Potassium nitrate application. Potassium nitrate - properties, application, composition

In addition, as a dietary supplement, potassium nitrate enters the body in fairly small doses, and their use can be controlled. It is more likely to cause harm from its use with fruits and vegetables that are overly fertilized with mineral fertilizers, or even with water into which these substances can get from the soil. Moreover, unlike sausage or cheese, vegetables and water do not write a list of the substances they contain.

Thus, if all or some of the above symptoms are observed, in addition to other measures, it is worth starting to drink filtered water, eat vegetables grown on organic fertilizers and slightly limit the use of products containing E252. Moreover, now is not the Middle Ages, and everyone in the house has a refrigerator for storing meat and fish.

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Every farmer and florist is well acquainted with potassium nitrate or, as it is also called, potassium nitrate. This fertilizer is an indispensable assistant in the cultivation of almost all horticultural crops, flowers, ornamental plants, lawn sowing. Comprehensively supplying them with potassium-nitrogen components, potassium nitrate promotes plant growth. Below we will tell you how to get a solution of the drug, familiarize yourself with the conditions, methods of its use, safety precautions during use.

What is potassium nitrate?

Potassium nitrate (also known as potassium nitrate, potassium nitrate, potassium salt of nitric acid) is a two-component fertilizer with the chemical formula KNO3.

It consists of:

• potassium (K) - 44-46%;
• nitrogen (N) - 13%.

Active components allow the use of this additive on almost any type of soil and throughout the entire growing season of cultivated crops.

What are the features of potassium nitrate?

The additive is characterized by the following properties:

Potassium nitrate, or potassium nitrate is a mineral fertilizer that has received wide use in agriculture

• has the appearance of white, sometimes yellowish, odorless crystals resembling a powder;
• sold in bags with a capacity of 1 to 50 kg;
• it dissolves well in water, hydrazine, glycerin, liquid ammonia (but not ether or ethanol) are suitable for the same purposes;
• melts at very high temperatures;
• flammable when heated, presenting a danger;
• the composition is not volatile;
• devoid of harmful additives;
• does not affect soil acidity;
• effective for soils poor in potassium, and plantations that do not tolerate chlorine (potatoes, grapes, tobacco);
• it is used on open and closed soil: in the garden, flower bed, when feeding indoor flowers;
• it is well combined with other means for top dressing, soluble in water;
• caking in case of prolonged storage in non-hermetic packaging.

What is this remedy used for and how does it work?

Potassium nitrate is used to influence vegetation in the following areas:

• improves the absorption of substances by the root system, increases its branching;
• balances photosynthesis;
• accelerates growth;
• improves the quality of the tissue structure;

Most often, it is introduced as an additional nutrition for plants that categorically do not tolerate chlorine.

• increases stress resistance, frost resistance and immunity;
• increases productivity (number and size of fruits);
• prevents cracking of fruits, increases their safety;
• improves taste qualities fruit and berry products, contributing to the accumulation of sugar (beets, grapes);
• prevents the development of bacteria and fungi.

For which crops is potassium nitrate most often used?

The most effective fertilizer with this tool is the following varieties of vegetation:

• root crops (beets, carrots);
• berry plants (tomatoes, currants, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, grapes, gooseberries);
• fruit trees.

A lesser effect is observed when feeding potatoes, cabbage, radish, greens.

What methods of feeding this means are most productive?

The application of dry matter is practiced, but the fastest effect is observed when using exactly 2% aqueous solution.

Potassium from the composition of this fertilizer is much more useful fruit trees and berries including, and tomatoes

There are two common ways to use a solution of potassium nitrate:

1. Root feed. It is carried out once in 14 days, by applying a working solution under the plant at the rhizome.
2. Foliar feeding is spraying with a sprayer. It is carried out 2 to 4 times for the entire growing season. Requires a higher concentration of the substance in the solution (approximately 2.5 g / l), since part of it evaporates from the foliage and is washed off during subsequent watering. Fund consumption:

• for vegetables, flower and ornamental plantings - 0.7-1 l / sq.m;
• for berries - 1 l / sq.m;
• for fruit trees - 1.5-7 l / sq.m (depending on the age and density of the tree crown).

Water the vegetation thoroughly after each application.

ATTENTION! Do not mix potassium nitric acid crystals with an organic type of fertilizer (compost, peat, straw, sawdust, manure).

