Focus On... Natural Rubber

This report focuses on natural rubber as the controlled release substrate, and in the physical form of the commercially available sleeve stopper containing a septum and usually referred to as a rubber septum. Interest in this material developed because the rubber septum releases pheromone by only one mechanism (3), and therefore is amenable to systematic study. Also, in many empirical studies the rubber septum had proven to be efficacious for use in traps monitoring insect flight activity, and knowledge of its release characteristics would improve its usefulness. Research that contributes to an understanding of the factors controlling evaporation rates of insect pheromones from natural rubber septa is critically summarized here. 

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