Preparation and characterization of a superabsorbent slow-release

fertilizer with sodium alginate and biochar

M. Baki, J. Abedi-Koupai
Department of Water Engineering, College of Agriculture, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111, Iran
Correspondence to: J. Koupai (E - mail: koupai@cc.iut.ac.ir)

ABSTRACT: A novel hydrogel was synthesized through the graft copolymerization of acrylic acid (AA) and acrylamide (AM) onto
sodium alginate with ammonium persulfate as the initiator, methylene bisacrylamide as the crosslinking agent, and calcium chloride
as the precipitating agent. Rapeseed meal biochar made at 300 8C was also used. A series of graft copolymers with various molar ratio
of AA to AM was prepared. The structures of the hydrogels were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scan-
ning electron microscopy. The free absorbency and rate of release were investigated. The grafting efficiency increased as the concentra-
tion of AM increased. There was a considerable percentage of nitrogen in the graft copolymers, and the release rate of nitrogen from
fertilizer in soil and water decreased with increasing concentration of AM. The water retention of soil without hydrogel remained at
63 and 53.4% on the 10th and 20th days, but with the hydrogels, it was above 70% even on the last day. V C 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J.

Appl. Polym. Sci. 2017, 135, 45966.

KEYWORDS: applications; biodegradable; hydrophilic polymers

Received 17 July 2017; accepted 20 October 2017

DOI: 10.1002/app.45966

INTRODUCTION and crosslinking are some of these methods.8,10,12 The graft

Population growth, climate change, and drought are important
issues in that their impact on agricultural production is enor-
mous. Fertilizer and water are two essential elements in plant
growth, and it is important to improve the efficiency of their
application, especially in areas that are suffering from drought.1,2
Approximately 40–70% of nitrogen, 80–90% of phosphorus,
and 50–70% of potassium of applied normal fertilizers are lost
in the environment.3 These losses mainly depend on surface
runoff, leaching, and vaporization.4 This process causes some
serious environmental pollution and financials losses. One of
the methods used to control these losses is the use of biode-
gradable superabsorbent polymers to encapsulate fertilizer gran-
ules. The application of theses polymers leads the nutrients to
be released gradually; also, plants can efficiently absorb these
nutrients, and environmental pollution is decreased.5,6
Superabsorbent polymers are three-dimensional, crosslinked
hydrophilic, linear, or branched polymers capable of swelling
and retaining very large volumes of water and saline or physio-
logical solutions.7–9 Superabsorbent polymers have been used
extensively in various fields, for instance, in agriculture, drug
delivery, and biosensors.1,10,11
There are various methods for polymer synthesis. Radical copo-
lymerization, frontal copolymerization, graft copolymerization,
reaction involves the copolymerization of a monomer onto the
polymer backbone; it originates from the formation of an active
site at a point on a polymer chain other than its end, and
this is followed by the exposure of this site to a monomer.13–15
Polymer grafting is a powerful method for affecting substantial
changes to alginate’s properties and thus expand its applications
and utilization.15,16 Alginate-based graft copolymers have
attracted a lot of attention, for example, in the grafting of vinyl
monomers such as methyl acrylate, acrylamide (AM), and
acrylic acid (AA).17,18 It is obvious that natural polymers have
less toxic effects than synthetic polymers, and they are more
suitable for applications in agriculture.
In recent years, the synthesis of biodegradable superabsorbent
polymers for controlling nutrient release and their safety in the
environment has attracted much attention. The macromolecules
of these polymers are able to be broken down into smaller com-
pounds or completely degrade in a biologically active environ-
ment.19 The biodegradation process is caused by microorganisms,
but environmental degradation is caused by hydrolysis and oxida-
tion processes in a biological environment.20,21 Polysaccharides,
which are stereoregular polymers of monosaccharides, are natural
raw materials that are the main part of natural-based superabsor-
bent hydrogels that are distinctive because of their exceptional
properties, such as their biocompatibility, biodegradability,