Best time to use

1. For the first time, the substance must be applied in the month of April.
2. The second time - during the sowing of the soil (May).
3. Provide the soil with nitrogen from the beginning of bud formation until fruit ripening.
4. In the summer, feed the vegetation foliarly, being careful not to overdo it with the amount of the applied substance. Such feeding should be stopped a month before harvest.
5. Autumn fertilizer of fruit trees will increase their frost resistance.

After the introduction of potassium nitrate, the quality and quantity of the crop are noticeably improved.

Potassium nitrate - instructions for use for garden crops

Farmers and gardeners are advised to use potassium nitrate for specific vegetable crops:

1. Cucumbers. Fertilized with a solution in the fruiting phase. The yield increases, but not the growth of greenery (stems and leaves).
2. Tomatoes. They are shown watering the seedlings, when 4 developed leaves appear in it. Also, re-treatment with potassium nitrate is necessary a week before planting the seed in the soil and during the picking of the bushes.

The root application of the drug in the flowering phase of tomatoes will increase the yield by 40%.

1. Roots. Potatoes, carrots, radishes and other crops are supplied with potassium nitrate components by introducing dry preparation crystals directly into the ground (up to 50 g / sq.m) during spring digging. Root crops are planted after a few days. Please note:

• potatoes are processed during hilling, at the peak of development potato tops. It is recommended to mix this supplement with phosphorus for the best effect;
• cabbage and radish are fortified with potassium nitrate mixed with calcium;
• beets and carrots prefer a product without impurities.

As a fertilizer, potassium nitrate can be applied under plants both in dry and liquid form.

Dosage and methods of using potassium nitrate for fruit trees, shrubs

Under the root, near the trunk or in the hole, make a solution in the dosage:

• for berry plants– 1 g/l;
• for fruit trees - 2.5 g / l.

For spraying, the consumption rates are different:

• berry bushes - 1-2 g / l;
• fruit trees - 2.5-3 g / l.

Flowers and other ornamental crops in open areas

Floral and ornamental plantings flower beds, garden plots also need additional nutrients, including potassium nitrate.

It is added in quantities:

• with root top dressing - 1.5 g / l;
• when spraying - 2.5 g / l (consumption - 0.7 l / sq.m).

It is used no more than 2 times per season, as a rule, on the eve of planting flowers in a flower bed (applying a dry preparation when digging up the earth). Thus, the soil is enriched with minerals. Root fertilizer with a solution is carried out a few days before flowering.

Saltpeter is intended for some varieties that do not react well with other types of fertilizers.

First of all, potassium nitrate is shown in colors:

• small-bulbous;
• rhododendrons;
• dahlias, tulips, gladioli;
• lilies;
• clematis.

Rules for the use of potassium nitrate for indoor plants

According to experts and consumer reviews, the dosage prescribed for flowerbed plants, in the case of indoor plants, should be halved. That is, use a working solution at a concentration of 0.5 g / l.

Fertilizer is especially useful for:

• violets;
• begonias;
• orchids;
• ferns and other exotic species of subtropical origin.

Deciduous ornamental plants prefer watering with a complex solution twice a month. To prepare it you will need:

• water (1 l);
• potassium nitrate (0.1 g);
• (0.4 g);
• simple superphosphate (0.5 g).

The working solution cannot be stored, after preparation it must be used immediately.

In greenhouse cultivation of vegetables and indoor plants saltpeter is used to strengthen plants

Precautions and storage of the drug

When choosing KNO3 for feeding plantings, remember that potassium nitrate is a dangerous substance:

• is an oxidizing agent that quickly reacts with various combustible substances;
• toxic;
• a high concentration of the solution can cause irritation and chemical burns in humans.

It is necessary to store the substance in sealed packaging, separately from other fertilizers and products. household chemicals and away from flammable substances and heaters. The bag with bait must be protected from direct sunlight.

Safety precautions during use:

1. Do not inhale the substance, do not taste it, and do not apply the solution to the skin.
2. Wear gloves, closed clothing and shoes when handling working solution and dry granules. When foliar feeding (spraying), protect the respiratory tract with a respirator, and eyes with special glasses.
3. Do not use kitchen utensils when working with saltpeter.
4. If the substance is heated, it is very likely to ignite or explode, so do not use it in hot weather. For the same reason, do not mix the product with substances of organic origin. Do not smoke or make fire near it.

First aid:

• in case of contact with the skin, wash it with cold water;
• in case of contact with the eyes, it is also advised to wash them (during which the eyelids should be kept open);
• after a burn, apply a sterile dressing to the affected area and consult a doctor.

