Trace elements fertilizers

Webster defines the term mineral as any chemical or compound occurring naturally as a product of inorganic processes. Since this chapter is primarily concerned with the use of minerals in plant and animal nutrition, terms such as plant nutrients , trace elements , fertilizer nutrients , and mineral additives are used within the context of Webster s definition, including inorganic fertilizers derived from naturally occurring minerals. 

Mathur, S. P. and Rayment, A. F. (1977). The influence of trace element fertilization on the decomposition rate and phosphatase activity of a Mesic Fibrisol. Can. J. Soil Sci. 57, 397-408. 

Molybdenum, recognized as an essential trace element for plants, animals, and most bacteria, is present in a variety of metaHo enzymes (44—46). Indeed, the absence of Mo, and in particular its co-factor, in humans leads to severe debility or early death (47,48). Molybdenum in the diet has been impHcated as having a role in lowering the incidence of dental caries and in the prevention of certain cancers (49,50). To aid the growth of plants. Mo has been used as a fertilizer and as a coating for legume seeds (51,52) (see FERTILIZERS Mineral NUTRIENTS). 

EEC Directive amending Directive 76/116/EEC m respect of the trace elements contained m fertilizers... 

For the most part, the zinc materials recovered from secondary materials such as slab zinc, alloys, dusts, and compounds are comparable in quality to primary products. Zinc in brass is the principal form of secondary recovery, although secondary slab zinc has risen substantially over the last few years because it has been the principal zinc product of electric arc furnace (EAF) dust recycling. Impure zinc oxide products and zinc-bearing slags are sometimes used as trace element additives in fertilizers and animal feeds. About 10% of the domestic requirement for zinc is satisfied by old scrap. 

Nitrogen and Phosphate Fertilizers and Trace Element Interactions... 

The transfer of trace elements in phosphate rocks to P fertilizers is dependent upon the manufacturing processes. Triple superphosphate fertilizer contains 60-70% of the Cd present in phosphate rocks (Wakefield, 1980). The transfer coefficients may be similar for most other elements and heavy metals even though there are little data on the transfer of other elements from phosphate rocks to P fertilizers. In general, based on some long-term (> 50 years) soil fertility experiments in the U.S., annual Cd rates from the application of phosphate fertilizers are estimated to range from 0.3 to 1.2 g per ha. The addition of Cd to soils as a contaminant from P fertilizers... 

Wang, D., G. Alfthan, A. Aro, A. Makela, S. Knuuttila, and T. Fiammar. 1995. The impact of selenium supplemented fertilization on selenium in lake ecosystems in Finland. Agricul. Ecosys. Environ. 54 137-148. Wang, W.X., N.S. Fisher, and S.N. Luoma. 1996. Kinetic determinations of trace element bioaccumulation in the mussel Mytilus edulis. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 140 91-113. 

The Association of Official Analytical Chemists is utilizing atomic absorption spectroscopy for the determination of several trace elements. McBride 274>27s), has conducted collaborative and ruggedness studies for a number of elements in fertilizers. He dissolves the sample in hydrochloric acid, filters, and dilutes to vo-... 

Raven KP, Loeppert RH. Trace element composition of fertilizers and soil amendments. J. Environ. Qual. 1997 26 551-557. 

Occasionally, especially In alkaline soil, trace elements, although present, may not be soluble due to the high pH, and are therefore unavailable to the plant. On these occasions, additional supplies might be needed (see pp.54-55). Mineral deficiencies can also be caused by too much of another element overdo potassium-rich fertilizers, for example, and you may "lock up" magnesium so that plants develop symptoms of magnesium deficiency. 

The second reason for acid-digestion is the determination of the total soil elemental content of, e.g. potassium, phosphorus or trace elements. This is seldom done for potassium in normal soil samples, mainly because the total K in soils is of no value as an index to the availability of K to plants, nor is it always of value in tracing the movement or accumulation of applied fertilizer K (Pratt, 1965). The unreactive soil phosphorus is obtained by subtracting the naturally leached reactive phosphorus from the total phosphorus, and a method for determining the latter by extraction with sulphuric acid and potassium persulphate is cited by Turner and FHaygarth (2000). They analysed... 

Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) of Cu, 17-18% of the DRI of K, P, and Fe, and between 5 and 13% of the DRI of Zn, Mg, and Mn (Table 5.1). Potatoes are generally not rich in Ca, but can be a valuable source of trace elements, such as Se and I, if fertilized appropriately (Eurola et al., 1989 Poggi et al., 2000 Turakainen et al., 2004 Broadley et al., 2006). Moreover, since potato tubers have relatively high concentrations of organic compounds that stimulate the absorption of mineral micronutrients by humans, such as ascorbate (vitamin C), protein cysteine and various organic and amino acids (USDA, 2006), and low concentrations of compounds that limit their absorption, such as phytate (0.11-0.27% dry matter Frossard et al., 2000 Phillippy et al., 2004) and oxalate (0.03% dry matter Bushway et al., 1984), the bioavailability of mineral elements in potatoes is potentially high. 

Although a-D-mannosidase appears to be under endocrine control,28,28 its natural function remains obscure. It is probable that the enzyme is important in the catabolism of D-mannose-containing glycoproteins,12,16,88 and, therefore, that the important trace element zinc could be indirectly implicated in this process. It is well known that zinc deficiency has an adverse effect on fertility in the male,89,90 and it could be argued that the changes observed in a-D-mannosidase activity in uterus and epididymis indicate that this enzyme is important in reproduction. It is scarcely justifiable to ascribe a cause-and-effect relationship to the correlations observed between the zinc content and the a-D-mannosidase activity in epididymis. All that can be said with any certainty is that, under certain circumstances, the two variables respond together to a common stimulus. 

Most of the readily soluble surface-associated elements may have been depleted in the Drax and Meaford weathered ashes, compared with the fresh ash from Drax, because of their prolonged contact time with water. The Drax ash samples have been deposited 17 years and the Meaford samples some 40 years. Loss of the readily soluble elements from the weathered fly ashes would therefore be anticipated. The results, shown in Table 3, clearly demonstrate that this is the case. The concentrations of Ca, Na, K, SO4-, B, Cr, Cu, Li, Ni, Hg, and Mo are all much lower, with some of the trace elements below the detection limits. The only exception is N03, and the field studies, discussed later, show that fertilizers are probably responsible. 

Round plastic pots of 25 cm diameter and 25cm depth were filled with a mixture of topsoil, peatmoss, vermiculite, and perlite (4 2 1 1 vol/vol). A rooted 10-20 cm Salvia stem cutting (two or three nodes) was placed in each pot. Plants were watered as necessary. They were fertilized weekly with 1.0 1 of a 2 tsp/5 gal solution of a 15-30-15 soluble fertilizer containing trace elements (Stern s Miracle-Gro , with 0.05% each of Cu, Mn, and Zn as the sulfates and 0.1% Fe as a chelate) with 1 ml of an 85% phosphoric acid solution added to counteract basicity. This routine was used for all experiments. 

Bioremediation. Crude oil and refined products are readily biodegradable under aerobic conditions, but they are only incomplete foods since they lack any significant nitrogen, phosphorus, arid essential trace elements. Bioremediation strategies for removing large quantities of hydrocarbon must therefore include the addition of fertilizers to provide these elements in a bioavailable form. 

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