C 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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Table I. Characteristics of the Rapeseed Meal Biochar Produced at 300 8C
N (%) C (%) H (%) S (%) O (%) pH
14.8 60.15 5.1 0.5 19.45 8.67
SA: Surface Area.
renewability, and nontoxicity.22,23 The graft copolymerization of
vinyl monomers onto polysaccharides, such as starch, chitosan,
sodium alginate (NaAlg), carrageenan, and cellulose, is an effi-
cient method for producing superabsorbent polymers.23
Alginic acid is a natural acidic polysaccharide extracted from a
brown algae named phylum phaeophytawhich.24 Alginic acid is
an unbranched block copolymer consisting of two distinct
monosaccharide residues, (1,4)-b-D-mannopyranuronic acid
and (1,4)-a-L-gulopyranuronic acid.25,26 Alginates are salts and
derivatives of alginic acid; among all of its salts, NaAlg is the
most widely used compound.
In this research, we prepared a novel superabsorbent slow-release
fertilizer (SSRF) to integrate the retention and sustained release
of water and fertilizer. For the production of this fertilizer,
instead of grafting either one type of the monomer onto alginate,
we grafted AA and AM together on the alginate backbone
because the different monomers had different characteristics and
the use of these different properties would be beneficial.
To prepare the fertilizer, rapeseed meal biochar made at 300 8C
was used. The term biochar is used for organic materials con-
verted into a stable carbon form mainly by pyrolysis under a
limited supply of oxygen.27 Biochar is a carbonaceous material
that contains polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons with an array of
other functional groups28 and is produced with the intent of
being added to soil to improve the soil’s agronomic proper-
ties.29 Several studies have proven the potential of biochar to
improve soil’s physical and chemical properties,27 enhance its
water-holding capacity,30 and increase its nutrient retention.31
According to previous studies on the ability of biochar to release
the nutrients gradually and act as a slow-release fertilizer, in this
research, it was used as a source of nutrients in the SSRF.
Most studies in this field have focused on nitrogen fertilizers,
but a few studies have considered other elements, such as phos-
phorous. In this research, the releases of phosphorous, nitrogen,
and potassium were investigated simultaneously.
After synthesis, the SSRF grafting efficiency (E%) and grafting
percentage (G%) of AA and AM onto NaAlg, water absorbency,
and release behavior in soil and water were investigated.
The novelties of this research were the use of the rapeseed meal
biochar as the source of nutrients in the production of the
SSRF and the grafting of AA and AM together on the alginate
backbone in the reaction.
EXPERIMENTAL
The graft-copolymerization process was performed with NaAlg
as the polymer backbone, AA and AM as the monomers, and
methylene bisacrylamide (MBA) as the crosslinking agent.
45966 (2 of 8)
EC (dS/m) SA (m2/g) Ash content Volatile content
2 70 13 51
Ammonium persulfate (APS) was used as the initiator. AM, AA,
and APS were supplied by Merck Corp. (Germany) and were
used after purification. Calcium chloride monohydrate
(CaCl2
H2O), which was used as the precipitating agent, and
NaAlg were obtained from R&M (United Kingdom). MBA was
supplied by Aecochem Corp. (China). To prepare the fertilizer,
rapeseed meal biochar made at 300 8C was used.
Preparation of the Rapeseed Meal Biochar
The rapeseed meal was first dried in air and then ground and
sieved to obtain particle sizes of less than 2 mm. An electrical
furnace was used to produce the biochar. A cubic iron box was
designed to put in an electrical furnace. The door of the box
had an inlet for injecting N2 as inert gas and an outlet to pass
the produced gases. The sample was carefully weighed and
placed on steel plates, and then, the box filled with the steel
plates was placed in the electrical furnace. To perform pyrolysis,
the feedstock was pyrolyzed at 300 8C at a heating rate of 5 8C/
min with the same holding time at this temperature (2 h).
The characteristics of the produced biochar is shown in Table I.
This was a low-temperature pyrolysis.
Gelatinization of NaAlg
Eight grams of NaAlg was dispersed in 200 mL of distilled water.
The system was heated at 80 8C at 1000 rpm with mechanical stir-
ring for 20 min to form a gelatinized NaAlg paste. The gelatinized
NaAlg paste was cooled, and 20 g of AA and AM at different con-
centration ratios (75:25, 25:75, and 50:50), 0.2 g of MBA, and
then 1 g of APS as the initiator were added. The mixture was
stirred at 1000 rpm for 120 min. The biochar powder was mixed
with the produced gel and stirred to make a uniform gel. Then,
we precipitated the gel by dropping it from a separating funnel
into a beaker with 2 mol/L CaCl2 solution, and it was left in that
solution for 1 h. Then, the beads were taken out from the solu-
tion, rinsed with distilled water, and dried at 50 8C overnight.
After the grafting reaction proceeded in a heterogeneous
