阅读说明：本技术 含缓释和速释硼源的肥料 (fertilizer containing slow-release and quick-release boron source ) 是由 M·麦克劳克林 J·德格里斯 R·贝尔德 R·C·达席尔瓦 K·弗里曼 T·福莱 于 2018-03-30 设计创作，主要内容包括：一种粒状肥料产品,所述粒状肥料产品具有至少两种具有不同溶解度的硼源,以在植物的整个生长季节期间定制硼利用度,同时减少硼毒性的风险。第一硼源可以包括钠基或高水溶性硼化合物,例如四硼酸钠和/或硼酸,而第二硼源可以包括钙基硼化合物,例如硬硼钙石(CaB<Sub>3</Sub>O<Sub>4</Sub>(OH)<Sub>3</Sub>.(H<Sub>2</Sub>O))(例如,当载体肥料是N或K基时)和/或磷酸硼(BPO<Sub>4</Sub>)(例如,当载体肥料是P基时)。所述第一硼源的溶解度高于所述第二硼源的溶解度,使得所述硼源向土壤中的释放速率不同。(A granular fertilizer product having at least two boron sources with different solubilities to tailor boron availability throughout the growing season of a plant while reducing the risk of boron toxicity. The first boron source may comprise a sodium-based or highly water-soluble boron compound, such as sodium tetraborate and/or boric acid, while the second boron source may comprise a calcium-based boron compound, such as colemanite (CaB3O4(OH)3.(H2O)) (e.g., when the carrier fertilizer is N or K-based) and/or boron phosphate (BPO4) (e.g., when the carrier fertilizer is P-based). The solubility of the first boron source is higher than the solubility of the second boron source such that the release rates of the boron sources into the soil are different.)

1. A granular fertilizer composition comprising:

A source of primary nutrients;

A first boron source having a first solubility; and

A second boron source having a second solubility lower than the first solubility.

2. The granular fertilizer composition of claim 1, wherein the primary nutrient source comprises potassium chloride (MOP) and the granular fertilizer composition comprises a compacted MOP composition.

3. the granular fertilizer composition of claim 1, wherein the source of primary nutrients comprises a potassium source.

4. the granular fertilizer composition of claim 3, wherein the first boron source comprises a sodium-based boron source or boric acid.

5. The granular fertilizer composition of claim 3, wherein the first boron source comprises sodium tetraborate.

6. The granular fertilizer composition of claim 1, wherein the second boron source comprises a calcium-based boron source.

7. The granular fertilizer composition of claim 6, wherein the second boron source comprises colemanite (CaB3O4(OH)3.(H2O)), boron phosphate (BPO4), or a combination thereof.

8. The granular fertilizer composition of claim 1, wherein the first and second boron sources are present in the fertilizer granule in an amount to provide a total amount of from about 0.001 weight percent (wt%) to about 1.0 wt% B.

9. The granular fertilizer composition of claim 8, wherein the first and second boron sources are present in a total amount of B from about 0.1 wt% to about 0.7 wt%.

10. the granular fertilizer composition of claim 9, wherein the first and second boron sources are present in a total amount of B from about 0.3 wt% to about 0.6 wt%.

11. The granular fertilizer composition of claim 1, wherein the ratio of the first boron source to the second boron source is selected from the group consisting of: 5:1, 4:1, 3:1, 2:1, 1:2, 1:3, 1:4, or 1: 5.

12. a method of forming a fertilizer composition comprising a plurality of boron sources, the method comprising:

Providing a primary nutrient source;

Adding a first boron source having a first solubility to the primary nutrient source;

Adding a second boron source having a second solubility less than the first boron source to the primary nutrient source;

Compacting the primary nutrient source, the first boron source, and the second boron source to form a fertilizer composition; and

The compacted fertilizer composition is broken into granules.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the primary nutrient source comprises a potassium source.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the potassium source comprises potassium chloride (MOP).

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the first boron source comprises a sodium-based boron source or boric acid.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the first boron source comprises sodium tetraborate.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein the second boron source comprises a calcium-based boron source.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the second boron source comprises colemanite (CaB3O4(OH)3.(H2O)), boron phosphate (BPO4), or a combination thereof.

19. the method of claim 12, wherein the first and second boron sources are present in the fertilizer granule in an amount to provide a total amount of about 0.001 weight percent (wt%) to about 1.0 wt% B.

20. the method of claim 19, wherein the first and second boron sources are present in a total amount of B from about 0.1 wt% to about 0.7 wt%.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the first and second boron sources are present in a total amount of B from about 0.3 wt% to about 0.6 wt%.

22. The method of claim 12, wherein the ratio of the first boron source to the second boron source is selected from the group consisting of: 5:1, 4:1, 3:1, 2:1, 1:2, 1:3, 1:4, or 1: 5.

23. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

The particles of the bonded MOP product are sized.

24. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

Micronutrients other than boron are provided, wherein at least one micronutrient is selected from the group consisting of zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn), molybdenum (Mo), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), sulfur in elemental form (S), sulfur in oxidized sulfate form (SO4), and combinations thereof.

25. The method of claim 12, wherein each boron source is blended together before they are added to the primary nutrient source and compacted.

26. The method of claim 12, wherein each of the first and second boron sources is added separately to the primary nutrient source prior to compaction.

27. The method of claim 12, further comprising adding a binder prior to compacting.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the binder is selected from the group consisting of Sodium Hexametaphosphate (SHMP), tetrasodium pyrophosphate (TSPP), tetrapotassium pyrophosphate (TKPP), Sodium Tripolyphosphate (STPP); diammonium phosphate (DAP), monoammonium phosphate (MAP), granular monoammonium phosphate (GMAP), potassium silicate, sodium silicate, starch, dextran, lignosulfonate, bentonite, montmorillonite, kaolin, or a combination thereof.

Technical Field

The present invention generally relates to fertilizer compositions. More particularly, the invention relates to the introduction of at least two different boron sources into a macronutrient carrier fertilizer as a means for plants to more promptly acquire boron.

background

Plant essential nutrients can be divided into two groups, major and minor macronutrients and micronutrients. Plants obtain essential nutrients including nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium from the soil, and therefore they constitute a major part of the fertilizer used to supplement soils deficient in these nutrients.

The chemical composition or analysis of the fertilizer is expressed in terms of the percentage (by weight) of the essential primary nutrients nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, according to conventional fertilizer standards. More specifically, when referring to a fertilizer formulation, a first value indicates the percentage of nitrogen expressed in elemental form as "total nitrogen" (N), a second value indicates the percentage of phosphorus expressed in oxide form as "available phosphoric acid" (P2O5), and a third value indicates the percentage of potassium also expressed in oxide form as "available potassium oxide" (K2O), or otherwise referred to as the expression (N-P2O 5-K2O).

Although the amounts of phosphorus and potassium are expressed in their oxide forms, technically, the fertilizer does not have P2O5 or K2O. Phosphorus is most commonly present as monocalcium phosphate, but also as other calcium phosphates or ammonium phosphates. Potassium is usually present in the form of potassium chloride or potassium sulfate. The conversion of the oxide forms of P and K to the elemental expression (N-P-K) can be performed using the following formula:

％P＝％PO x 0.437％K＝％KO x 0.826

％PO＝％P x 2.29％KO＝％K x 1.21

In addition to the primary nutrients made available to the plant by the addition of fertilizers to the soil, secondary nutrients and micronutrients are also essential for the growth of the plant. These are required in much less amount than the primary nutrients. Secondary nutrients include sulfur (S), calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg). Micronutrients include, but are not limited to, for example, boron (B), zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), molybdenum (Mo), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), and chlorine (Cl).

Among the micronutrients, boron deficiency is a major problem in many agricultural areas, especially in sandy soils. Fertilization with boron is challenging due to the narrow window between nutrient deficiency and toxicity. Since plants are highly sensitive to boron and require very small amounts, the amount of boron available in the root zone of the plant should be carefully considered. The presence of high concentrations of boron can lead to the risk of damage to the seedlings due to boron toxicity. Conventional methods of blending boron integrally with fertilizer granules (e.g., borax) are ineffective or unsuitable due to maldistribution of boron, which may result in too high a B concentration near the granules and insufficient B concentration far from the granules.

To aid in the uniform distribution of boron, the applicant of the present application proposed, as described in us patent No. 9,266,784, that different boron sources be added to potassium chloride (MOP) granules before or during compaction to reduce the incidence of boron toxicity and provide uniform application of small amounts of boron required by plants.

Another challenge for boron fertilizer management is to provide sufficient boron at all stages of plant growth, as the micronutrients play a crucial role from seedling to flowering. The commonly used soluble boron sources (e.g., sodium tetraborate) are highly water soluble and, because they are generally uncharged in most soils, tend to have extremely high mobility in soils compared to most other nutrients (except nitrates and sulfates). Thus, the soluble boron source is easily leached from the soil (especially in rainy environments) before it is absorbed by the roots, resulting in boron deficiency later in the growing season, especially during flowering. Therefore, it is difficult to balance the following: boron is provided at an appropriate concentration to ensure that the plants acquire the necessary nutrients during the growing season while minimizing the occurrence of boron toxicity.

There remains a need for a boron fertilizer product having both immediate release and sustained release characteristics to ensure uniform and adequate distribution of boron to the root zone of plants while reducing the risk of boron toxicity.

