Zeolite from alkali modified kaolin increases NH sub(4) super(+) retention by sandy soil: Column experiments

Sandy soils have low water and nutrient retention capabilities so that zeolite soil amendments are used for high value land uses including turf and horticulture to reduce leaching losses of NH sub(4) super(+) fertilisers. MesoLite is a zeolitic material made by caustic treatment of kaolin at 80-95 d...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Applied clay science 2009-09, Vol.46 (1), p.7-12
Main Authors: Zwingmann, Naoko, Singh, Balbir, Mackinnon, Ian DR, Gilkes, Robert J
Format: Article
Language:English
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Sandy soils have low water and nutrient retention capabilities so that zeolite soil amendments are used for high value land uses including turf and horticulture to reduce leaching losses of NH sub(4) super(+) fertilisers. MesoLite is a zeolitic material made by caustic treatment of kaolin at 80-95 degree C. It has a moderately low surface area (9-12 m super(2)/g) and very high cation exchange capacity (494 cmol(+)/kg). Laboratory column experiments showed that an addition of 0.4% MesoLite to a sandy soil greatly (90%) reduced leaching of added NH sub(4) super(+) compared to an unamended soil and MesoLite is 11 times more efficient in retaining NH sub(4) super(+) than natural zeolite. Furthermore, NH sub(4)-MesoLite slowly releases NH sub(4) super(+) to soil solution and is likely to be an effective slow release fertiliser.
ISSN:0169-1317
DOI:10.1016/j.clay.2009.06.012