medium, the graft copolymer was generally purified by the com-
plete removal the monomer from the grafting mixture by extrac-
tion with a suitable solvent. In this research, the graft copolymer
was purified by acetone. A proposed scheme describing the main
reactions is presented in Figure 1.
Figure 1. Proposed scheme describing the graft-copolymerization process.
J. APPL. POLYM. SCI. , DOI: 10.1002/APP.45966
ARTICLE WILEYONLINELIBRARY.COM/APP
Table II. Characteristics of the Soil
2
OM (g/kg) P (mg/L) K (mg/L) NANO3 (mg/L)
0.25 18.5 306 10
OM: Organic Matter.
Graft Parameters
G% and E% used to characterize the nature of the copolymer
were defined and calculated as follows:32
Wg 2W0
G%5 3100 (1)
W0
Wg 2W0
E%5 3100 (2)
W2
where Wg is the weight of the grafted polymer, W0 is the weight
of NaAlg, and W2 is the weight of the monomer.
Characterization
The surface-functional group distributions were determined by
Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, and in this
study, FTIR spectra of a pellet compressed from a mixture of
the sample and KBr powder were obtained with a Jasco FTIR-
680 spectrophotometer (Jasco, Japan) within the wave-number
range 400–4000 cm21. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM)
images of the fertilizers were obtained by SEM (Philips XI30,
The Netherlands).
Free Absorbency
The tea-bag method is the most conventional, fastest, and most
suitable for limited amounts of samples (W0 5 0.1–0.3 g).32 The
SSRF sample was placed into a tea bag, and the bag was dipped
in an excess amount of water or saline solution for 1 h until
equilibrium swelling was reached. Then, we removed excess
solution by hanging the bag until no liquid dripped off. The tea
bag was weighed (W1), and the swelling capacity (Se) was calcu-
lated by eq. (3):33
W1 2W0
Se 5 (3)
W0
Nitrogen Content of the SSRF
Total N analyses were carried out with a CHNSO elemental ana-
lyzer (CHNSO, Vario EL III, Germany).
Release Behavior of the SSRF in Water
To study the release behaviors of P, K, and N, 0.5 g of the dry
SSRF was added to a 500 mL flask containing 250 mL of dis-
tilled water (release medium), the flasks were put into an incu-
bator, and the temperature was set at 25 8C. After a period of
time (2, 4, 6, 8, 24, 48, 96, 168, and 240 h), 25 mL of extracted
fluid was sampled for P, K, and N measurements; then, 25 mL
of distilled water was added to the flasks to maintain a constant
amount of solvent. The N content was estimated by the Kjeldahl
method, and the P and K content were determined by the
Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) method (inductively coupled
plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES), Optima
7300DV, PerkinElmer).
45966 (3 of 8)
Mg (mg/L) Ca (mg/L) EC (dS/m) pH
90 110 0.95 7.5
Measurement of the Water Retention in Soil
An amount of 5 g of the SSRF sample was well mixed with
200 g of dry soil (diameter < 2 mm) and kept in a beaker, and
then, 200 g of tap water was slowly added to the beaker and
weighed (W1). A controlled experiment, that is, without the
SSRF sample, was also carried out. The beakers were maintained
at room temperature and weighed every 5 days (Wi) over a
period of 20 days. The water-retention percentage (WR%) of
the soil was determined with the following equation:34
Wi
WR%5 (4)
W1
The soil sample that was used in this research was a sandy loam
soil. Some of the soils characteristics are shown in Table II.
Rate of Release of the Fertilizer in Soil
To study the slow-release behavior of the SSRF in soil, the follow-
ing experiment was carried out: 1 g of SSRF was well mixed with
200 g of dry soil (<26 mesh) and kept in a 200 mL beaker prop-
erly covered and incubated for different periods at room tempera-
ture. The pH, Electrical Conductivity (EC), and other
characteristics of the soil that could mainly affect the release
behavior of the fertilizer are shown in Table II. Throughout the
experiment, the soil was maintained at a 20 wt % water-holding
capacity by weighing and the addition of distilled water when
necessary. After 1, 3, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 days, the remaining
SSRF in the beakers was picked out, washed with distilled water,
and then dried at room temperature overnight to estimate the
contents of N, P, and K. The N content was estimated by the
Kjeldahl method, and the P and K contents were determined by
the ICP method (inductively coupled plasma optical emission
spectrometry (ICP-OES), PerkinElmer, Optima 7300DV).
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The grafted polymers were categorized according to the molar
ratio of AA to AM. The produced SSRFs were SSRF1, with an
AA/AM ratio of 25:75; SSRF2, with an AA/AM ratio of 50:50
ratio; and SSRF3, with an AA/AM ratio of 75:25.
Graft Parameters
In this research, AA and AM were successfully crosslinked by
methylene bisacrylamide (MBA) as the crosslinker and grafted
onto the NaAlg backbone. The crosslinker was a material that
Table III. G% and E% Values of AA and AM onto NaAlg
Grafted polymer AA/AM G% E%
SSRF1 25:75 200.2 70.3
SSRF2 50:50 148.1 52.5
