scholarly journals pH Buffering in Pine Bark Substrates as a Function of Particle Size

HortScience ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 55 (11) ◽  
pp. 1817-1821
Author(s):  
Magdalena Pancerz ◽  
James E. Altland
Keyword(s):  
Particle Size ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Tap Water ◽  
Buffering Capacity ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Pine Bark ◽  
Ph Changes ◽  
Ph Buffering ◽  
Sphagnum Peat ◽  
Substrate Ph

Stability of substrate pH in container-grown crops is important for proper nutrient management. The objective of this research was to determine the pH buffering capacity of pine bark substrates as a function of particle size and compare those results to sphagnum peat. The weight equivalent of 100 cm3 for fine, medium, and coarse pine bark and sphagnum peat, either as a whole or partitioned into several particle size ranges, was placed in a 250-mL glass jar and filled with 100 mL of an acid or base solution ranging from 0 to 50 meq·L−1 in 10 meq·L−1 increments. After 24 hours, pH was measured. An experiment was also conducted in the greenhouse. The weight equivalent of 500 cm3 of sphagnum peat, fine pine bark, or coarse pine bark was filled into 10-cm plastic pots and irrigated with one of the following: tap water or 10 meq·L−1 of HCl, NaOH, H2SO4, or KHCO3 and with or without a water soluble fertilizer. Substrate pH was determined 4 and 8 weeks after potting using the pour-through method. In all experiments, sphagnum peat had less buffering capacity than pine bark against pH changes from acidic solutions, whereas pine bark had less buffering capacity than sphagnum peat to pH changes from basic solutions. Substrate pH buffering in pine bark increased with decreasing particle size, whereas pH buffering in sphagnum peat was less responsive to particle size. These results will help growers and substrate manufacturers understand how substrate components contribute to pH management during crop production.

scholarly journals Influence of Pine Bark Particle Size and pH on Cation Exchange Capacity

2014 ◽  
Vol 24 (5) ◽  
pp. 554-559 ◽  
Author(s):  
James E. Altland ◽  
James C. Locke ◽  
Charles R. Krause
Keyword(s):  
Particle Size ◽  
Cation Exchange ◽  
Cation Exchange Capacity ◽  
Fine Particles ◽  
Exchange Capacity ◽  
Pine Bark ◽  
Sphagnum Peat ◽  
Maximum Quantity ◽  
Particle Size Classes ◽  
Substrate Ph

Cation exchange capacity (CEC) describes the maximum quantity of cations a soil or substrate can hold while being exchangeable with the soil solution. Although CEC has been studied for peatmoss-based substrates, relatively little work has documented factors that affect CEC of pine bark substrates. The objective of this research was to determine the variability of CEC in different batches of pine bark and determine the influence of particle size, substrate pH, and peat amendment on pine bark CEC. Four batches of nursery-grade pine bark were collected from two nurseries, and a single source of sphagnum moss was obtained, separated in to several particle size classes, and measured for CEC. Pine bark was also amended with varying rates of elemental sulfur and dolomitic limestone to generate varying levels of substrate pH. The CEC varied with pine bark batch. Part of this variation is attributed to differences in particle size of the bark batches. Pine bark and peatmoss CEC increased with decreasing particle size, although the change in CEC from coarse to fine particles was greater with pine bark than peatmoss. Substrate pH from 4.02 to 6.37 had no effect on pine bark CEC. The pine bark batch with the highest CEC had similar CEC to sphagnum peat. Amending this batch of pine bark with sphagnum peat had no effect on composite CEC.

scholarly journals Establishing Growing Substrate pH with Compost and Limestone and the Impact on pH Buffering Capacity

HortScience ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 51 (9) ◽  
pp. 1153-1158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew D. Taylor ◽  
Rachel Kreis ◽  
Lidia Rejtö
Keyword(s):  
Factorial Design ◽  
Weight Ratio ◽  
Green Plant ◽  
Buffering Capacity ◽  
Ph Buffering ◽  
Initial Substrate ◽  
Initial Ph ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Substrate Ph ◽  
Ph Buffering Capacity

