FERTILIZER INDUSTRY
WHAT ARE FERTILIZERS FERTILIZERS ARE COMPOUNDS GIVEN TO PLANTS WITH THE INTENTION OF PROMOTING GROWTH; THEY ARE USUALLY APPLIED EITHER VIA THE SOIL, FOR UPTAKE BY PLANT ROOTS, OR BY FOLIAR FEEDING, FOR UPTAKE THROUGH LEAVES. IT IS NOW KNOWN THAT AT LEAST 16 PLANT-FOOD ELEMENTS ARE NECESSARY FOR THE GROWTH OF GREEN PLANTS. THESE PLANT-NUTRIENTS ARE CALLED ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS. IN THE ABSENCE OF ANY ONE OF THESE ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS, A PLANT FAILS TO COMPLETE ITS LIFE CYCLE, THOUGH THE DISORDER CAUSED CAN, HOWEVER, BE CORRECTED BY THE ADDITION OF THAT ELEMENT. GREEN PLANTS OBTAIN CARBON FROM CARBON-DI-OXIDE FROM THE AIR; OXYGEN AND HYDROGEN FROM WATER, WHEREAS THE REMAINING ELEMENTS ARE TAKEN FROM THE SOIL. FERTILIZERS APPLICATION AND THE USE OF SUITABLE FERTILIZERS ARE RECOMMENDED FOR HIGHER CROP YIELDS IN PRODUCTIVE FARMING.
NEED FOR FERTILIZERS INCREASING AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION BY AREA INCREASING PROCESS IS NO LONGER POSSIBLE AS CULTIVABLE LAND LEFT OVER IS ONLY MARGINAL. FURTHER A CONSIDERABLE CULTIVABLE LAND IS BEING DIVERTED YEAR AFTER YEAR FOR INDUSTRIAL PURPOSE AND HOUSING ETC. HENCE SELF SUFFICIENCY IN FOOD LIES IN INCREASING THE YIELD PER UNIT AREA PER UNIT TIME THROUGH ADOPTION OF MODERN AGRICULTURAL TECHNOLOGY. IT IS UNIVERSALLY ACCEPTED THAT THE USE OF CHEMICAL FERTILIZERS IS AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE PACKAGE OF PRACTICES FOR RAISING THE AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION TO A HIGHER PLACE. FURTHER FERTILIZERS HAVE THE ADVANTAGES OF SMALLER BULK, EASY TRANSPORT, RELATIVELY QUICK IN AVAILABILITY OF PLANT-FOOD CONSTITUENTS AND THE FACILITY OF THEIR APPLICATION IN PROPORTION SUITED TO THE ACTUAL REQUIREMENTS OF CROPS AND SOILS. HENCE THERE IS NEED FOR AN EFFICIENT USE OF FERTILIZERS AS MAJOR PLANT NUTRIENT RESOURCE IN ENHANCING THE FARM PRODUCTIVITY..
MACRONUTRIENTS AND MICRONUTRIENTS FERTILIZERS CAN BE DIVIDED INTO MACRONUTRIENTS OR MICRONUTRIENTS. THERE ARE THREE MACRONUTRIENTS: NITROGEN, POTASSIUM, AND PHOSPHORUS, WHICH ARE CONSUMED IN HIGH QUANTITIES AND NORMALLY PRESENT AS WHOLE NUMBER PERCENTAGES IN PLANT TISSUES. THERE ARE MANY MICRONUTRIENTS, AND THEIR IMPORTANCE AND OCCURRENCE DIFFER FROM PLANT TO PLANT. IN GENERAL, MOST PRESENT FROM 5 TO 100 PARTS PER MILLION (PPM) BY MASS. EXAMPLES OF MICRONUTRIENTS ARE AS FOLLOWS: BORON (B), CALCIUM (CA), COPPER (CU), MAGNESIUM (MG), IRON (FE), MOLYBDENUM (MO), AND ZINC (ZN).
