Abstract
This chapter overviews the major silicate fertilizers commercially available and describes briefly their manufacturing processes. Silicon (Si) sources for agricultural use range from chemical products to natural minerals to by-products of steel and iron industries. All these products are shown to be effective in improving crop growth and yield. Slag-based silicate fertilizers are cost-effective, but more attention should be paid to their potential environmental risks which may arise from the heavy metals contained in the fertilizers. Soluble potassium or sodium silicates are completely water soluble and can be used as foliar fertilizers, but are usually too expensive for soil application. Slow-releasing potassium-containing or potassium-rich silicates that are manufactured using feldspar as raw materials are not only cost-effective and agriculturally effective but also environmentally friendly.
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Liang, Y., Nikolic, M., Bélanger, R., Gong, H., Song, A. (2015). Silicon Sources for Agriculture. In: Silicon in Agriculture. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9978-2_12
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9978-2_12
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
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