The pH of peatmoss generally ranges from 3.0 to 4.0 and limestone is typically added to raise pH to a suitable range. Compost is also used as a substrate component and typically has a high pH of 6.0 to 8.0. When using compost, lime rates must be reduced or eliminated. The two objectives of this study were to determine the resulting pH of substrates created with varying amounts of limestone and compost and assess the impact of the various amounts of limestone and compost on pH buffering capacity. Compost was created from a 1:1:1 weight ratio of a mixture of green plant material and restaurant food waste:horse manure:wood chips. The first experiment was a factorial design with five compost rates (0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, and 40% by volume), four limestone rates (0, 1.2, 2.4, and 3.6 g·L−1 substrate) with five replications. The experiment was conducted three times, each with a different batch of compost. With 0 lime, initial substrate pH increased from 4.5 to 6.7 as compost rate increased. This trend occurred at all other lime rates, which had pH ranges of 5.2–6.9, 5.6–7.0, and 6.1–7.1 for rates of 1.2, 2.4, and 3.6 g·L−1 substrate, respectively. Substrate pH increased significantly as either compost or lime rates increased. The second experiment was a factorial design with four compost rates by volume (0%, 10%, 20%, and 30%), the same four limestone rates as Expt. 1, and five replications. Each substrate treatment was titrated through incubations with six sulfuric acid rates (0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, or 0.7 mol of H+ per gram of dry substrate). Substrates with a similar initial pH had very similar buffering capacities regardless of the compost or limestone rate. These results indicate compost can be used to establish growing substrate pH similar to limestone, and this change will have little to no effect on pH buffering capacity.

scholarly journals Calcium Carbonate Can Be Used to Manage Soilless Substrate pH for Blueberry Production

Horticulturae ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 74
Author(s):  
Michael Schreiber ◽  
Gerardo Nunez
Keyword(s):  
Biomass Accumulation ◽  
Low Ph ◽  
Buffering Capacity ◽  
Solution Ph ◽  
Ph Buffering ◽  
Substrate Amendment ◽  
Soilless Substrate ◽  
Southern Highbush ◽  
Substrate Ph ◽  
Ph Buffering Capacity

Blueberry (Vacciniumcorymbosum interspecific hybrids) production in soilless substrates is becoming increasingly popular. Soilless substrates have low pH buffering capacity. Blueberry plants preferentially take up ammonium, which acidifies the rhizosphere. Consequently, soilless substrates where blueberry plants are grown exhibit a tendency to get acidified over time. Agricultural lime (CaCO3) is commonly used to raise soil and substrate pH in other crops, but it is rarely used in blueberry cultivation. We hypothesized that substrate amendment with low rates of agricultural lime increases substrate pH buffering capacity and provides nutritional cations that can benefit blueberry plants. We tested this hypothesis in a greenhouse experiment with ‘Emerald’ southern highbush blueberry plants grown in rhizoboxes filled with a 3:1 mix of coconut coir and perlite. We found that substrate amendment with CaCO3 did not cause high pH stress. This amendment maintained substrate pH between 5.5 and 6.5 and provided Ca and Mg for plant uptake. When blueberry plants were grown in CaCO3-amended substrate and fertigated with low pH nutrient solution (pH 4.5), they exhibited greater biomass accumulation than plants grown in unamended substrates. These results suggest that low rates of CaCO3 could be useful for blueberry cultivation in soilless substrates.

scholarly journals Water and Phosphorus Efficiency in Containerized Crop Production of Cotoneaster dammeri `Skogholm' with an Industrial Mineral Aggregate Amended Pine Bark Substrate

HortScience ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 1112B-1112
Author(s):  
James S. Owen ◽  
Stuart L. Warren ◽  
Ted E. Bilderback ◽  
Joseph P. Albano
Keyword(s):  
Particle Size ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Block Design ◽  
Pine Bark ◽  
Phosphorus Efficiency ◽  
Nutrient Efficiency ◽  
Nutrient Inputs ◽  
Mineral Aggregate ◽  
Industrial Mineral ◽  
P Leaching

The physical and chemical properties of pine bark yield low water and nutrient efficiency; consequently, an engineered substrate altering the substrate properties may allow greater water and nutrient retention. Past research has focused on controlling the quantity and rate of water and nutrient inputs. In this study, pine bark was amended at 8% (by volume) with a Georgiana palygorksite-bentonite blended industrial mineral aggregate with a particle size of 850 μm-4.75 mm or 300 μm-710 μm to improve water and nutrient efficiency. Each particle size was pretreated at temperatures of ≈140 °C (pasteurized) or ≈390 °C (calcined). The study was a 2 (particle size) × 2 (heat pretreatment) factorial in a randomized complete-block design with four replications. The control was a pine bark substrate amended with 11% sand (by volume). Containers (14 L) were topdressed with 17–5–12 controlled release fertilizer. A 0.2 leaching fraction was maintained by biweekly monitoring container influent from spray stakes and effluent volume measured daily. An aliquot of the daily collected effluent was analyzed for phosphorus (P). After 112 days, tops and roots were harvested, dried, and weighed for dry weight comparisons. Compared to pine bark amended with sand the 300 μm-710 μm particle size mineral decreased mean daily water application by ≈0.4 L/day per container. The calcined mineral reduced P leaching by ≈10 mg of P per container or 60% over the course of the study compared to pine bark: sand. Top and root dry weights were unaffected. These results suggest 300 μm–710 μm calcined mineral provided the most significant decreases in water use and P leaching while growing an equivalent plant.

