Tag: Urea

The fact that biuret is toxic to plants has been known for a long time – since the middle of the last century. Very sensitive (pineapple, citrus), moderately sensitive (cereals, legumes) and resistant (conifers) plant species were identified. The maximum concentration of biuret in urea for each species has been established for soil application and foliar application. Most field crops easily tolerate foliar fertilization with urea, which contains 1 wt-% biuret. Potatoes and tomatoes are more sensitive – for foliar feeding of these crops, it is advisable to use urea with an admixture of biuret of no more than 0.5 wt-%. Citrus fruits and pineapples are so sensitive that biuret in urea for foliar feeding should be no more than 0.35 wt-%.

The first half of 2021 has been characterised by tight supply in the ammonia market, exacerbated by plant outages in Europe, Trinidad, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. At the same time, higher spot demand has fuelled significant price increases in both the eastern and western hemispheres. Low inventories and reduced export availability in the Far East forced Indian phosphate producers and industrial consumers of ammonia to source product from other locations.

Although the stranded gas boom that led to the construction of the region’s nitrogen capacity in the 1980s-2000s may be largely over, the Middle East remains the largest nitrogen exporting region in the world.

The delivery of nitrogen in nitrate form can deliver superior yields and quality in arable, fruit and vegetable crops. Because of this, production and consumption of the principal nitrate fertilizers – ammonium nitrate (AN), calcium ammonium nitrate (CAN), urea ammonium nitrate (UAN), potassium nitrate (NOP) and calcium nitrate (CN) – continue to grow.

Market Insight courtesy of Argus Media

Preliminary engineering work has started on a renewable powerto-fertilizer plant in Kenya.

In 2019, the EU fertilizer market was valued at around e17 billion, with France, Germany and former member state the UK together representing 40 percent of this total.

We highlight the large-scale nitrogen projects that are currently under development across the globe – with a focus on ammonia and urea technology licensors and engineering contractors.

The European Union is seeking to create a climate-neutral and circular economy through its flagship Green Deal policy. The fertilizer industry can support these objectives by adopting inhibitor treatment technology (ITT) and controlled-release fertilizers (CRFs) based on biodegradable polymers. These two innovations have a vital role to play in improving nitrogen use efficiency and the shift towards more sustainable resource use, says Dr Matthias Potthoff of thyssenkrupp Fertilizer Technology.

A selection of innovative products and technologies that have recently been brought to market.