Fertilizer with organic potassium salts
The present invention provides a new fertilizer comprising water and an organic potassium source wherein the fertilizer composition has a pH range of from 5.5 to 10.0 and a salt index no greater than about 40 as measured by electrical conductivity methods. The organic potassium source is selected from the group consisting of potassium acetate, potassium formate, potassium citrate, potassium succinate, potassium propionate, and combinations thereof. The fertilizer demonstrates lower phytotoxicity damage compared to other sources of potassium for fertilizer products. The fertilizer composition may further comprise nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, zinc, boron, calcium, manganese, iron, copper, cobalt, magnesium, molybdenum, inoculants, or a combination thereof.
1. A fertilizer composition comprising water and a carboxylic acid salt of potassium selected from (1) CH 3 (CH 2 ) x COOK wherein x=0-4, (2) MOOC(CR 1 R 2 ) x COOK wherein R 1 ═—H or —OH or —COOM and R 2 ═—H or —OH or —COOM and x=0-4 and M=H or K, (3) HO(CR 1 R 2 ) x COOK wherein R 1 ═H or a C1 to C4 alkyl group and R 2 ═H or a C1 to C4 alkyl group and x=1-5, (4) CH 3 CO(CR 1 R 2 ) x COOK wherein R 1 ═H or a C1 to C4 alkyl group and R 2 ═H or a C1 to C4 alkyl group and x=1-3, or (5) combinations thereof, and optionally, a second potassium source selected from the group consisting of potassium phosphate, potassium hydroxide, potassium chloride, potassium thiosulfate, potassium silicate and combinations thereof, wherein the organic potassium source combined with the optional second potassium source delivers from 1% to 40% available potassium in the form of K 2 O in the fertilizer composition and wherein the fertilizer composition has a Storage Stability Value defined by the equation:
(
%
K
in
composition
-
%
P
in
composition
)
x
(
pH
value
)
(
[
K
2
O
derived
from
KOH
]
/
[
K
2
O
derived
from
KO
2
R
]
)
and wherein (a) the Storage Stability Value of the fertilizer composition is less than 75 and the fertilizer composition has a pH between 5.5 and 7.7 or (b) the Storage Stability Value of the fertilizer composition is greater than 100 and the fertilizer composition has a pH between 6.0 and 9.5.
2. The fertilizer composition of claim 1 wherein the carboxylic acid salt of potassium is selected from the group consisting of potassium acetate, potassium propionate, potassium butyrate, potassium valerate, potassium hexanoate, potassium oxalate, potassium malonate, potassium succinate, potassium glutarate, potassium adipate, potassium lactate, potassium malate, potassium citrate, potassium glycolate, potassium tartrate, potassium glyoxylate, potassium pyruvate, and combinations thereof.
3. The fertilizer composition of claim 2 wherein the carboxylic acid salt of potassium is selected from the group consisting of potassium acetate, potassium propionate, potassium lactate, potassium malate, potassium citrate, potassium tartrate, potassium pyruvate, and combinations thereof.
4. The fertilizer composition of claim 1 wherein the organic potassium source combined with the optional second potassium source delivers from 3% to 25% available potassium in the form of K 2 O in the fertilizer composition.
5. The fertilizer composition of claim 1 wherein the fertilizer composition has a ratio of [K 2 O derived from KOH]/[K 2 O derived from KO 2 R] between 0.0 and 3.3.
6. The fertilizer composition of claim 5 wherein the fertilizer composition has a ratio of [K 2 O derived from KOH]/[K 2 O derived from KO 2 R] between 0.7 and 1.5.
7. The fertilizer composition of claim 5 wherein the fertilizer composition has a ratio of [K 2 O derived from KOH]/[K 2 O derived from KO 2 R] between 1.5 and 3.3.
8. The fertilizer composition of claim 1 wherein the Storage Stability Value of the fertilizer composition is less than 60 and the fertilizer composition has a pH between about 5.7 to about 6.7.
9. The fertilizer composition of claim 1 wherein the Storage Stability Value of the fertilizer composition is greater than 100 and the fertilizer composition has a pH between about 6.0 to about 8.0.
10. The fertilizer composition of claim 1 further comprising a nitrogen source selected from the group consisting of urea, nitrate, triazone urea, urea triazone solution, ammonia, ammonium salts, ammonium hydroxide, amino acids, fish meal or extract, compost extract, kelp extract, shrimp extract, shellfish extract, and combinations thereof.
11. The fertilizer composition of claim 1 further comprising a phosphate source selected from the group consisting of rock phosphate, sodium phosphate, potassium phosphate, phosphoric acid, bone meal, monopotassium phosphate, dipotassium phosphate, tetrapotassium pyrophosphate, ammonium phosphate, ammonium polyphosphate, calcium phosphate, and combinations thereof, and wherein the phosphate source includes at least one source of orthophosphate.
12. The fertilizer composition of claim 1 further comprising a secondary nutrient selected from the group consisting of sulfur, zinc, boron, calcium, manganese, iron, copper, cobalt, magnesium, molybdenum, poly-aspartic acid, amino polycarboxylic acid, an inoculant, and combinations thereof.
13. The fertilizer composition of claim 12 wherein the secondary nutrient is derived from potassium thiosulfate, ammonium thiosulfate, zinc ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (ZnEDTA), calcium ethylene-diaminetetraacetic acid (CaEDTA), ammonium calcium nitrate, manganese ethylene-diaminetetraacetic acid (MnEDTA), iron ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (FeEDTA), iron N-(hydroxyethyl) ethylene-diaminetriacetic acid (FeHEDTA), iron ethylenediamine-N, N 1 -bis (2-hydroxyphenylacetic acid) (FeEDDHA), iron ethylene-diamine-di (2-hydroxy-5-sulfophenylacetic acid) (FeEDDHSA), cobalt ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (CoEDTA), cobalt sulfate, magnesium ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (MgEDTA), ethylene-diaminetetraacetic acid (CuEDTA), sodium borate, disodium octaborate tetrahydrate, boric acid, ammonium molybdate, sodium molybdate or a combination thereof.
14. The fertilizer composition of claim 1 further comprising poly-aspartic acid, amino polycarboxylic acid, or an inoculant, or a combination thereof.
15. The fertilizer composition of claim 14 further comprising an inoculant selected from the group consisting of strains designated as Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus methylotrophicus, Bacillus amyloliquefasciens, Bacillus megaterium and Bacillus licheniformis , and combinations thereof.