Compatibility of potassium nitrate with other drugs

This nutritional supplement mixed with the following plant nutrition products:

• lime fertilizers;
• phosphorite flour;
• urea;
• ammonium nitrate.

Properly applied potassium nitrate, you will get high yield excellent quality in the garden, increase the immunity and productivity of fruit and berry garden crops, contribute to the development of flowers and other ornamental crops living in flower beds and indoors.

potassium nitrate — chemical compound with the chemical formula KNO. It is an ionic salt of potassium ions K and nitrate ions NO.

It occurs as the mineral saltpeter and is a natural solid source of nitrogen. Potassium nitrate is one of several nitrogen containing compounds collectively referred to as saltpeter or saltpeter.

The main uses of potassium nitrate are in fertilizers, rocket fuel and fireworks. It is one of the main constituents of gunpowder (black powder) and has been used since the Middle Ages as a food preservative.

Etymology

Potassium nitrate, due to its early and global use and production, has many names.

The Greeks used the term Nitron who was latinised to nitrum or nitrium. Earlier Hebrew and Egyptian both use words with consonants n-t-r, which leads some to speculate that the Latin term is closer to the original than the Greek term. Middle English developed it nitre. At the old French there is saltpeter. By the 15th century Europeans referred to it as saltpeter and later as potash nitrate as the chemistry of the compound has been more fully understood.

The Arabs called it Chinese snow. It was called Chinese salt by Iranians/Persians or salt from Chinese salt marshes

Properties

potassium nitrate has a prismatic crystal structure at room temperature, which converts to the triangular system at 129 C. After heating to temperatures between 550 and 790 C under an oxygen atmosphere, it loses oxygen and reaches a temperature dependent equilibrium with potassium nitrite:

:2 KNO → 2 KNO + O

Potassium nitrate is moderately soluble in water, but its solubility increases with temperature (see infobox). The aqueous solution is almost neutral, showing a pH of 6.2 at 14 C for a 10% commercial powder solution. It is not very hygroscopic, absorbing about 0.03% water at 80% relative humidity over 50 days. It is insoluble in alcohol and non-toxic; it may react by exploding with cutting agents, but it is not explosive on its own.

Production history

From mineral springs

Earliest Known complete process purification for potassium nitrate has been outlined in in general terms in 1270 by the chemist and engineer Hasan al-Rammah of Syria in his book al-Furusiya wa al-Manasib al-Harbiya (Book of the Martial Art of Horsemanship and Ingenious Military Devices). In this book, al-Rammah describes first the purification barud(crude saltpeter mineral) by boiling it with minimal water and using only a hot solution, then using potassium carbonate (in the form wood ash) to remove calcium and magnesium by precipitating their carbonates from this solution, leaving a solution of purified potassium nitrate which could then be dried.

Potassium nitrate

This was used to make gunpowder and explosive devices. The terminology used by al-Rammah indicated a Chinese origin for the gunpowder weapon he wrote about.

From at least as early as 1845, Chilean saltpeter deposits were being exploited in Chile and California, USA.

From the caves

The main natural source of potassium nitrate was the crystallization of deposits from cave walls and accumulations of guano. bat in the caves. Extraction is achieved by immersing the guano in water for a day, filtering and harvesting the crystals in the filtered water.

Traditionally, guano was the source used in Laos to make rocket powder. Banga Faya.

LeConte

Perhaps the most exhaustive discussion of the production of this material is the 1862 LeConte text. He wrote with the express purpose of increasing production in the Confederate States to support their needs during the American Civil War. Since he called for the help of rural agricultural societies, descriptions and instructions are both simple and explicit. He details the French Method, along with a few modifications, as well as the Swiss Method. N.B. Many references have been made to a method using only straw and urine, but there is no such method in this work.

french method

Saltpeter beds are prepared by mixing fertilizer with either mortar or wood ash, common earth and organic materials such as straw to give porosity to the compost pile, typically 1.525 meters in size. The pile was usually kept under a rain cover, kept moist with urine turned frequently to hasten decomposition, then finally leached with water after about one year, to remove the soluble calcium nitrate, which was then converted to potassium nitrate, by permeating the potash.

swiss method

Lecomte describes the process using only urine and not excrement, referring to it as swiss method. Urine is collected directly in the sandbox under the stable. The sand itself is tapped and leached to nitrates, which were then converted to potassium nitrate via potash, as above.

