Multi doped Hydroxyapatite-Urea Nano fertilizer: Synthesis and Controlled Micronutrient Release

Hydroxyapatite HAp-urea composite based nano fertilizer constitutes a novel approach of incorporating variety of ionic species into HAp hexagonal lattice structure with control release capabilities.Evidently, it is a veritable and sustainable alternative to commercial fertilizer in enhancing plant yield in nutrient deficient soil.In this research, HAp doped with multi ionic species of Mg2+, Si4+ and Cu2+ (Ca10-w/2-x-ySiw+MgxCuy(PO4)6-w(OH)2-w) with nutrient and subsequently form a HAp-urea nano fertilizer composite via chemical precipitation route.The following HAp to nano-urea matrix-filler ratio 100 mL: 0.15 g was adopted.The crystallinity, chemical constituent and nanoparticle sizes was investigated using X-ray diffractometry (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM).Micronutrient ion release of Ca2+, P5+, Mg2+ and Cu2+ was examined using Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) in water sample and XRF in soil sample.Monitored plant foliage activities was analyzed by applying 10g of the produced HAp-urea nanofertilizer composite in comparison to 10g of commercial fertilizer on selected plants.Ultimately, the multidoped HAp-urea composite based nanofertilizer showed superior plant growth height (PGH) of HU: 54, HUMS: 58 and HUMSC: 56 cm as compared to commercial fertilizer with PGH of 36 cm.