What type of fertilizer is the richest and most effective?
Mineral fertilizers
How high has the global demand for SRFs/CRFs reached in metric tons?
1.5 million metric tons
What were 2 of the effects on the soil mentioned in the paper?
Based on pH and microbial biomass
How do miroorganisms contribute to the soil?
Cycling nutrients, degrading agrochemicals and pollutants
CRFs are _________-based polymers
fossil
What does CRFs stand for?
Controlled release fertilizers
How much nitrogen content is lost to the environment?
40-70%
What is the pH interval that most nutrients are available to roots?
5.5-7
What do mircoorganisms depend on within the soil?
Organic carbon
What percentage does food production need to increase?
70%
What does SRFs stand for?
Slow-release fertilizers
How much phosphorus is lost to the environment?
80-90%
At approximately what pH did the polymers buffer the soil samples to?
7 or 7.09-7.33
What do the microbes use organic carbon for?
Energy, cell synthesis
Based on Figure 2, in 2018 which country produced the largest portion total consumption of slow/controlled release fertilizers?
China
When was the term SRFs first used?
1920s
What are the ways nitrogen is lost?
Leaching, mineralization, NH3 volatilization, gas emissions, soil erosion and denitrification processes.
How can the fact that biopolymers absorb water help the organisms?
Enhances survival in arid areas
In a majority of the samples within Zhang et al. study what happened to the biomass C and functional diversity in controlled release urea?
They both increased
When were SRFs/CRFs initially described?
1960s
When did the most advances with SRFs occur?
1980s and 1990s
How much potassium is lost to the environment?
50-70%
What causes the buffer in soil pH?
-COOH and –COO reacting with OH- and H+ molecules
Why was the quotient CO2 higher in the control sample?
Most likely due to nutritional stress
What are the main challenges of CRFs?
They are non-biodegradable and non-renewable, potential environmental risks