]dimethylamine at rates of 0.5-100 μg/g. In all soils, and at all rates, there was rapid evolution of [ 14 C]carbon dioxide with between 69 and 89% of the applied radioactivity being released after 7 days. The rapid breakdown of dimethylamine in the loamy sand was confirmed by chemical analysis following solvent extraction