From nitric acid

From 1903 until the World War I era, potassium nitrate for black powder and fertilizer was produced on an industrial scale from nitric acid produced through the Birkeland–Eyde process, which used electric arc to oxidize nitrogen from the air. During World War I, the newly industrialized Haber process (1913) was combined with the Ostwald process after 1915, allowing Germany to produce nitric acid for the war while being cut off from its supply of the mineral sodium nitrate from Chile (see nitratite).

Production

Potassium nitrate can be made by combining ammonium nitrate and potassium hydroxide.

:NHNO (AQ) + KOH (AQ) → NH (g) + KNO (AQ) + HO (l)

An alternative way to produce potassium nitrate without the ammonia by-product is to combine ammonium nitrate and potassium chloride, easily obtained as a sodium-free salt substitute.

:NHNO (AQ) + KCl (AQ) → NHCl (AQ) + KNO (AQ)

Potassium nitrate can also be produced by neutralizing nitric acid with potassium hydroxide. This reaction is highly exothermic.

:KOH(AQ) + HNO → KNO(AQ) + HO(l)

On an industrial scale, it is prepared by a double displacement reaction between sodium nitrate and potassium chloride.

:NaNO (AQ) + KCl (AQ) (AQ) NaCl + KNO (AQ)

Usage

Potassium nitrate has a wide variety of uses, mainly as a source of nitrate.

Nitric acid production

Historically, nitric acid was produced by combining sulfuric acid with nitrates such as saltpeter. AT modern times this is reversed: nitrates are produced from nitric acid produced through the Ostwald process.

Oxidizing agent

The most famous use of potassium nitrate is probably as an oxidizing agent in black powder. From the most ancient times until the late 1880s, black powder provided the explosive power for all firearms in the world. After that time weapon and the big artillery became more and more dependent on cordite, the smokeless powder. Black powder remains in use today in black powder rocket engines, but also in combination with other fuels like sugar in rocket candy. It is also used on fireworks such as smoke bombs. It is also added to cigarettes to support even tobacco burn and is used to ensure complete combustion of paper cap and ball revolver cartridges.

food preservation

In the process of food preservation, potassium nitrate has been a common ingredient in salted meats since the Middle Ages, but its use has mostly been discontinued due to inconsistent results compared to more modern nitrate and nitrite compounds. Despite this, saltpeter is still used in some food application, such as meat snack, and sea water used to make corned beef. When used as a food additive in the European Union, the formulation is referred to as E252; also approved for use as a dietary supplement in the US and Australia and New Zealand (where it is listed under its INS number 252). Although nitrate salts have been suspected in the production of the carcinogen nitrosamine, and sodium and potassium nitrates and nitrites have been added to meat in the US since 1925, and nitrates and nitrites have not been removed from stored meat products because nitrite and nitrate inhibit the germination of C. botulinum endospores, and thus prevents botulism from a bacterial toxin that may otherwise be produced in certain stored meat products.

Cooking food

In West African cuisine, potassium nitrate (salt petre) is widely used as a thickening agent in soups and stews such as Okra soup and Isi ewu. It is also used to tenderize food and reduce cooking time by simmering beans and tough meats. Petre salt is also an essential ingredient in making specialty cereals such as kunun kanwa literally translated from the Hausa language as salt petre porridge.

Fertilizer

Potassium nitrate is used in fertilizers as a source of nitrogen and potassium - two of the macronutrients for plants. When used by itself, it has an NPK rating of 13-0-44.

Pharmacology

• Used in some toothpastes for sensitive teeth. Recently, the use of potassium nitrate in toothpastes for treating sensitive teeth has increased and it may be an effective treatment.
• Used historically to treat asthma. Used in some toothpastes to relieve asthma symptoms.
• Used in Thailand as the main ingredient in Kidney Tablets to relieve the symptoms of cystitis, pyelitis and urethritis.
• Combat high blood pressure and was once used as a hypotonic.

Other uses

• Electrolyte in salt bridge
• The active ingredient in the compressed aerosol triggers suppression systems. When burned with fire flame free radicals, it produces potassium carbonate.
• A component (usually about 98%) of some stump removal products. It speeds up the natural decomposition of the stump, supplying nitrogen for fungi attacking the stump wood.
• In metal heat treatment as a medium temperature molten salt bath, usually in combination with sodium nitrite. A similar bath is used to produce the long lasting blue/black coating typically seen on firearms. Its oxidation quality, water solubility and low cost make it an ideal short term rust inhibitor.
• Cause flowering mango trees in the Philippines.
• Thermal data carrier in power generation systems. The sodium and potassium nitrate salts are kept molten with solar energy collected by heliostats at the Gemasolar Thermosolar Plant. salts, with the addition of calcium nitrate or lithium nitrate, have been found to improve thermal storage capacity in molten salts.