Contamination of a calcareous soil by battery industry wastes. I. Characterization

2001 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 341-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
S A Wasay ◽  
W J Parker ◽  
P J Van Geel
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Particle Size ◽  
Organic Matter ◽  
Contaminated Soil ◽  
Buffering Capacity ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Soil Particle ◽  
Soil Particle Size ◽  
Native Soil ◽  
Battery Industry

A study of soil contamination due to the disposal of waste from a battery industry was conducted. The soil particle size, organic matter content, and buffering capacity were characterized. The heavy metal content of the soil was characterized with soil depth, soil particle size, and with respect to the fraction of the soil by which it was retained. Lead was found to be the dominant contaminant with all other metals present at considerably lower concentrations. Most of the lead was retained in the fraction of the soil that had a particle size less than 2 mm. This fraction represented 40.8% of the soil and contained 24 600 mg Pb/kg of soil. A particle size analysis indicated that 45.3% of soil particles were found to be greater than 4.75 mm. The pH of the contaminated soil in water was found to be 7.6 and was similar to the background soil. The similarity in pH was attributed to the high calcium content of the native soil. The lead content in the native soil that was collected 100 m away from the contaminated site was found to be 1967 mg/kg in the soil with particle sizes less than 2 mm (contaminated soil). The difference in pH between KCl solution (pH 7.0) and in water was found to be –0.6 indicating that the pH value was above the point of zero salt effect. An evaluation of the buffering capacity revealed that 297 mL of 0.5 M HNO3 per kg of soil was required to substantially modify the soil pH. The heavy metals in the soil were sequentially extracted to quantify the water soluble, exchangeable, carbonate, oxides, organic matter, and residual fractions. The Pb concentrations were mainly found in the carbonate and oxide fractions of the soil.Key words: heavy metals, soil pollution, characterization, retention form.

scholarly journals Substrate pH Suppression Using Incorporated Sulfur-based Compounds in Nursery Container Production

2006 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 119-123 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chad P. Giblin ◽  
Jeffrey H. Gillman
Keyword(s):  
Particle Size ◽  
Ferrous Sulfate ◽  
Aluminum Sulfate ◽  
Elemental Sulfur ◽  
Pine Bark ◽  
Alkaline Water ◽  
Ph Reduction ◽  
Substrate Ph ◽  
Container Production

Abstract Container production of ericaceous plants requires maintenance of a long-term substrate pH of 4.0 to 5.5. The objective of the study was to examine the effects of incorporated elemental sulfur, ferrous sulfate, and aluminum sulfate on long-term pH suppression in an acidic container substrate irrigated with highly alkaline water. ‘Northcountry’ blueberry liners were planted into a peat/pine bark based container substrate containing one of six different commercial amendments for pH reduction at three different rates of actual sulfur: 0.89 kg S/m3 (1.5 lb S/yd3), 1.78 kg S/m3 (3 lb S/yd3), and 2.67 kg S/m3 (4.5 lb. S/yd3). After fourteen weeks, only one elemental sulfur treatment had a substrate pH significantly lower than untreated substrate pH. Elemental sulfur particle size played a role in ability to control substrate pH.

scholarly journals Root Substrate pH, Electrical Conductivity, and Macroelement Concentration of Sphagnum Peat-based Substrates Amended with Parboiled Fresh Rice Hulls or Perlite

2008 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 644-649 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary M. Gachukia ◽  
Michael R. Evans
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Conductivity ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Sampling Period ◽  
Practical Significance ◽  
Rice Hulls ◽  
Sphagnum Peat ◽  
Ph Increase ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Substrate Ph ◽  
Sampling Times

