Nitrogen fertilizers

A fertilizer (or fertiliser in British English) is any material of natural or synthetic origin (other than liming materials) that is applied to soils or to plant tissues (usually leaves) to supply one or more plant nutrients essential to the growth of plants.
Nitrogen fertilizers
All nitrogen fertilizers are made from ammonia (NH3), which is sometimes injected into the ground directly. Theammonia is produced by the Haber-Bosch process.[5] In this energy-intensive process, natural gas (CH4) supplies the hydrogen and the nitrogen (N2) is derived from the air. This ammonia is used as a feedstock for all other nitrogen fertilizers, such as anhydrous ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) and urea (CO(NH2)2). Deposits of sodium nitrate (NaNO3) (Chilean saltpeter) are also found in the Atacamadesert in Chile and was one of the original (1830) nitrogen-rich fertilizers used.[11] It is still mined for fertilizer.[12]
Phosphate fertilizers[edit]
All phosphate fertilizers are obtained by extraction from minerals containing the anion PO43−. In rare cases, fields are treated with the crushed mineral, but most often more soluble salts are produced by chemical treatment of phosphate minerals. The mostpopular phosphate-containing minerals are referred to collectively as phosphate rock. The main minerals are fluorapatite Ca5(PO4)3F (CFA) and hydroxyapatite Ca5(PO4)3OH. These minerals are converted to water-soluble phosphate salts by treatment with sulfuric or phosphoric acids. The large production of sulfuric acid as an industrial chemical is primarily due to its use as cheap acid in processingphosphate rock into phosphate fertilizer. The global primary uses for both sulfur and phosphorus compounds relate to this basic process.
In the nitrophosphate process or Odda process (invented in 1927), phosphate rock with up to a 20% phosphorus (P) content is dissolved with nitric acid (HNO3) to produce a mixture of phosphoric acid (H3PO4) and calcium nitrate(Ca(NO3)2). This mixture can be combinedwith a potassium fertilizer to produce a compound fertilizer with the three macronutrients N, P and K in easily dissolved form.[13]
Potassium fertilizers[edit]
Potash is a mixture of potassium minerals used to make potassium (chemical symbol: K) fertilizers. Potash is soluble in water, so the main effort in producing this nutrient from the ore involves some purification steps; e.g., toremove sodium chloride (NaCl), i.e. common salt. Sometimes potash is referred to as K2O, as a matter of convenience to those describing the potassium content. In fact potash fertilizers are usually potassium chloride, potassium sulfate, potassium carbonate, or potassium nitrate.[14]
Compound fertilizers[edit]
Compound fertilizers, which contain N, P, and K, can often be produced by mixing straight fertilizers.In some cases, chemical reactions occur between the two or more components. For example, monoammonium and diammonium phosphates, which provide plants with both N and P, are produced by neutralizing phosphoric acid (from phosphate rock) and ammonia (from a Haber facility):
NH3 + H3PO4 → (NH4)H2PO4
2 NH3 + H3PO4 → (NH4)2HPO4
Organic fertilizers[edit]
The main "organic fertilizers" are, in rankedorder, peat, animal wastes, plant wastes from agriculture, and sewage sludge. In terms of volume, peat is the most widely used organic fertilizer. This immature form of coal confers no nutritional value to the plants, but improves the soil by aeration and absorbing water. Animal sources include the products of the slaughter of animals. Bloodmeal, bone meal, hides, hoofs, and horns are typicalcomponents.[1] Organic fertilizer usually contain fewer nutrients, but offer other advantages as well as appealing to environmentally friendly users.




Un fertilizante es un tipo de sustancia la cual contiene nutrientes, en formas químicas saludables y asimilables por las raíces de las plantas, para mantener o incrementar el contenido de estos elementos en el suelo. Las plantas no necesitan...