First liquid nano urea plant

Context

During his visit to Gujarat, Prime Minister inaugurated the country’s first liquid nano urea plant at Kalol.

About Liquid Nano Urea (LNU)

• Urea is chemical nitrogen fertiliser, white in colour, which artificially provides nitrogen, a major nutrient required by plants.
• 2-4 ml of nano urea should be mixed a litre of water and sprayed on crop leaves at active growth stages.
• It is essentially urea in the form of a nanoparticle.
• The size of a nano nitrogen particle varies from 20-50 nm. (A nanometre is equal to a billionth of a metre.)
• liquid nano urea contains 4 per cent total nitrogen (w/v) evenly dispersed in water.
• It is sprayed directly on the leaves and gets absorbed by the plant.
• Fertilisers in nano form provide a targeted supply of nutrients to crops, as they are absorbed by the stomata, pores found on the epidermis of leaves.
• The product has been developed at IFFCO’s Nano Biotechnology Research Centre (NBRC) at Kalol. 
• According to IFFCO, liquid nano urea contains 4 per cent total nitrogen (w/v) evenly dispersed in water.

Conventional urea & liquid nano urea  

• The efficiency of liquid nano urea can be as high as 85-90 per cent.
• While conventional urea has an efficiency of about 25 per cent.
• Liquid nano urea is sprayed directly on the leaves and gets absorbed by the plant. Fertilisers in nano form provide a targeted supply of nutrients to crops, as they are absorbed by the stomata, pores found on the epidermis of leaves.
• Conventional urea fails to have the desired impact on crops as it is often applied incorrectly, and the nitrogen in it is vaporised or lost as gas. A lot of nitrogen is also washed away during irrigation.

Significance

• It is aimed at reducing the unbalanced and indiscriminate use of conventional urea, increase crop productivity, and reduce soil, water, and air pollution.
• Liquid nano urea has a shelf life of a year, and farmers need not be worried about “caking” when it comes in contact with moisture.
• This patented product is expected to not only substitute imported urea, but to also produce better results in farms.
• Apart from reducing the country’s subsidy bill, it is aimed at reducing the unbalanced and indiscriminate use of conventional urea.