Zeolite from alkali modified kaolin increases NH4+ retention by sandy soil: Column experiments

Naoko Zwingmann, B. Singh, I.D.R. Mackinnon, Robert Gilkes

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    40 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Sandy soils have lowwater and nutrient retention capabilities so that zeolite soil amendments are used for highvalue land uses including turf and horticulture to reduce leaching losses of NH4+ fertilisers. MesoLite is a zeoliticmaterial made by caustic treatment of kaolin at 80–95 °C. It has a moderately low surface area (9–12 m2/g) andvery high cation exchange capacity (494 cmol(+)/kg). Laboratory column experiments showed that anaddition of 0.4% MesoLite to a sandy soil greatly (90%) reduced leaching of added NH4+ compared to anunamended soil and MesoLite is 11 times more efficient in retaining NH4+ than natural zeolite. Furthermore,NH4-MesoLite slowly releases NH4+ to soil solution and is likely to be an effective slow release fertiliser.© 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)7-12
    JournalApplied Clay Science
    Volume46
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2009

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