SSRF3 75:25 100 31.8
J. APPL. POLYM. SCI. , DOI: 10.1002/APP.45966
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Figure 2. FTIR spectrum of rapeseed meal produced at 300 8C. [Color fig-
ure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]
could form a strong polymeric network in the SSRF, and it
helped to retain the water in the polymeric network.
The G% and E% values of AA and AM are shown in Table III.
As the concentration of AM increased, G% and E% increased.
This could be explained by the fact that the monomer mole-
cules that were in the immediate vicinity of reaction sites
became acceptors of macroradicals; this resulted in chain initia-
tion, and so, they became free-radical donors to neighboring
molecules, and this caused the lowering of termination.35
Another reason was that AA, in contrast to AM, may have preferred
to produce homopolymer rather than become a grafted copolymer
on the NaAlg backbone.36 One should consider that the AA could
have easily been grafted onto NaAlg backbone in the presence of
AM. In a similar process, the graft copolymerization of AM onto
cashew gum was investigated by Durcilene et al.,37 and the results of
their research showed that as the concentration of AM increased, the
value of the grafting parameters increased; their results were the
same as the results obtained in this research.
FTIR Spectroscopy
The surface-functional groups of the biochar and SSRFs were
characterized with FTIR analysis, and the FTIR spectra of the
samples are presented in Figures 2 and 3. The IR spectra of the
biochars were characterized by a significant band at a wave
number of 3400 (OAH functional group), which showed
Figure 3. FTIR spectra for SSRF2.
45966 (4 of 8)
hydrogen-bonding interactions. The bands at 2900 and
290022950 cm21 represented symmetric and asymmetric CAH
stretching of CHx groups, respectively, for long-chain aliphatic/
alkane compounds.38 The peak at 1600 cm21 (alkene, C@C bond
group) originated from carboxyl, ester, aldehyde, or ketone moie-
ties, and the peak at 1090 cm21 (phenolic, CAO stretching
absorption band) was due to the OAH deformation and CAO
stretching of different types of oxygenated compounds, such as
alcohols, phenols, and ethers.39,40 The peaks at 650 cm21 showed
the presence of single and polycyclic aromatic groups.39
All of the observed functional groups have been reported as
chemical groups characterizing many other carbon-based
adsorbents, including biochars and activated carbons.
The IR spectrum of SSRF2 is shown in Figure 3. Some charac-
teristic peaks in the SSRF2 spectrum can be ascribed as follows.
The observed peak at 3450 cm21 was attributed to the ANH
stretching vibrations of the AM unit, which overlapped with the
AOH groups of the acrylate units. The peak at 2900 cm21 was
ascribed to the CAH absorption band, which can be present for
the methyl and methylene groups of the acrylate unit. The peak
at 1550 cm21 corresponded to the asymmetric ACOO2 stretch-
ing; this indicated the introduction of AA and AM into the
graft-copolymer composite. The band at 1100 cm21 was attrib-
uted to the ACAOA and the OH coupling interactions of the
ACOOH and CAN stretching vibrations indicated the grafting
reaction of AA and AM on the NaAlg backbone.41 Similar
absorption bands in these regions have also been observed by
Liu et al.,42 Wu and Liu,43 and Lanthong et al.36
Taken together, these results demonstrate that all of the grafted
polymers were successfully crosslinked by MBA.
SEM Surface Morphology
Figure 4 shows the SEM images of SSRF2. On the basis of the
figure, the surface of the superabsorbent polymer was coarse
and undulant; this structurally increased the surface area of the
fertilizer. Many small, uniform, interconnected pores were
observed, as shown in Figure 4(a). These pores were the regions
of water permeation, where water easily diffused into the poly-
meric network. This kind of surface facilitated the permeation
of water into the polymeric network to form a swollen hydro-
gel.40 The presented surface morphology supported the occur-
rence of graft polymerization. There were large pores, which
caused the high water absorbency and swelling rate of the
superabsorbent composite.44 The image of the inner structure
also showed a broad network and porous structure of the prod-
uct. These results were similar to those of previous studies by
Wu et al.45 and Kabiri and Zohuriaan-Mehr.44
Nitrogen Content of the SSRFs
The nitrogen percentage of the SSRFs are given in Table IV.
There was a considerable percentage of nitrogen in the graft
copolymers; this could have been due to the presence of grafted
polyacrylamide chains. In the series of graft copolymers based
on NaAlg, there was a variation in the nitrogen content of
SSRFs produced with different molar ratios of AA to AM.
A double-coated, slow-release Nitrogen, Phosphorous and Potas-
sium fertilizer (NPK) compound fertilizer with superabsorbent
J. APPL. POLYM. SCI. , DOI: 10.1002/APP.45966
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Figure 4. SEM images of SSRF2: (a) surface structure and (b) inner structure.

