Evaluation and classification of coated slow-release nitrogen fertilizers by means of electroultrafiltration in an integrated system

Abstract

The present study establishes criteria for cataloguing different coated slow-release nitrogen fertilizers. It therefore determines the characteristics of solubility kinetics of different fertilizers of this kind by means of the electroultrafiltration technique. The parameters obtained by this method are correlated with the kinetic dissolution data of the fertilizers showing a good degree of similarity. On the basis of the N desorption parameters obtained through EUF, a classification diagram of these fertilizers is established in terms of desorption rate and balance by means of an integrated system which makes it possible to analyse the different parameters together. The theoretical classification obtained coincides with the response of the plant and makes it possible to forecast the behaviour of a coated fertilizer.