In folklore and popular culture

Potassium nitrate was once thought to cause impotence and is still falsely rumored to be in established foods (such as military fare) as a sedative; however, there is no scientific evidence for such properties.

see also

Bibliography

• Dennis W. Barnum. (2003). Some History of Nitrates. Journal of Chemical Education. v. 80, p. 1393-. connection.
• David Cressy. Saltpeter: The Mother of Gunpowder(Oxford University Press, 2013) 237 pp internet reviews by Robert Tiegs
• Alan Williams. Saltpeter production in the Middle Ages, Ambix, 22 (1975), pp. 125-33. Maney Publishing, ISSN 0002-6980.

External links

• International Chemical Safety Card 018402216

Foreign relations of Chile
Chemical reaction
explosive material
Greek fire
Monopoly
Potassium
Sulfuric acid
West Virginia
11th century
Beef
East India Company
Seasoning
Nitrocellulose
Saltpeter (disambiguation)
Mammoth Cave National Park
Spider silk
Monroe County, West Virginia
Van Buren County, Tennessee
Marion County, Tennessee
Hamilton County, Tennessee
Campbell County, Tennessee
Hazardville, Connecticut
Salting (meals)
(Musical) 1776
pepperoni

Potassium nitrate, or potassium nitrate (KNO3) is a mineral fertilizer widely used in agriculture. It has been used in industrial agriculture for more than thirty years, and is considered an effective, efficient top dressing. Most often, it is introduced as an additional nutrition for plants that categorically do not tolerate chlorine. In home gardens, potassium nitrate is most often fed with crops such as strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, beets, carrots, tobacco and grapes.

As can be seen from the formula (KNO3), the main active elements in this fertilizer are potassium and nitrogen.

This is a very profitable tandem, because thanks to nitrogen, the growth of horticultural and vegetable crops noticeably accelerates, and potassium increases the sucking power of the roots, which begin to absorb much more actively. nutrients from the surrounding soil complex. Another positive aspect of the use of this agorotuk is the improvement of plant cell respiration due to biochemical reactions, for which potassium nitrate acts as a catalyst. Oxygenated cells help to activate the plant's own immunity, protecting it from many diseases, which, in turn, helps to increase yields.

Composition and properties

Potassium nitrate, as mentioned above, contains two main components that have a nutritional effect on plants. Moreover, unlike most mineral fertilizers, here the specific proportion of potassium (44%) significantly exceeds the specific proportion of nitrogen (13%). This ratio allows the use of potassium nitrate even after the plant has faded and formed ovaries. A relatively small amount of nitrogen will strengthen the plant, but will not spur the growth of green mass, and will not "distract" it from the main task - the formation of fruits and berries. And the potassium introduced at this stage will lay the foundation for the qualitative development of the future harvest, and will help the fruits and berries to acquire excellent taste.

Small, fragile crystals white color- it is in this form that you can most often buy potassium nitrate. Less often, it is sold as a white powder, which tends to cake, so bags with this fertilizer should always be hermetically sealed. This agro-tuk has a high hygroscopicity, which makes it easy to dissolve potassium nitrate in water, preparing solutions from it for feeding garden and garden plants.

Application

Potassium nitrate is used for root and foliar dressings. The best effect of applying this fertilizer is observed in root crops (carrots, beets), and berry crops.

Saltpeter - fertilizer for everyone and everyone, or where to be careful?

But for potatoes, it will not be too effective, he loves phosphorus. It also makes no sense to add potassium nitrate under greens, radish and cabbage - this is irrational. Potassium from the composition of this fertilizer is much more useful to fruit trees and berries (including tomatoes, because this is also a berry). After the introduction of potassium nitrate, the quality and quantity of the crop are noticeably improved - the pulp is abundantly saturated with fruit sugars that affect the taste finished products, and the size of fruits and berries increases. Also, due to the introduction of this agrotuk at the stage of laying the ovaries, the keeping quality of the fruits improves, respectively, their shelf life increases.

As a fertilizer, potassium nitrate can be applied under plants both in dry and liquid form. Since the solution acts much faster, it is used more often for top dressing. The following proportions are recommended:

• For flowers and ornamental plants (in the garden) 15 g per 10 liters of water.
• Gooseberries, currants, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries - 20 g per 10 liters of water.
• Fruit trees - 25 g per 10 liters of water.

