article · Scientific Reports
Water treatment residuals from the drinking water industry have been repurposed to create sustained-release nano-enabled fertilizers. Using planetary ball milling, nanostructured water treatment residuals were impregnated with potassium dihydrogen phosphate and magnesium oxide at two distinct ratios. When tested in sandy soil, the resulting formulation markedly increased soil water retention capacity, achieving levels over nine times higher than conventional fertilizer after 26 days. The nano-fertilizers also demonstrated sustained, lower release rates of phosphorus, potassium, and magnesium nutrients over longer time frames compared to traditional chemical alternatives. In trials on maize plants, the applied nano-fertilizers substantially improved crop growth and plant phosphorus content relative to conventional commercial fertilizers, offering a dual mechanism for delivering nutrients and retaining moisture.
Traditional fertilizers often release nutrients too quickly, causing nutrient loss, lower agricultural yields, and environmental contamination. By turning industrial water treatment waste into sustained-release nano-fertilizers, this approach addresses nutrient leaching while significantly boosting water retention in sandy soils, offering a practical way to support crop cultivation where water and land resources are constrained.
This technology is relevant to fertilizer manufacturers and agricultural input suppliers seeking circular economy inputs for nutrient and soil moisture management. Having been formulated from industrial waste and tested on maize plants in soil, the work represents applied, laboratory-tested research that requires further pilot-scale manufacturing and broad field trials before commercial use.
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Nanotechnology has emerged as a promising approach for the controlled release of nutrients, particularly phosphorus and potassium. These essential plant nutrients are often applied in excess, leading to environmental pollution and loss of efficiency in crop production. Innovative economic and highly efficient fertilizers are urgently needed to achieve the targeted crop production worldwide in the presence of limited land and water resources. Therefore, in this study, novel, eco-friendly, cost-effective and enhanced efficiency nano-enabled fertilizers, NEF (nWTF1and nWTF2) were synthesized by impregnation of nanostructured water treatment residuals (nWTR) with (KH<sub>2</sub>PO<sub>4</sub> + MgO) at 1:1 and 3:1 (w/w) ratios respectively using a planetary ball mill. The nWTR, nWTF1 and nWTF2 were extensively characterized. The water retention behavior and the sustained release of nutrients from the fabricated nano-enabled fertilizers (nWTF1 and nWTF2) in distilled water and sandy soil were investigated and monitored over time. The water retention capacity of the soil treated with nWTF2 after 26 days was 9.3 times higher than that of soil treated with conventional fertilizer. In addition, the nWTF2 exhibited lower release rates of P, K and Mg nutrients for longer release periods in comparison with the conventional fertilizers. This is a significant advantage over traditional fertilizers, which release nutrients quickly and can lead to leaching and nutrient loss. The main interaction mechanisms of PO<sub>4</sub>-K-Mg ions with nWTR surface were suggested. The results of the kinetics study revealed that power function was the best suitable model to describe the kinetics of P, K and Mg release data from NEF in water and soil. The produced NEF were applied to Zea maize plants and compared to commercial chemical fertilizer control plants. The obtained results revealed that the nano-enabled fertilizers (nWTF1 and nWTF2) significantly promoted growth, and P content compared with the commercial chemical fertilizer treated plants. The present work demonstrated the power of nano enabled fertilizers as efficient and sustained release nano-fertilizers for sustainable agriculture and pollution free environment.
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DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-56274-0
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