Disclosure of Invention

Embodiments of the invention include NPK fertilizer products having at least two boron sources with different release rates or characteristics. In embodiments, the NPK fertilizer product may comprise a macronutrient carrier including a nitrogen-based fertilizer (e.g., urea), a potassium-based fertilizer (e.g., potash or potassium chloride (MOP)), or a phosphate-based fertilizer (e.g., monoammonium phosphate or diammonium phosphate (MAP or DAP)). In one embodiment, the first boron source is highly soluble and thus is a rapid release boron source available to the plant early in the growing season. The second boron source is less soluble than the first source and is therefore a slow release source of boron relative to the first source and is available to the plant later in the growing season. The two boron sources ensure a more uniform and sustained release of boron than a single source, thereby increasing the availability of the root zone of the plant during the growing season, while reducing or eliminating the risk of boron toxicity and seedling injury.

The first boron source may comprise a highly soluble or immediate release source, such as a sodium-based or acidic boron source including sodium tetraborate (i.e., borax) and/or boric acid, while the second boron source may comprise a source having a substantially lower solubility than the first source, such as a calcium-based boron source including colemanite (CaB3O4(OH)3.(H2O)) and/or boron phosphate (BPO 4). For phosphate fertilizers, the preferred slow release boron source is boron phosphate. Specifically, for boron phosphate, in embodiments, the solubility may be adjusted by heating the reaction product of phosphoric acid and boric acid to different temperatures. Another boron source having a solubility less than the first source and greater than the second source may be included, for example, ulexite (NaCaB5O6(OH)6.5(H2O)) and may be used as an immediate release source when used in combination with an extended release boron source or as an extended release source when used in combination with an immediate release boron source.

The fertilizer product may optionally comprise one or more additional micronutrients and/or secondary nutrient sources, such as, but not limited to, micronutrients including additional sources of boron (B), zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn), molybdenum (Mo), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), and/or chlorine (Cl), and/or secondary nutrients including sources of sulfur (S) in elemental form, sulfur in oxidized sulfate form (SO4), magnesium (Mg), and/or calcium (Ca), or any of various combinations thereof at various concentrations. In the case of compacted material, the fertiliser may also include a compaction aid, a colouring agent and/or one or more binding ingredients, for example Sodium Hexametaphosphate (SHMP).

According to one embodiment of the invention, wherein the carrier comprises a bonded MOP fertilizer, the fertilizer product is prepared by compacting a MOP feed with at least two boron sources. In another embodiment of the invention, the fertilizer comprises a nitrogen or phosphate containing carrier in granular or particulate form formed by a standard granulation procedure in which a boron source is added to the granulation or pelletization line.

The above summary of the present invention is not intended to describe each illustrated embodiment or every implementation of the present invention. The following detailed description more particularly exemplifies these embodiments.

Drawings

The subject matter of the present invention can be more completely understood in consideration of the following detailed description of various embodiments in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 shows a perfusion cell assembly for analyzing boron leached from soil according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a graph of weight percent boron release as a function of pore volume (i.e., time series of boron leaches) for various formulations in an irrigation cell assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a potted assay assembly for analyzing boron availability according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a graph comparing boron uptake/pot and boron leaching (as a percentage of boron added) in the leaching process with water soluble boron (as a percentage of total boron) in a potting test assembly;

FIG. 5 is a graph comparing boron uptake/pot for each formulation in a potted test assembly;

FIG. 6 is a graph depicting boron uptake/pot in leached or unleached pots for six fertilizer treatments in a potted test assembly;

FIG. 7 is a side-by-side comparison of canola plants grown in pre-leach pots with plants grown in non-leach pots for different formulations in a pot trial assembly according to an embodiment; and is

FIG. 8 is a process flow diagram for compacting a wire, under an embodiment.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific forms thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will herein be described in more detail. It should be understood, however, that the intention is not to limit the invention to the particular embodiments described. On the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention.

Detailed Description

Embodiments of the present invention include NPK fertilizer products having at least two boron sources with different release rates or characteristics to tailor boron availability throughout the growing season of the plant while reducing the risk of boron toxicity.

In embodiments, the NPK fertilizer product may include a macronutrient carrier including a nitrogen-based fertilizer (e.g., urea), a potassium-based fertilizer (e.g., potash or potassium chloride (MOP)), or a phosphate-based fertilizer (e.g., monoammonium phosphate or diammonium phosphate (MAP or DAP)). With respect to the MOP carrier, the MOP fertilizer base may be any of a variety of commercially available MOP sources, such as, but not limited to, a MOP feed having a K2O content ranging from about 20 wt.% to about 80 wt.%, more specifically from about 48 to 62 wt.%, and more specifically from about 55 to 62 wt.%.

