Potassium s alt - fertilizers donated by nature

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Potassium s alt is a feedstock for the manufacture of fertilizers. For this, natural materials are used: sylvinite, carnallite, kainite, shenite and a number of others. They are mined from deposits in the form of layers or lenses, lake deposits. Potassium s alt belongs to the mineral resources of the non-metallic group; it and its compounds have a wide range of applications in various industries. Fertilizers are mainly made from them, in addition, they are used in the production of detergents, chemicals, glass, in medicine, for tanning leather, in the processing of silver and gold ores. Regardless of what kind of potassium s alt it is, its formula contains the element that served as the basis for its name. Despite the versatility of the use of this raw material, its main purpose is the production of mineral fertilizers.

Potassium s alt sylvinite is often used in agriculture. Fertilizers are made from it by mechanical grinding. Silvinite is a compound of potassium and sodium chlorides. It looks like large crystals of bluish, white or pinkish color. It has a low hygroscopicity, so the fertilizer is easily applied toground and does not cake. Due to the high amount of sodium in it, it is better to use it for crops that are resistant to it: beets, carrots. Cainite is also considered a good raw material for fertilizers. Due to its high content of chlorine, it is mainly used when plowing land intended for crops resistant to this element in autumn.

Another common fertilizer is potassium chloride, the price for it is negligible, but the effect of its use is estimated by many agricultural producers. This material is in the form of white granules or crystalline s alt. Due to the high concentration of a nutrient easily absorbed by plants, it is the most popular fertilizer in agriculture. It is obtained as a result of the processing of sylvinite, using the method of dissolution and crystallization or flotation. This substance is also characterized by low hygroscopicity. Its use for a number of crops is limited by a high content of chlorine. It is mainly used as top dressing and for crops of buckwheat, potatoes and cruciferous plants.

There is a fertilizer of the same name - potash s alt. Outwardly, it looks like crystals of orange-brown or pink-gray color. This type of fertilizer is produced by combining ground sylvinite and potassium chloride. Due to the high concentration of chemicals, this top dressing is used only when plowing the land in the fall.

Kalimagnesia is made from chenite. Outwardly, it looks like whitish crystals. Kalimag is produced by grinding langbeinite ore. This fertilizer is very similar to the previous one. The main difference is the reduced content of magnesium and potassium. Due to the absence of chlorine, these two fertilizers can be used for growing crops sensitive to this element.

Potassium sulfate is considered the main type of spring-summer top dressing. It is produced in the form of a crystalline white powder, which can be completely dissolved in water. Thanks to the latter fact, it can be used as a drip fertilization in irrigation complexes. In terms of efficiency, this fertilizer can be given one of the first places.