This instruction for use is valid when the solution is applied under the root, in the near-stem circle or in the hole. But for foliar top dressing, you can make a more concentrated solution, given that part of the fertilizer will be lost after evaporation from the leaves, and also washed off during irrigation. Therefore, it is desirable to make the maximum possible concentration, about 25 g per 10 liters. Plants are sprayed with this solution, spending it in the following quantities:

For the whole summer period it is necessary to make at least two, and no more than four sprayings, not forgetting that the last one must be done at least 3-4 weeks before harvesting.

If it was not possible to correctly calculate the timing, and the fruits or berries ripened earlier, then it is necessary to act as follows - ten days before the collection of finished products, the berry rows or the crown of the tree are abundantly poured with water from a hose with a sprayer.

Repeat the procedure every other day, three times, and stop two or three days before harvest. Watering should be done carefully, trying not to knock the fruits and berries off the stalks.

Potassium nitrate, otherwise called potassium nitrate, potassium nitrate, potassium nitrate, Indian saltpeter (other names are possible), is an inorganic binary compound, a potassium salt of nitric acid. The chemical formula is KNO3.

Previously, it was extracted from wood ash or limestone, but today it is isolated from plants. Potassium nitrate in the form of a mineral is also found in nature. Since one of its largest deposits is located in the East Indies, the name "Indian saltpeter" comes from here.

AT Food Industry potassium nitrate is known as a food preservative E252. It is used in order to ensure the safety of products, as it is an obstacle to the reproduction and growth of fungi and bacteria.

In the territory Russian Federation its use is prohibited, however, in other countries, manufacturers are officially allowed to add it to products, albeit in limited quantities.

Properties of potassium nitrate

Externally, it is a crystalline powder that has no odor or color. It decomposes only at high temperatures (over 400 degrees), with the release of oxygen. May react with combustible materials.

One of the properties of potassium nitrate is its good solubility in water. in addition, the substance has some hygroscopicity, but is odorless and non-volatile. It also dissolves in glycerin, liquid ammonia, hydrazine, but does not dissolve in pure ethanol and ether. Can be purified by recrystallization.

The use of potassium nitrate

The main application today is the use of potassium nitrate as a fertilizer in agriculture. This fertilizer combines two elements that somewhat block the absorption of one another by plants.

In addition, the substance is indispensable in pyrotechnics, the manufacture of black powder, caramel rocket fuel.

The use of potassium nitrate in the garden and in the garden

It finds application in such areas as the electrovacuum industry, optical glassmaking (with its help, technical crystal glasses are discolored and brightened, strength is given to glass products).

Potassium nitrate is also used in metallurgy as an oxidizing agent, for example, in the processing of nickel ores..

In the food industry, preservative E252 is used in the manufacture meat products such as sausages, frankfurters and cured meats, as well as for cheese production. Due to the high content of potassium nitrate, the product may change color, so it is used in the processing of anchovies. It should be noted that the preservative has some antimicrobial activity.

In addition, this food preservative is contained in preventive toothpastes.

Harm of potassium nitrate

Preservative E252 can be harmful to human health. This is due to the fact that when it is used for cooking food, a fairly large part of it enters the body. There it can be transformed into nitrites, which have negative effects on internal systems human body.

If potassium nitrate enters the body for a long time and in large doses, this can affect the kidneys., cause anemia, violation of the pulse. The main symptom of its excess in the body is abdominal pain, in addition, vomiting, weakness, and impaired coordination may occur. In asthma sufferers, it can cause suffocation due to its ability to affect the oxygen balance in the blood. Exacerbates some diseases, is considered a provocateur of the development of tumors. For children, the use of food products in which this food additive is present is categorically contraindicated.

Potassium nitrate, or potassium nitrate (KNO3) is a mineral fertilizer widely used in agriculture. It has been used in industrial agriculture for more than thirty years, and is considered an effective, efficient top dressing. Most often, it is introduced as an additional nutrition for plants that categorically do not tolerate chlorine.

Potassium nitrate (potassium nitrate)

In home gardens, potassium nitrate is most often fed with crops such as strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, beets, carrots, tobacco and grapes.

As can be seen from the formula (KNO3), the main active elements in this fertilizer are potassium and nitrogen.

