Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Table 2.3 (continued)
Nano-content
Claim
a
Patent title
Ref
Nitrogen fertilizer-specific
functional slow-release
agent
Zeolite and bentonite are
used to create a slow-release
fertilizer that can reduce the
amount of fertilizer applied
by 20-30 %
Wu and Wu
(
2010
)
Nanocomposite
superabsorbent containing
fertilizer nutrients used in
agriculture
Cross-listed with Category
3 polymers
Barati (
2010
)
Granular fertilizer coated
with mineral micro-/
nanopowder
Micro-nano mineral powder
is adsorbed onto the surfaces
of granules of organic mate-
rial, resulting in an “envi-
ronmentally friendly, slow-
release fertilizer that
improves crop yield”
Gai
et al. (
2011
)
a
Description provided from patent information, however, there may not be evidence provided in
the patent to corroborate the claims
commercial products are related to a physical method of dispersing nanosized
surfactant particles for odor reduction and toxic vapor removal (
www.setonresource
industrial.pdf
, accessed January 9, 2014).
Nanoemulsions are already on the market in the area of pesticide encapsulation
and are also available in fertilizer products. One of the world
s largest agrochemical
companies, Syngenta, uses nanoencapsulation in their pesticide products and one
products.com
, accessed January 4, 2014). NanoGreen is a product from Global
Biobased International Ltd. (
www.nanogreensciences.com
,
accessed January
11, 2014). The product is a foliar fertilizer made of colloidal micelles/emulsions,
1-4 nm in diameter, containing alkylamines, amino acids, hydrogenated corn oil,
nonionic surfactants, plant-based fatty acids, and organic alcohols. The product is
taken up into the plant cells via the stomata of the leaves and is claimed to
accelerate the rate of photosynthesis in the plant. As a result, the plant is found to
be more resistant to disease and pests, and increases in crop yield and quality are
observed. A series of Swedish fertilizer products, Skorda OP Nano Plant Nutrition,
is also available commercially and comes in blends customized for certain crops,
such as oil palm, wheat, and cotton. It is described as a “nanocarrier” loaded with
enzymes, vitamins, secondary elements, microelements, and
L
-amino acids of
vegetable origin (
http://2lbersatu.com.my/skorda/about.html
,
accessed January
11, 2014). A commercially available supplement product that incorporates nano-
technology is Geohumus (
www.geohumus.com
, accessed December 28, 2013).
Geohumus is a water-retaining hybrid (inorganic-organic-polymeric) material.
The MSDS lists it as pulverized volcanic rock with special additives.
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