properties and water retention was prepared by Wu and Liu Release Behavior of the SSRFs in Water
through the crosslinking of poly(acrylic acid)–diatomite contain- One of the most important characteristics of SSRFs is their
ing urea chitosan and an water-soluble, granular NPK fertilizer slow-release properties. Figure 6(a–c) shows the N, P, and K
that contained 15.7% nitrogen; in comparison, this was 5% less release behavior of the grafted SSRF1, SSRF2, and SSRF3 poly-
than the nitrogen percentage of the SSRF prepared in this study. mers, respectively, in distilled water at 25 8C. As shown in Fig-
ure 6(a), for the release behavior of N, the release percentage
Free Absorbency
was fast at first and slowed down gradually. Also, the figure
The effects of different concentration ratios of AA to AM on the
shows that the release rate of N from the SSRF decreased with
free absorbencies of the SSRFs by the tea-bag method is shown in
increasing concentration of AM. This could be explained by the
Figure 5. According to Flory,46 the water absorbency of a superab-
fact that as the concentration of AM increased, E% was higher,
sorbent polymer depends on the amount of hydrophilic groups,
and as discussed in the previous section, this caused the grafted
the crosslinking density, the polymer network behavior, the elas-
polymers with a high concentration of AM to have a weaker
ticity of the polymer networks, the type of solvent, and the ionic
free absorbency, so it was harder for water to penetrate through
strength of the external solution. Hydrophilic groups play an
the surface of the grafted polymer to dissolve the fertilizer
extremely important part in the water absorbency. The ratio of
nutrients.
different hydrophilic groups was adjusted by changes in the pro-
portion of AA to AM. As shown in Figure 5, after a maximum Figure 4(b) shows the release rate of phosphorous from the
value of absorbency was reached when the AM content was 25 wt SSRF. Phosphorous could only be released after the hydrolyzing
%, the absorbency decreased as the AM concentration increased. cleavage of PAOAP bonds, and this had some optimal condi-
tions, such as pH and temperature.47
The effect of the AM content on the free absorbency might
have been due to the synergistic effect of ACONH2 and From Figure 4(c), we deduced that the release rate of potassium
ACOO2 groups. The free absorbency was dependent on the from the SSRFs decreased as time passed. In the beginning
hydrogen-bonding interactions between the functional groups. hours of checking the potassium release, its rate was fast. One
The ACOO2 groups had better hydrophilic abilities than the reason was that there was a difference between the concentra-
ACONH2 group with stronger hydrogen-bonding interactions tion of potassium in the fertilizer and that in the solution that
because of the higher number of hydrophilic groups, so the free surrounded it, but by the time the potassium release rate
absorbency decreased with increasing AM concentration.5,42,45 decreased, the difference between the concentrations vanished.
Wu et al.45 prepared a cellulose-g-poly(acrylic acid-co-acrylam-
ide) superabsorbent composite through the graft copolymeriza-
tion of AA and AM onto a cellulose backbone, and their results
indicate that the water absorbency increased when the molar
ratio of AM to AA plus AM was below 0.25. When this ratio
increased further, the water absorbency decreased remarkably.
These results were similar to the results shown in Figure 3.