This is a very beneficial tandem, because thanks to nitrogen, the growth of horticultural and vegetable crops noticeably accelerates, and potassium increases the sucking power of the roots, which begin to absorb nutrients from the surrounding soil complex much more actively. Another positive aspect of the use of this agorotuk is the improvement of plant cell respiration due to biochemical reactions, for which potassium nitrate acts as a catalyst. Oxygenated cells help to activate the plant's own immunity, protecting it from many diseases, which, in turn, helps to increase yields.

Composition and properties

Potassium nitrate, as mentioned above, contains two main components that have a nutritional effect on plants. Moreover, unlike most mineral fertilizers, here the specific proportion of potassium (44%) significantly exceeds the specific proportion of nitrogen (13%). This ratio allows the use of potassium nitrate even after the plant has faded and formed ovaries. A relatively small amount of nitrogen will strengthen the plant, but will not spur the growth of green mass, and will not "distract" it from the main task - the formation of fruits and berries. And the potassium introduced at this stage will lay the foundation for the qualitative development of the future harvest, and will help the fruits and berries to acquire excellent taste.

Small, fragile white crystals - it is in this form that you can most often buy potassium nitrate. Less often, it is sold as a white powder, which tends to cake, so bags with this fertilizer should always be hermetically sealed. This agro-tuk has a high hygroscopicity, which makes it easy to dissolve potassium nitrate in water, preparing solutions from it for feeding garden and garden plants.

Application

Potassium nitrate is used for root and foliar dressings. The best effect of applying this fertilizer is observed in root crops (carrots, beets), and berry crops. But for potatoes, it will not be too effective, he loves phosphorus. It also makes no sense to add potassium nitrate under greens, radish and cabbage - this is irrational. Potassium from the composition of this fertilizer is much more useful to fruit trees and berries (including tomatoes, because this is also a berry). After the introduction of potassium nitrate, the quality and quantity of the crop are noticeably improved - the pulp is abundantly saturated with fruit sugars, which affect the taste of the finished product, and the size of fruits and berries increases. Also, due to the introduction of this agrotuk at the stage of laying the ovaries, the keeping quality of the fruits improves, respectively, their shelf life increases.

As a fertilizer, potassium nitrate can be applied under plants both in dry and liquid form. Since the solution acts much faster, it is used more often for top dressing. The following proportions are recommended:

• For flowers and ornamental plants (in the garden) 15 g per 10 liters of water.
• Gooseberries, currants, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries - 20 g per 10 liters of water.
• Fruit trees - 25 g per 10 liters of water.

This instruction for use is valid when the solution is applied under the root, in the near-stem circle or in the hole. But for foliar top dressing, you can make a more concentrated solution, given that part of the fertilizer will be lost after evaporation from the leaves, and also washed off during irrigation. Therefore, it is desirable to make the maximum possible concentration, about 25 g per 10 liters. Plants are sprayed with this solution, spending it in the following quantities:

For the entire summer period, it is necessary to make at least two, and no more than four sprayings, not forgetting that the last one should be done at least 3-4 weeks before harvesting.

If it was not possible to correctly calculate the timing, and the fruits or berries ripened earlier, then it is necessary to act as follows - ten days before the collection of finished products, the berry rows or the crown of the tree are abundantly poured with water from a hose with a sprayer. Repeat the procedure every other day, three times, and stop two or three days before harvest. Watering should be done carefully, trying not to knock the fruits and berries off the stalks.

Food preservative E252 Potassium nitrate is mainly used in the food industry to preserve food, as it prevents the reproduction and growth of bacteria and fungi. Despite the fact that the use of E252 is prohibited by law in Russia, food manufacturers in many other countries of the world are officially allowed to add it to food products, but in limited quantities.

Colorless and odorless crystalline powder - this is how the food preservative E252 Potassium nitrate can be described externally. This substance can decompose only at a temperature of 400 degrees, while releasing oxygen. The property of potassium nitrate to react with combustible materials is known. Initially, this substance was extracted from limestone or wood ash, while today it is obtained mainly by isolation from plants.

In the food industry, the preservative E252 Potassium nitrate is widely used in the production of cheese and meat products (sausages, sausages and canned meat). The high content of E252 contributes to a change in the color of products, therefore, due to this property, it is actively used in the processing of anchovies. In addition, potassium nitrate also has a slight antimicrobial effect.

Along with the manufacture of food products, food preservative E252 Potassium nitrate is often used in other areas of human life.

How to use potassium nitrate correctly?

This mainly concerns glass production, the manufacture of rocket fuel, fertilizers, as well as the production of preventive toothpastes.

