GREENTECHNOLOGIES, L.L.C. — Department of Agriculture SBIR Phase I: 8.4

Description

Project SummaryBiobased fertilizers are an under-utilized plant nutrient resource.Although recycledbiobased enhanced efficiency fertilizers help conserve natural resources through protecting waterquality improving soil health and promoting superior nutrient management practices keyfactors leading to their underutilization include low nutrient content nutrient imbalance safetyconcerns related to storage and lack of compatibility with established application methods.GreenTechnologies (hereinafter "GT") proposes to develop a patented new technology forapplying a mineral coating onto biobased pellets to address these inherent barriers to expandeduse of biosolids and manure-based fertilizers that will result in a unique line of enhancedefficiency fertilizer products fulfilling agricultural producers' needs in a cost-effective andenvironmentally sound manner.GT's Phase I technical objectives and work plan include: 1) Demonstrate the feasibility of anew coating process and show it is scalable and generalizable to a pallet of enhanced efficiencyfertilizers.2) Establish a range of mineral enhanced coatings with controllable composition thatwill satisfy anticipated applications.Coatings will be targeted to fill a range of needs includingenhancing essential macro and micronutrient content and overcoming safety concerns byreducing combustibility; 3) Analyze successful coatings for their physical and chemicalcharacteristics. Optical and electron microscopy analyses together with X-ray diffraction will beused to determine physical attributes such as thickness and uniformity and whether the coatingsbond strongly to the biosolid particles.Standard chemical analyses and microanalyses will beconducted to determine composition of the coated fertilizers; and 4) Demonstrate enhancedperformance of the new coating technology relative to uncoated biosolid fertilizer.The nutrientrelease profiles of the coated biosolids will be evaluated to demonstrate the process adds benefitrelative to uncoated biosolid pellets.GT's proposed mineral layer coating technology will expand on the capabilities of existingtechnologies by providing for even greater flexibility in nutrient content and ratios providing formore efficient release of nutrients and solving the problems associated with physicalcharacteristics such as bulk density and combustibility inherent in biobased fertilizers. At theconclusion of this project GT envisions utilizing the mineral layer coating technology tomanufacture and market an innovative line of enhanced efficiency biobased fertilizer productsfor commercialization in agricultural and specialty fertilizer markets.