Table IV. Nitrogen Percentages of the Grafted Polymers

Grafted polymer N (%)

SSRF1 22.1
SSRF2 21
SSRF3 20.4 Figure 5. Effect of the AA/AM concentration ratio on the free absorbency.

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in the figure, the release rate of nitrogen was higher than those
of phosphorus and potassium, and they had been almost
released completely (similar to SSRF3) after 30 days. This was
because the solubility of urea was great. The release rates of
phosphorus and potassium of SSRF3 were 83 and 72 wt %,
respectively, over 30 days.
Wu and Liu43 prepared a double-coated, slow-release NPK com-
pound fertilizer, and their results show that the N in fertilizer
was released at levels of 11.9, 17.8, and 73.2% by the 3rd, 5th,
and 30th days, respectively; the P was released at levels of 3.9,
8.2, and 64% by the 3rd, 5th, and 30th days, respectively; and
the K in the fertilizer was released at levels of 2.3, 6.4, and 68%
by the 3rd, 5th, and 30th days, respectively. The release of the
nutrients was in accordance with the results of this research.
The proposed mechanism of nutrient release is described as fol-
lows. First, the protective shell was slowly swollen by the water
in the soil after it was added to the soil, and the NaAlg-g-P(AA-
co-AM) layer transformed into a hydrogel. When water pene-
trated through the holes of the protective layer, the diffusion of

Figure 6. Release of (a) N, (b) P, and (c) K in water.

After water penetrated through the pores, the dissolution of the

nutrients had started.
The release behaviors of the nutrients in the SSRFs were the
same as those in the study by Liu et al.42 They prepared a
superabsorbent, slow-release nitrogen fertilizer by inverse sus-
pension polymerization in the presence of urea. The nitrogen in
their fertilizer released 13.0, 59.2, and 78.3 wt % within 24 h
(1 day), 72 h (3 days), and 672 h (28 days), respectively.

Rate of Release of the Fertilizers in Soil

Figure 7(a–c) shows the slow-release behavior of nitrogen, phos-
phorus, and potassium from fertilizers in soil.
From these figures, we concluded that the release rate of fertil-
izer decreased with increasing concentration of AM. This agreed
with the statements discussed in the previous section. As shown Figure 7. Release of (a) N, (b) P, and (c) K in soil.

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Figure 8. Water-retention behavior of soil samples with SSRFs and a plain
soil sample (control) as a function of time.
the nutrients started. Under the effect of water, ions, and micro-
organisms in the soil, the NaAlg layer slowly degraded and con-
tinued to dissolve the leftover NPK fertilizer.48,49 The degradation
rate determined the nutrient-release rate. The absorbed water
continued to diffuse slowly into the core and dissolve the soluble
parts of the fertilizer, and the soluble fertilizer nutrition was
slowly released into the soil through the effect of the water, ions,
and microorganisms in the soil.
Measurement of Water Retention in the Soil
Another important characteristic for this research was the sav-
ing of water to fight drought in agriculture and for the effective
utilization of water in arid and semiarid regions. Figure 8 shows
the water-retention behaviors of soil without (control) and with
different ratios of AA to AM in the grafted polymers. It was
very obvious that the addition of SSRFs increased the water
retention of the soil.
We concluded that the water retention in the soil sample was
improved with the help of the polymers; this allowed water to
be saved and managed so that the water and fertilizer could be
effectively used. This was a significant advantage over normal,
controlled release fertilizers, which only have one property.
It has been reported in the literature (Liang et al.50 that soil
with a controlled release NPK compound fertilizer had a 14 wt
% water-retention ratio after 20 days. In comparison with the
70% water retention after 20 days in this research, we concluded
that the use of the SSRFs showed good water-retention abilities.
CONCLUSIONS
SSRFs were prepared by the graft copolymerization of NaAlg as
the polymer backbone, AA and AM as the monomers, MBA as
the crosslinking agent, and APS as the initiator. According to
the findings of this research, different ratios of AA and AM
influenced the different properties of the produced SSRFs. As
the concentration of AM increased, the G% and E% values of
AA and AM onto NaAlg increased. The results of FTIR analysis
show that the grafting procedure was successful. Also, the SEM
images supported the occurrence of graft polymerization.
The free absorbency, which was measured by the tea-bag
method, after a maximum value when the AM content was 25
wt %, decreased with increasing AM concentration.
45966 (7 of 8)
The release behaviors of the SSRFs were investigated in distilled
water and soil. The release rates of the SSRFs showed good
results, and the release rates of nitrogen were higher than those
of phosphorus and potassium. The release behavior of the con-
trolled release fertilizer is affected by the soil pH and salt con-
centration, and it is necessary to carry out tests with soils that
have different characteristics to investigate its influence on the
nutrient release of fertilizer.
In addition, the water retention of soil improved up to 80%
with fertilizer-embedded grafted polymers added to soil. The
final result of this research is that the product had good slow-
release properties and showed good water-retention properties,
and the SSRF could act as an efficient SSRF.
From this study, we inferred that the produced SSRFs had good
water-retention capacities in soil, and this was a significant
advantage over normal slow-release fertilizers, which always
only have controlled release properties.
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