Substrates were formulated by blending parboiled fresh rice (Oryza sativa) hulls (PBH) or perlite with sphagnum peat (peat) to produce root substrates (substrates) that contained 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, or 60% (by volume) PBH or perlite with the remainder being peat. After 0 (initial mixing), 4, or 8 weeks in a greenhouse environment, samples were taken and pH, electrical conductivity (EC), nitrate (NO3−), ammonium (NH4+), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) were determined. As the amount of PBH or perlite in the substrate was increased, the pH increased. After 0 and 8 weeks, the pH of substrates containing up to 30% PBH or perlite had a similar pH. However, the rate of pH increase at these sampling times was higher than that of perlite so that substrates containing 40% or more PBH had a higher pH than equivalent perlite-containing substrates. At the week 4 sampling period, all substrates containing PBH had a higher pH than equivalent perlite-containing substrates. For all sampling times, the difference in pH between equivalent PBH and perlite-containing substrates was not high enough to be of practical significance. For all sampling times, EC increased as the amount of perlite was increased. Depending upon sampling time, the EC decreased or remained unchanged as the amount of PBH was increased. For all sampling times and substrates, EC was within acceptable ranges for unused substrates. Substrates containing PBH had higher NO3− levels than equivalent perlite-containing substrates. The NH4+ level of the substrates decreased as the amount of PBH or perlite was increased. The levels of NO3− and NH4+ were within acceptable ranges for unused substrates. Substrate P and K increased as the amount of PBH in the substrate was increased, but the concentration of P and K remained unchanged or decreased as the amount of perlite was increased. None of the differences between equivalent PBH and perlite-containing substrates was high enough to be problematic with respect to crop production and all of the chemical parameters were within acceptable ranges for unused root substrates.

Application of Plakett-Burman Screening Design in Optimization of Process Parameters for Formulation of Canaglifozin Nanosuspension

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 5208-5216
Author(s):  
Nisha Patel ◽  
Hitesh A Patel
Keyword(s):  
Particle Size ◽  
Particle Diameter ◽  
Spherical Shape ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Pareto Chart ◽  
Independent Variables ◽  
Mean Particle Size ◽  
Screening Design ◽  
Stirring Time ◽  
Response Variables

In this study, we sought to improve the dissolution characteristics of a poorly water-soluble BCS class IV drug canaglifozin, by preparing nanosuspension using media milling method. A Plackett–Burman screening design was employed to screen the significant formulation and process variables. A total of 12 experiment were generated by design expert trial version 12 for screening 5 independent variables namely the amount of stabilizer in mg (X1), stirring time in hr (X2), amt of Zirconium oxide beads in gm (X3), amount of drug in mg (X4) and stirring speed in rpm (X5) while mean particle size in nm (Y1) and drug release in 10 min. were selected as the response variables. All the regression models yielded a good fit with high determination coefficient and F value. The Pareto chart depicted that all the independent variables except the amount of canaglifozin had a significant effect (p<0.001) on the response variables. The mathematical model for mean particle size generated from the regression analysis was given by mean particle size = +636.48889 -1.28267 amt of stabilizer(X1) -4.20417 stirring time (X2) -7.58333 amt of ZrO2 beads(X3) -0.105556 amt of drug(X4) -0.245167 stirring speed(X5) (R2=0.9484, F ratio=22.07, p<0.001). Prepared canaglifozin nanosuspension exemplified a significant improvement (p<0.05) in the release as compared to pure canaglifozin and marketed tablet with the optimum formulation releasing almost 80% drug within first 10min. Optimized nanosuspension showed spherical shape with surface oriented stabilizer molecules and a mean particle diameter of 120.5 nm. There was no change in crystalline nature after formulation and it was found to be chemically stable with high drug content.

The anaerobic treatment of a ligno-cellulosic substrate offering little natural pH buffering capacity

1998 ◽  
Vol 38 (4-5) ◽  
pp. 29-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. J. Banks ◽  
P. N. Humphreys
Keyword(s):  
Ph Control ◽  
Anaerobic Treatment ◽  
Buffering Capacity ◽  
Single Stage ◽  
Stable Operation ◽  
Reactor Performance ◽  
Two Stage ◽  
Ph Buffering ◽  
Stage System ◽  
The Stability

The stability and operational performance of single stage digestion with and without liquor recycle and two stage digestion were assessed using a mixture of paper and wood as the digestion substrate. Attempts to maintain stable digestion in both single stage reactors were unsuccessful due to the inherently low natural buffering capacity exhibited; this resulted in a rapid souring of the reactor due to unbuffered volatile fatty acid (VFA) accumulation. The use of lime to control pH was unsatisfactory due to interference with the carbonate/bicarbonate equilibrium resulting in wide oscillations in the control parameter. The two stage system overcame the pH stability problems allowing stable operation for a period of 200 days without any requirement for pH control; this was attributed to the rapid flushing of VFA from the first stage reactor into the second stage, where efficient conversion to methane was established. Reactor performance was judged to be satisfactory with the breakdown of 53% of influent volatile solids. It was concluded that the reactor configuration of the two stage system offers the potential for the treatment of cellulosic wastes with a sub-optimal carbon to nitrogen ratio for conventional digestion.

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