Application Finder

Phosphorus is a primary macronutrient for plants and is a constituent of DNA and adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is involved in many biological processes requiring energy. In fertilizers, phosphorus is present in the form of phosphate, as the most accessible form of phosphorus for plants is dihydrogen phosphate. Knowledge of the phosphorus content helps to select the right fertilizer for the plants.Traditionally, phosphate is determined gravimetrically (a time consuming procedure) or spectrophotometrically (expensive instrumentation). In this Application Note, an alternative method is presented, where phosphate is determined by a precipitation titration with magnesium. Various solid and liquid NPK fertilizers with phosphorus contents between 6.5 and 17% were analyzed. The analysis by thermometric titration requires no sample preparation in case of liquid NPK fertilizers and only minimal sample preparation in case of solid NPK fertilizers. One determination takes about 5 minutes.

Agriculture at significant scale without fertilizers is no longer possible in the modern world. To grow a sufficient amount of produce for nearly 8 billion people as well as for domesticated animals and industrial uses, fertilizers of different nutrient compositions are available to cater to the unique needs of various soil types. Information on the fertilizer’s composition (e.g., total nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) is available to help select the ideal fertilizer for a specific soil. Conventionally these constituents are determined either gravimetrically (e.g., phosphorus, potassium, or sulfate) or with ICP-OES (e.g., phosphorus or potassium). These methods either have the disadvantages of long analysis times combined with laborious sample preparation (gravimetry), or require expensive instrumentation with high running costs (ICP-OES). This White Paper elaborates how thermometric titration is a fast and inexpensive alternative method to provide information on the content of various nutrients in different fertilizers.

Sulfur is a secondary macronutrient for plants and is essential for chloroplast growth and function. In fertilizers, sulfur is usually provided in the form of sulfate. Traditionally the sulfate content is determined gravimetrically by precipitation with barium. The drawback of this method is that it requires numerous time consuming and laborious analysis steps.In this Application Note, an alternative method is presented, where sulfate is determined by a precipitation titration with barium chloride. Various solid and liquid NPK fertilizers with sulfur contents between 1 and 8% were analyzed. The analysis of sulfate in fertilizers by thermometric titration requires no sample preparation at all for liquid NPK fertilizers, and only minimal sample preparation for solid NPK fertilizers. One determination takes about 3 minutes only. To increase the sensitivity of the method, the samples are spiked with a standard sulfuric acid solution, which is then considered when calculating the result.

Thermometric titration can solve application problems that potentiometry cannot solve at all, or at least not satisfactorily.

Potassium is a primary macronutrient for plants, as it plays an important role in water regulation as well as plant growth. In NPK fertilizers, potassium is present besides nitrogen and phosphorus, which are the other two primary macronutrients. Knowing the quality and content of a NPK fertilizer allows an optimal fertilizer management for a planned culture, saving costs and increasing profitability.Traditionally potassium is determined gravimetrically or by flame photometry. In this Application Note, an alternative method is presented, where potassium is determined a precipitation titration. Various solid and liquid NPK fertilizers with potassium contents between 10 and 27% were analyzed. After the removal of any present ammonia, the potassium can be determined reliably in about 5 minutes.

Determination of low levels of sulfate (to approximately 20mg/L SO42-) by thermometric titration.

Sulfate can be rapidly and easily titrated thermometrically using a standard solution of Ba2+ as titrant. In industry, the widespread procedure is applied to the determination of sulfate in wet-process phosphoric acid.

Sulfate can be rapidly and easily titrated thermometrically using a standard solution of Ba2+ as titrant. In industry, the widespread procedure is applied to the determination of sulfate in wet-process phosphoric acid. This bulletin deals with the determination of sulfate in granular fertilizers such as MAP (monoammonium phosphate), DAP (diammonium phosphate) and TSP (triple superphosphate). Results are reported as percentage of elemental sulfur, %S.

Fertilizers are applied in the agricultural sector to provide more essential nutrients to growing plants. The so-called «NPK» fertilizers provide such nutrients to plants with its three main components (N – nitrogen, P – phosphorous, K – potassium). In fertilizers, nitrogen is mainly provided in three forms: as ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3), ammonia (NH3), and urea (H2NCONH2). Determination of the individual nitrogen-contributing components is often laborious work. Thermometric titration offers the possibility to rapidly determine the amount of ammoniacal nitrogen and urea nitrogen in a single titration using sodium hypochlorite as titrant.

Phosphate can be rapidly and easily titrated thermometrically using a standard solution of Mg2+ as titrant. The phosphate-containing solution is basified and buffered with NH3/NH4Cl solution before titration. The formation of insoluble MgNH4PO4 is exothermic. The method is a titrimetric adaptation of a classical gravimetric procedure. This bulletin deals with the determination of phosphate in phosphoric acid and granular fertilizers such as MAP (monoammonium phosphate), DAP (diammonium phosphate) and TSP (triple superphosphate). Results are reported as percentage of P and P2O5.

Potash is commonly mined from ore, deposited after ancient inland oceans evaporated. The potassium salt is then purified in evaporation ponds. At the end of this process, the potash is typically obtained as potassium chloride. Potash is mainly used as fertilizer, providing potassium—an essential nutrient—to plants. Additionally, it is used in the chemical industry and to produce medicine. Potassium content in potash is typically determined by flame photometry (F-AES) or ICP-OES. However, these techniques have high investment and running costs. By applying the historically used gravimetric precipitation reaction as a thermometric titration, it becomes possible to rapidly and inexpensively determine the potassium content in potash within minutes.

Pyrithione complexes, such as zinc pyrithione (ZnPT), copper pyrithione (CuPT), and sodium pyrithione (NaPT), are used as fungicides and bactericides. ZnPT is used in the treatment of skin conditions such as seborrheic dermatitis or dandruff. Furthermore, ZnPT is sometimes used as an antibacterial agent in paints to prevent algae and mildew growth. CuPT is primarily in use as a biocide to prevent biofouling of surfaces submerged in water. Meanwhile, NaPT is used as antifungal agent for treatment of mycosis, such as athlete’s foot. The different pyrithione complexes are determined by iodometric titration using a maintenance-free Pt Titrode for the indication.

Spectroelectrochemistry is a multi-response technique that provides both electrochemical and spectroscopic information about a chemical system in a single experiment, i.e., it offers information from two different points of view. Spectroelectrochemistry focused on the UV/VIS region is one of the most important combinations because this allows us to obtain not only valuable qualitative information, but also outstanding quantitative results. In this application note, the degradation kinetics for 4-nitrophenol, a known pollutant, were determined using SPELEC.