CLASSIFICATION OF FERTILIZERS 1. NATURAL FERTILIZERS 2. SYNTHETIC/COMMERCIAL FERTILIZERS
1. NATURAL FERTILIZERS THESE INCLUDE BOTH PLANT AND ANIMAL BI-PRODUCTS. THEY CONTAIN LOW QUANTITY OF NUTRIENTS AS COMPARED TO SYNTHETIC FERTILIZERS. 2. SYNTHETIC FERTILIZERS SYNTHESIZED MATERIALS ARE ALSO CALLED ARTIFICIAL, AND MAINLY CONTAINS THE THE THREE PRIMARY INGREDIENTS OF NITROGEN (N), PHOSPHORUS (P) AND POTASSIUM (K), WHICH ARE KNOWN AS N-P-K FERTILIZERS OR COMPOUND FERTILIZER. THE MASS PERCENT NITROGEN IS REPORTED DIRECTLY. HOWEVER, PHOSPHORUS IS REPORTED AS DIPHOSPHORUS PENTOXIDE (P2O5), AND POTASSIUM IS REPORTED AS POTASH OR POTASSIUM OXIDE (K2O), CONSEQUENTLY, AN 18-51-20 FERTILIZER WOULD HAVE 18% NITROGEN AS N, 51% PHOSPHORUS AS P2O5, AND 20% POTASSIUM AS K2O. IF NITROGEN IS THE MAIN ELEMENT, THEY ARE OFTEN DESCRIBED AS NITROGEN FERTILIZERS.
NITROGEN NITROGEN IS VERY IMPORTANT NUTRIENT FOR PLANTS AND IT SEEMS TO HAVE THE QUICKEST AND MOST PRONOUNCED EFFECT. IN THE CASE OF NITROGENOUS FERTILIZERS, NITROGEN MAY BE IN THE AMMONICAL, NITRATE (OR A COMBINATION THEREOF) OR AMIDE FORM. AMMONICAL FORM OF NITROGEN IS CONTAINED IN FERTILIZERS LIKE AMMONIUM SULPHATE, AMMONIUM CHLORIDE, ETC. NITRATE NITROGEN IS CONTAINED IN FERTILIZERS LIKE AMMONIUM NITRATE, CALCIUM AMMONIUM NITRATE, ETC. THE AMIDE NITROGEN IS CONTAINED IN UREA.
PHOSPHORUS PHOSPHORUS IS THE SECOND FERTILIZER ELEMENT AND IT IS AN ESSENTIAL CONSTITUENT OF EVERY LIVING CELLS AND FOR THE NUTRITION OF PLANT AND ANIMAL. IT TAKES ACTIVE PART IN ALL TYPES OF METABOLISM OF PLANT. PHOSPHORUS PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN ENERGY TRANSFORMATIONS AND METABOLIC PROCESSES IN PLANTS. POTASSIUM POTASSIUM PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE MAINTENANCE OF CELLULAR ORGANISATIONS BY REGULATING PERMEABILITY OF CELL MEMBRANES AND KEEPING THE PROTOPLASM IN A PROPER DEGREE OF HYDRATION. IT ACTIVATES THE ENZYMES IN PROTEIN AND CARBOHYDRATE METABOLISM AND TRANSLOCATION OF CARBOHYDRATES AND IMPARTS RESISTANCE TO PLANTS AGAINST FUNGAL AND BACTERIAL DISEASE.
UREA UREA IS WHITE CRYSTALLINE SOLID AND MOST WIDELY USED FERTILIZER IN THE COUNTRY. MANUFACTURED IN PRILLED AS WELL AS GRANULAR FORM. PRILLED AND GRANULAR FERTILIZERS ARE WHITE IN COLOR, FREE FLOWING, READILY SOLUBLE IN WATER AND BOTH CONTAIN 46% NITROGEN. BECAUSE OF ITS HIGH SOLUBILITY, IT IS SUITABLE FOR SOLUTION FERTILIZERS AND FOLIAR APPLICATION. IT IS NOT EXPLOSIVE SO EASY TO TRANSPORT.