In one embodiment, the first boron source is highly soluble and thus is a fast-release boron source. The second boron source has a lower solubility than the first source and is therefore a slow release boron source. The first boron source may comprise a highly soluble source or an immediate release source, for example, a sodium-based boron source including sodium tetraborate (i.e., borax), while the second boron source may comprise a source having a substantially lower solubility than the first source, for example, a calcium-based boron source including colemanite (CaB3O4(OH)3.(H2O)) and/or boron phosphate (BPO 4). Specifically, for boron phosphate, in embodiments, the solubility may be tailored by heating the reaction product of phosphoric acid and boric acid to different temperatures and for different periods of time at the temperatures.

Another boron source having a solubility less than the first source and greater than the second source can include, for example, ulexite (NaCaB5O6(OH)6.5(H2O)) and can be used as an immediate release source when used in combination with an extended release boron source or as an extended release source when used in combination with an immediate release boron source. Table 1 shows the solubility of selected borate compounds.

Table 1. solubility of different boron sources:

boron source	Solubility (mg/L)
		sodium borate (Borax)	1504
Ulexite	886
		Colemanite	538
BPO4 500℃1h	285
		BPO4 500℃24h	225
BPO4 800℃1h	75
		BPO4 800℃24h	59

in embodiments, the at least two boron sources are present in an amount such that from about 0.001 weight percent (wt%) to about 1.0 wt%, more specifically from about 0.1 wt% to about 0.7 wt% of B, more specifically from about 0.3 wt% to about 0.6 wt% is delivered in the fertilizer particle. The ratio of immediate release boron to extended release boron may be, for example, 5:1, 4:1, 3:1, 2:1, 1:2, 1:3, 1:4, or 1:5, or any of a variety of ratios tailored to the needs of the plant.

In the case of bonded, Compacted granules, the fertilizer product may also include one or more binders or ingredients to improve the strength or handling ability of the final product, thereby making the granules less likely to wear or disintegrate during handling or transport, as described in U.S. patent No. 7,727,501 (entitled "Compacted granular potassium chloride and method and apparatus for its preparation"), the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference). Binders are chemicals added to the feed to the compaction line to improve the strength and quality of the compacted granules. The binder acts to sequester or sequester impurities in the fertilizer raw materials, while providing adhesion to the compacted blend. The binder may include, for example, Sodium Hexametaphosphate (SHMP), tetrasodium pyrophosphate (TSPP), tetrapotassium pyrophosphate (TKPP), Sodium Tripolyphosphate (STPP), diammonium phosphate (DAP), monoammonium phosphate (MAP), granular monoammonium phosphate (GMAP), potassium silicate, sodium silicate, starch, dextran, lignosulfonate, bentonite, montmorillonite, kaolin, or combinations thereof. In addition to or instead of binders, certain micronutrients may themselves act as binders to improve particle strength.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a first boron source having a first solubility and a second boron source having a second solubility lower than the first source are blended into a primary nutrient feed of a compaction route to produce a bonded granular NPK fertilizer product comprising at least two boron sources. The boron source may be added to the feed prior to compaction, or may be added separately to the feed, or may be blended in its entirety prior to its addition to the feed. The blended feedstock is compacted and then subjected to conventional further processing (e.g., crushing and size classification) to produce a bonded fertilizer granule containing at least two boron sources uniformly distributed throughout the granular product.

the production line or production line for producing compacted granular fertilizer compositions typically includes a feeding apparatus, such as a belt conveyor or a pneumatic conveyor or the like, that conveys various granular macronutrient streams, screens, recycled or waste material, first and second boron sources, one or more optional secondary nutrients and/or micronutrients, and one or more optional binders into a compactor. The compactor then presses the feed under high pressure into the bonded intermediate pieces or cake, which may then be broken up, classified, resized, or otherwise reprocessed into the desired finished granular product comprising at least two boron sources.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart showing the steps involved in one contemplated embodiment of the production method of the present invention. Specifically, fig. 8 shows blending or separate injection of a boron source into the main nutrient feed of the production line. The boron source may be added to the feed at various locations in the line by one or more injectors (including metering devices) to allow for more precise control of the amount of each component added per unit of feedstock.

After the boron source and optional binder are added to the feed, the additive and feed are blended. The blending step may be performed passively by bringing the materials together, or may also be performed by a feeding mechanism during their co-transport, or alternatively a special blending device may be added in the production line between the injector and the compactor to more actively or actively blend the boron source, optional binder, optional other additives and raw materials prior to compaction.

The blended feed is now suitably mixed with a boron source and optional other additives and then compacted. The compaction process may be carried out using conventional compaction equipment such as a roller compactor. The resulting bonded intermediate composition may then be further processed into a desired finished granular product using a process suitable to produce a desired particle size or type of end product, such as crushing, sieving, or other conventional classification processes, as shown in fig. 8.

It will be understood that any concomitant process or equipment variation allowing for the simultaneous or separate addition of one or more additional micronutrients, secondary nutrients and/or binders to the raw materials may be considered within the scope of the present invention.

the following examples further illustrate embodiments of the present application.