Chemical Incident Analysis Involving Storage of Fertilizer Product

A forensic engineering analyses of a chemical incident is presented that was classified as a self-sustaining decomposition (SSD) event, which occurred in a load of 10,000 tons of NK 21-00-21 fertilizer bulk stored inside a warehouse in the city of São Francisco do Sul in Brazil. The chemical reaction developed within the fertilizer mass and took several days to be controlled, resulting in the evacuation of thousands of residents. The water used to fight against the reaction, after having contact with the load of fertilizer material, promoted changes in adjacent water bodies, causing the death of animals (fish, crustaceans, and amphibians). The smoke from the chemical reaction products damaged the incident’s surrounding vegetation. Large SSD events are rare, with an average worldwide frequency of one every three years. Therefore, in addition to presenting a case study of this type of phenomenon, the main objective of this work is to discuss the causes that led to SSD reaction at this event, evaluate its consequences, and motivate future studies.

The Effect of Sea Lettuce (Ulva lactuca) Liquid Fertilizer and Zeolite Combinations on the Development of Cucumber (Cucumis sativus)

The combinations of organic liquid fertilizer material obtained from sea lettuce (Ulva lactuca) and different concentrations of zeolite were applied to the cucumber (Cucumis sativus) plant in six treatments with three replicates each. The combinations of the experimental groups were as follows; control group, G1 group 180 g Z (Zeolite), G2 group 90 g Z + 1140 ml Liquid Fertilizer (LF), G3 group 180 g Z + 620 ml LF, G4 group 270 g Z + 310 ml LF, G5 group 620 ml LF. Except the control group, all zeolites were applied with the first dose of liquid fertilizer, and other liquid fertilizer doses were given in three periods, after germination, flowering and yield. While the lowest germination rate was in control group, the highest rate was in group with 60 g zeolite. While the lowest seedling weight was observed in group with 90 g zeolite + 1140 ml liquid fertilizer, the highest rate was in group with 180 g zeolite + 620 ml liquid fertilizer. While the highest cucumber weight was observed in group with 270 g zeolite + 310 ml liquid fertilizer, the lowest was in group with 620 ml liquid fertilizer. Therefore, it may be said that zeolite has positive effect on germination. On the other hand, liquid fertilizer and zeolite combinations may have positive effects on the weight of the cucumber seedling and yield.

MANAJEMEN SAMPAH PADAT DI KOTA BANDUNG DAN METODE ALTENATIF PENGOLAHANNYA

The problem of mucipal waste management in the city of Bandung has been an unsolved problem to date. The rapid population growth plus many new arrivals to the city of Bandung have increased waste production from year to year. According to the Department of Environment and Sanitation, the city of Bandung produces around 1477 metric tons of solid waste per day, of which 63% is organic matter. Garbage collection in the city of Bandung is managed by the city government through the BUMD which handles it. About 44.3% of solid waste management in Bandung city is composted to produce fertilizer material, 54.7% is rejected and dumped in landfills. 23% of non-organic waste is mostly recycled and around 11.3% is taken to landfills, while 14% of residual waste such as B3 is dumped. This investigation also includes an analysis of the economic benefits that can be realized by implementing incineration and a discussion of the challenges faced in the city of Bandung to implement changes to the existing urban solid waste management system.

Response Surface Method in the Optimization of a Rotary Pan-Equipped process for Increased Efficiency of Slow-Release Coated Urea

The high solubility of urea in water and its consequent leaching into the soil adversely prevents its full assimilation by plants. An improved slow-release process could effectively minimise the loss of fertilizer material and thus mitigate the associated environmental pollution. In this study, the effects of the operational variables on the efficiency of the urea coating process in a rotary pan have been systematically analysed. A mixture of gypsum-sulphur was used as the coating material with refined water as a binder. In order to comprehensively investigate the impact of each process variable on the efficiency and any potential interactions between them, the effects of particle size, coating material percentage, rotational speed of the pan, spray flow rate and the amount of sprayed water were investigated and analysed via a central composite design of experiments (DoE). The second-order polynomial model provided the best correlation for the experimental data. The predictive model was then used to estimate the efficiency of the coated urea as a function of the statistically-significant variables. The results revealed an increase in the efficiency of the coated urea from 22% to 35% (i.e., ~59%) when prepared under the optimum process conditions.