USES USED AS A SOLUTION FERTILIZER AND FOLIAR APPLICATION DUE TO GOOD SOLUBILITY. PROTEIN FOOD SUPPLEMENT USED IN MAKING UTENSILS IN THE FORM OF MELAMINE. USED AS AN INGREDIENT IN TOOTH WHITENING PRODUCTS, DISH SOAP. USED AS A RAW MATERIAL FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF PLASTICS.
MANUFACTURE OF UREA GENERAL PROCESS INVOLVING IN UREA PRODUCTION ARE: ONCE THROUGH PROCESS PARTIAL RECYCLE PROCESS TOTAL RECYCLE PROCESS MAIN REACTIONS IN THE PRODUCTION OF UREA ARE: 2NH 3 + CO2 = NH 2 COONH 4 NH 2 COONH 4 = NH 2 CONH 2 + H 2 O
ONCE THROUGH PROCESS THE ONCE-THROUGH PROCESS IS THE SIMPLEST OF THE THREE TYPES. LIQUID AMMONIA AND CARBON DIOXIDE ARE SENT TO THE REACTOR. THE CARBAMATE STRIPPERS STEAM HEAT THE EFFLUENT TO REMOVE UNREACTED AMMONIA AND CARBON DIOXIDE, WITH THE STRIPPED EFFLUENT CONTAINING APPROXIMATELY 80% UREA. WHILE THIS PROCESS IS THE SIMPLEST OF THE UREA PROCESSES, IT IS TRIED TO THE CO- PRODUCTION OF SOME OTHER MATERIAL, E.G. AMMONIUM SULPHATE, AMMONIUM NITRATE, NITRIC ACID, FOR WHICH AMMONIA CAN BE USED.
PARTIAL RECYCLE PROCESS THE PARTIAL-RECYCLE METHOD A PORTION OF THE UNREACTED AMMONIA AND CARBON DIOXIDE PRESENT IN THE OFF-GAS RECYCLES BACK TO AMMONIA REACTOR. RECYCLING REDUCES THE AMOUNT OF INPUT AMMONIA REQUIRED. WITH THIS METHOD, THE AMOUNT OF UNREACTED AMMONIA THAT IS ABOUT 15% OF THAT GENERATED BY THE ONCE-THROUGH PROCESS.
TOTAL RECYCLE PROCESS IN THE TOTAL RECYCLE PROCESS, THE UNREACTED AMMONIA AND CARBON DIOXIDE FROM THE OFF-GAS ARE RETURNED TO THE UREA REACTOR (CONVERSION IS 99%).THE TOTAL RECYCLE PROCESS CAN BE DIVIDED INTO: HOTGAS MIXTURE RECYCLE STEMICARBON UREA STRIPPING PROCESS
HOT MIXTURE RECYCLE PROCESS IN THIS PROCESS MIXTURE OF CO2 AND NH3 IS RECYCLED BACK TO UREA REACTOR. THE CARBAMATE IS DECOMPOSED IN ONE OR MORE DECOMPOSERS, EACH HAVING A LOWER PRESSURE THAN THE PREVIOUS ONE. SO PRESSURE IS REDUCED AND ALL EVOLVED GASES MUST BE RECOMPRESSED TO THE REACTOR PRESSURE AND THIS IS TOO EXPENSIVE.
STEMICARBON UREA STRIPPING PROCESS THE MOST POPULAR METHOD DESIGNED TO MINIMIZE THE USE OF ENERGY IS BY STRIPPING WITH CO2.THE PROCESS INVOLVES FOLLOWING STEPS: REACTION OF NH 3 AND CO 2 STRIPPING WITH CO 2 PARTIAL CONDENSATION OF NH 3 AND CO 2 RECTIFICATION COLUMN EVAPORATING PRILLING AND GRANULATING
AMMONIUM SULFATE
AMMONIUM NITRATE
SUPERPHOSPHATE