The Impact of Urea-Doped Hydroxyapatite Nanomaterials as a Potential Substitute for Traditional Nitrogen and Phosphorus Fertilizers in Acidic Cultivation Environments

Abstract

The utilization of nutrients in intensive farming is found to be below 50% for macronutrients. The implementation of this feature leads to economic and ecological impacts that are not sustainable. Nanofertilizers have considerable potential as a notable manifestation of nanotechnology within agricultural practices. To utilize nano fertilizers effectively and without risk, it is necessary to understand the specific impacts of nanoproducts on plant metabolism and the subsequent effects on carrier release kinetics and nutrition retention. This study focuses on synthesizing urea-doped hydroxyapatite nanomaterials (UD-HAN) through the sol-gel method. Three different formulations were employed, and the resulting materials were subjected to characterization using Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (FESEM) and elemental analysis. To examine the potential fertilizing properties of nanoparticles, UD-HAN was employed across several culture mediums, encompassing alkaline soil, acidic soil, and cocopeat. The study conducted by UD-HAN showed a considerable capacity to serve as a fertilizer in environments with acidic conditions. This work also investigated the nutritional access to synthesized UD-HAN at suggested (UD-HAN-S) and quasi-suggested (UD-HAN-QS) dosages with the suggested dosage of commercial Bulk Urea Fertilizer (BUF) and a Control Treatment (CT) in Acidic Cultivation Environments (ACE). Crop growth characteristics have been evaluated, including plant height, biomass, and production. This suggests that the utilization of UD-HAN has the potential to achieve a yield comparable to that of commercially available fertilizers.