ThermoPotash is an ideal source of potash for existing fertilizer blends used on Brazil’s nutrient-poor, well drained, acidic soils. About 90% of fertilizers is bought and sold in blended formulations of three main nutrients, nitrate (N), phosphate (P) and potash (K). The nutrients are combined in varying concentrations by blenders based on the needs of the desired crop.
At present, most of the potash supplied to Brazilian fertilizer blenders is KCl. Cerrado Verde has the potential to replace 581,236 tonnes of imported KCl in the region. In Brazil, 60% of fertilizer consumption occurs in a four month window. However, prices are set two months prior to arrival at a facility when blenders import potash. The product travels extremely far distances, and the possibility of port delays threatens to further lengthen the process. Often granules crumble into fine powder due to long haul transport from the ports to the blending facilities, making some of the imported potash unsuitable for application. Locally produced potash should result in lower lag times between purchase and sale and less unusable waste for fertilizer blenders.
Lab and field tests conducted by our agronomic trial partners indicate the following additional benefits of Thermopotash use in fertilizer blends:
Slow and Controlled Release
ThermoPotash, by nature, stays in the soil until needed by the plant. Unlike the traditional potash source KCl, ThermoPotash is not easily activated by water. Instead it is activated by the mild acidity of the plant roots, therefore staying in the soil until the plants take up the nutrients. This is particularly important in the Cerrado region of Brazil. The highly weathered ancient tropical soils of the Cerrado are very well drained, and do not retain water and nutrients. When it rains many vital nutrients are washed away before crops can absorb them.
Dr. Korndorfer completed tests using resin as a soil nutrient extractor. As expected, the slow release properties of ThermoPotash were confirmed, releasing approximately 25% of the available potash in the sandy soil and approximately 40% of the available potash in the clay soil. See the related news here.
Multi-nutrient
ThermoPotash is a whole ore product containing a catalogue of beneficial nutrients required by plants. The product should ship with substantial quantities of calcium, magnesium and silicon, and small quantities of other nutrients such as iron, manganese, zinc and phosphorus, reducing the need for farmers to replenish these elements in the soil.
Dr. Korndorfer of University of Uberlandia tested for nutrient availability on ThermoPotash. ThermoPotash is shown to provide similar availability of potassium nutrient (K2O) as muriate of potash (KCl) in both clayey and sandy soils (table 1 and 2). In addition, tests showed that ThermoPotash is also a source of calcium and magnesium, two essential macronutrients not available in KCl.
Table 1: K content in soil (Mehlich 1) after 60 days of incubation with different sources of potassium in a sandy soil
Table 2: K content in soil (Mehlich 1) after 60 days of incubation with different sources of potassium in a clay soil
Non-Chloride
Potash is most commonly distributed and applied in the form of potassium chloride (KCl or muriate of potash). While potassium is an essential nutrient, the chloride is a nasty by-product. For many crops the presence of chloride can affect quality. For example, KCl fertilizer can cause dried tobacco leaves not to burn. KCl fertilizer can lead to an unpleasant bitter after taste in both oranges and coffee. Brazil is a leading exporter of all three of these products. KCl use has to be limited for all crops where taste is important and cannot be used by any farmer who aims to grow ‘organic’ produce.
Farmers require the KCl to be processed into a sulfate of potash or a nitrate of potash which are not associated with the same problems. For this reason sulfate of potash and nitrate of potash sell at significant premiums to KCl. ThermoPotash contains no chloride, and therefore requires no additional processing to avoid the chloride related side effects that plague crops grown with KCl. Switching to ThermoPotash could positively impact the quality of the Brazilian products immediately.
Limestone Replacement
Soil pH must be near neutral to provide a hospitable environment for plants to develop. However, Cerrado soils are naturally acidic, with a pH of 4. Farmers usually spread limestone to correct the pH to a range of 5.5 to 6.5 before planting. Every growing season farmers must continue to reapply limestone due to the increase in acidity generated by conventional fertilizers.
ThermoPotash is not a salt. Its pH is near neutral to slightly alkali, offering farmers an opportunity to dramatically reduce or eliminate the necessity to apply limestone to their fields. It is estimated that 1,000kg of limestone per annum is required for every hectare of planted farmland in the Cerrado. In comparison, only 250kg of KCl is required per hectare of planted sugarcane annually.
Soil acidity tests performed by Dr. Gaspar Korndorfer at the University of Uberlandia, Minas Gerais, Brazil demonstrated that ThermoPotash has 49% of the pH corrective power of limestone. The tests were performed in accordance with a recognized industry measure of acidity in soils. Test results show that a farmer using ThermoPotash as a potassium source can reduce the amount of limestone required to correct the acidity of his soil by 490kg for each tonne of ThermoPotash used. This result quantifies an economic advantage ThermoPotash has over KCl and other potassium fertilizers. See related press release here.
