DESIGN AND APPLICATION OF NANOCOMPOSITE BASED ON CLAY MINERAL (GLAUCONITE) AS ECOFRIENDLY FERTILISER FOR AGRICULTURE.

The application of nanocomposite fertilisers represents a progressive stride towards harmonising agronomical techniques with environmental conservation. Many studies have been embarked upon to gauge the effectiveness of fertilisers, engaging various substances encompassing polymers, clay minerals, and an amalgamation of synthetic and natural elements. Among these, using clay minerals, such as glauconite, which are both economical and readily accessible, provides an attractive substitute for numerous artificial substances. Glauconite is an adept inhibitor, consisting of nano and micro-particles with vast specific surface areas that maintain surface charge and provide ion-available interlayer sites, thus facilitating nutrient interchange. This study explores constructing and using nanocomposite fertilisers from glauconite amalgamated with a carbamide solution-gel. The ensuing nanocomposite exhibits enhanced intercalation between ammonium and glauconite, as substantiated by extensive analyses using techniques such as XRD, TEM, FTIR, TG-DSC, SEM-EDS, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analysis, soil leaching experiments, lab and field agricultural tests. The mineral nanocomposites, replete with an assortment of novel functionalities, disclose that 20% of the carbamide solution results in an escalation of the intercalated N ratio to 8, predominantly within the smectite layers of glauconite. The decrease of a specific surface, the total pore volume and the average pore size in the nanocomposite reflects the adsorption of carbamide substances within the meso- and macropores of glauconite particles. The chemically synthesised glauconite nanocomposite retains an original spherical morphology, accompanied by a distinctive microlayer near the surface, and exhibits an increased nitrogen ratio, indicative of a superior filtration capability. Controlled-action nitrogen and potassium nanocomposite fertiliser were realised using glauconite as an inhibitor. The expectation of targeted and controlled release of nutrients such as ammonium, nitrate and potassium is facilitated by their multifarious forms within the glauconite. Chemically tailored glauconite nanocomposite confers numerous benefits, including a micro-granular mineral structure, a permeable internal morphology, the encapsulation of N compounds within diverse pore structures, and accessible potassium. Such characteristics of the nanocomposite aid in invigorating plant growth and development when these fertilisers are dispensed onto the soil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]