Facile Fabrication of a Potential Slow-Release Fertilizer Based on Oxalate-Phosphate-Amine Metal-Organic Frameworks (OPA-MOFs)

This work demonstrates a simple, reproducible and scalable method of producing a potential slow-release fertilizer material. In this study, oxalate-phosphate-amine metal organic frameworks (OPA-MOFs) powder was synthesized from the hydrothermal treatment of ferric chloride (FeCl3•6H2O), orthophosphoric acid (H3PO4), oxalic acid dihydrate (H2C2O4•2H2O), and a common fertilizer, urea (CO(NH2)2). Being a structure directing agent (SDA)-type of MOF, the material is expected to slowly release urea via cation exchange, and eventually trigger the collapse of the framework, thus resulting to the subsequent release of the phosphates and iron-oxalate complexes. Elemental analysis revealed that the synthesized samples contains a promising amount of incorporated nitrogen and phosphorus. In this particular study, increasing in the amount of urea during the synthesis however revealed minimal change in the %N in the final product which tells us that maximum loading has already been achieved. P and N release experiments shall still be done bothinvitroand in actual soil samples to monitor the release delivery kinetics and efficiency of the OPA-MOFs for fertilizer release applications.

Sintesis Kalium Magnesium Posfat Melalui Metoda Mekanokimia untuk Aplikasi sebagai Pupuk Slow Release[MECHANOCHEMICAL SYNTHESIS OF POTASSIUM MAGNESIUM PHOSPHATE FOR APPLICATION AS SLOW RELEASE FERTILIZER MATERIAL[Mechanochemical Synthesis of Potassium Magnesium Phosphate for Application as Slow Release Fertilizer Material]

SINTESIS KALIUM MAGNESIUM POSFAT MELALUI METODA MEKANOKIMIA UNTUKAPLIKASI SEBAGAI PUPUK SLOW RELEASE.. Material yang bersifat slow release dapat digunakansebagai pupuk slow release, yakni jenis baru dimana pelepasan elemennya dapat diturunkan. Salah satu pupukslow release adalah potassium magnesium phosphate (KMgPO4). Analisa XRD terhadap material inimenunjukan bahwa kemurnian material ini cukup tinggi, hanya fasa KMgPO4 yang dapat dideteksi dalamsampel material ini. Analysis FTIR menunjukan bahwa teknik mekanokimia cukup berhasil untuk mensintesamaterial in. Analisa DTA menunjukan bahwa material ini stabil dari perubahan temperatur. Analisa morfologimenunjukan bahwa partikel yang tergranulasi memiliki ukuran sekitar 100 mikron. Dibanding dengan pupukbiasa yang nutriennya cepat larut, nutrien yang terlarut dari pupuk jenis slow release dapat diturunkan menjadisekitar 32-33, 22-24, and 0,1-0,7 %, untuk masing-masing potassium, phosphate and magnesium. Hasil ujileaching menunjukan bahwa material ini dapat digolongkan sebagai material yang bersifat slow release.

Potassium fertilizer via hydrothermal alteration of K-feldspar ore

A novel potassium fertilizer material is obtained via hydrothermal processing of K-feldspar ore in alkaline conditions.

Zinc Regime in the Sewage Sludge-Soil-Plant System of a City Waste Water Treatment Pond

The sewage sludge from wastewater treatment plant of Iasi, a city with 300,000 inhabitants, for domestic and industrial origin, was stored in a mud pond arranged on an area of 18,920 m2. Chemical analyzes of the sludge showed that, of all the chemical elements determined, only Zn is found at pollutant level (5739 mg∙kg-1), i.e. almost 30 times more than the maximum allowable limit for Zn in soil and 45 times more than the Zn content of the soil on which the mud pond has been set. Over time, the content of Zn in the mud pond, but also from soil to which it has been placed, has become upper the normal content of the surrounding soil up to a depth of 260 cm. On the other hand, the vegetation installed on sewage sludge in the process of mineralization, composed predominantly of Phragmites, Rumex, Chenopodium, and Aster species had accumulated in roots, stems and leaves Zn quantities equivalent to 1463 mg Kg-1, 3988 mg Kg-1, 1463 mg Kg-1, respectively, 1120 mg∙Kg-1. The plants in question represents the natural means of phytoremediation, and sewage sludge as such may constitute a fertilizer material for soils in the area, on which Zn deficiency in maize has been recorded. In addition, the ash resulted from the incineration of plants loaded with zinc may constitute, in its turn, a good material for fertilizing of the soils that are deficient in zinc.

Changes in costs of precision nutrition depending on crop rotation

By applying precision nutrition the yield heterogeneity owing to the different features of soil spots can be taken into consideration. The planned and sprayed fertilizer adjusted to the expected yield rendered to soil spots can reduce the negative effects of artificial chemicals on soil and environment. The aim of this paper is to examine how the quantity and the cost of fertilizer (material and operational) will change on spot level on a certain plot during a five-year period, considering crop rotation, too. The following crops are in the rotation: winter wheat, corn and sunflower. Precision nutrition can be used in all the cultures mentioned above. Our earlier (static) model calculations have revealed that the threshold price of precision production was lower by 31% than in conventional technology. So it is necessary to explore for a longer period how the profitability of precision nutrition reacts to the changes in input and yield prices in different crops. The risk receptivity of precision nutrition can be characterized with the help of price sensitive analyses. Effects on profitability of other technological elements are not analysed in this paper.