Efficacy of a new N-(n-butyl) thiophosphoric triamide formulation in reducing ammonia volatilization from urea-based fertilizers

N-(n-Butyl)thiophosphoric triamide (NBPT) has been reported to reduce ammonia volatilization from surface-applied urea and urea ammonium nitrate (UAN). A new NBPT formulation (ARM U™, 18% NBPT) that contains a polymer allowing for lower application rate of NBPT was evaluated for its efficacy relativ...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Canadian Journal of Soil Science Vol. 99; no. 4; pp. 395 - 405
Main Authors: Lasisi, Ahmed A, Akinremi, Olalekan O, Kumaragamage, Darshani
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Ottawa Canadian Science Publishing 01-12-2019
Canadian Science Publishing NRC Research Press
Subjects:
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:N-(n-Butyl)thiophosphoric triamide (NBPT) has been reported to reduce ammonia volatilization from surface-applied urea and urea ammonium nitrate (UAN). A new NBPT formulation (ARM U™, 18% NBPT) that contains a polymer allowing for lower application rate of NBPT was evaluated for its efficacy relative to Agrotain® (30% NBPT) and Arborite® (24% NBPT). Trials consisted of (i) a greenhouse study that compared two rates of ARM U-treated urea (360 and 540 mg NBPT kg-1 urea) with Arborite- or Agrotain-treated urea (480 and 600 mg NBPT kg-1 urea, respectively) and (ii) a field study that compared urea and UAN treated with either ARM U (360 mg NBPT kg-1 urea) or Agrotain (600 mg NBPT kg-1 urea) at two sites. Static chambers fitted with acid-charged discs were used to measure ammonia volatilization at six or seven dates over 28 d. In the greenhouse study, ammonia volatilization was reduced by 96% with either ARM U or Agrotain and 95% with Arborite. In the field study, ARM U and Agrotain reduced ammonia volatilization from urea by 80% and 66%, respectively, across sites. Similarly, ammonia volatilization from UAN was reduced by 46% and 60% with ARM U and Agrotain, respectively. Despite the lower NBPT application rates with ARM U, ammonia reduction by ARM U, Agrotain, and Arborite was not significantly different. The addition of ARM U to urea and UAN enabled lower application rate of NBPT without compromising its efficacy.
ISSN:0008-4271
1918-1841
1918-1833
DOI:10.1139/cjss-2018-0072