Harm of food preservative E252 Potassium nitrate

The harm of food preservative E252 Potassium nitrate for human health is due to the fact that when this substance is used in food production, a large part of it enters the body. Moreover, it has been scientifically proven that this nitrate is transformed into nitrites, which have a detrimental effect on many internal systems of the human body.

With prolonged and excessive intake of this substance as part of food into the human body, the harm of food preservative E252 Potassium nitrate can manifest itself in the occurrence of anemia and kidney disease. The main symptoms of an excess of potassium nitrite are often acute abdominal pain, vomiting, muscle weakness and incoordination. Often there is a violation of the pulse and arrhythmia.

The food preservative E252 is not able to influence the oxygen balance in the blood in the best way, which can provoke asthma attacks in asthmatics, as well as an exacerbation of kidney diseases.

Relating to the class of carcinogens, the food preservative E252 Potassium nitrate is rightfully considered a provocative substance and a risk factor in the occurrence and development of various types of tumor neoplasms. In addition, the use of food products containing E252 is strictly contraindicated for children.

Structural formula

True, empirical, or gross formula: KNO 3

Chemical composition of potassium nitrate

Molecular weight: 101.106

Potassium nitrate, potassium nitrate(potassium nitrate, potassium nitrate, Indian nitrate, etc.) - inorganic compound, potassium salt of nitric acid with the formula KNO 3 . In the crystalline state - a colorless substance, non-volatile, slightly hygroscopic, odorless. Potassium nitrate is highly soluble in water. Virtually non-toxic to living organisms.
Occurs in nature in the form of the mineral nitrocalite, one of the largest deposits is located in the East Indies, hence the second name is Indian saltpeter. It is found in very small amounts in plants and animals.
The shape of the crystals is needle-shaped, the crystals themselves are very long. Easily cleanable by recrystallization with minimal losses.
It is mainly used in pyrotechnics (until the 20th century it was especially widely used as a component of the main explosive at that time - smoke (black) gunpowder) and as a potassium-nitrogen fertilizer (a very convenient combination of two elements that are usually poorly combined when absorbed by plants).

Physical Properties

Potassium nitrate under normal conditions is a colorless crystal (white powder in a crushed state) with an ionic structure and a rhombic or hexagonal crystal lattice. Slightly hygroscopic, tends to slightly cake over time. Odorless, non-volatile. Highly soluble in water, moderately soluble in glycerol, liquid ammonia, hydrazine, insoluble in pure ethanol and ether (poorly soluble in water diluted). Solubility table in some solvents, in grams of KNO 3 per 100 g of H 2 O:

Chemical properties

• Decomposes at 400-520 ° C with the formation of potassium nitrite KNO 2 and oxygen O 2 (the release of the latter increases the fire hazard of potassium nitrate):
  2KNO 3 → 2KNO 2 + O 2
• It is a strong oxidizing agent, reacts with combustible materials and reducing agents, actively and often with an explosion during grinding. Mixtures of potassium nitrate with certain organic materials tend to ignite spontaneously.
• It is reduced by hydrogen at the moment of isolation (hydrochloric acid is diluted in the reaction):
  Zn + 2HCl → ZnCl 2 + 2H 0
  KNO 3 + 2H 0 → KNO 2 + H 2 O
• Molten potassium nitrate can be used to produce potassium by electrolysis, however, due to the high oxidizing power of potassium nitrate in this state, potassium hydroxide is preferred.

Receipt

In the Middle Ages and the New Age (when gunpowder was actively used), saltpeter was used to obtain potassium nitrate - heaps of a mixture of manure (and other decaying components) with limestone, construction waste and other limestone material with layers of straw or brushwood, covered with turf to hold the resulting gases. During the decay of manure, ammonia was formed, which, accumulating in layers of straw, underwent nitrification and turned first into nitrous, and then into nitric acid. The latter, interacting with limestone, gave Ca (NO 3) 2, which was leached by water. The addition of wood ash (consisting mainly of potash) precipitated CaCO 3 and produced a potassium nitrate solution; often ash was added immediately to the pile instead of limestone, then potassium nitrate was obtained immediately. The reaction of potash with calcium nitrate (calcium nitrate).
Ca(NO 3) 2 + K 2 CO 3 → 2KNO 3 + CaCO 3
is the oldest used by man to obtain potassium nitrate and is still popular. Instead of potash, however, now potassium sulfate is most often used in laboratories, the reaction is very similar:
Ca(NO 3) 2 + K 2 SO 4 → KNO 3 + CaSO 4
The first method was used until 1854, when the German chemist K. Nölner invented the production of potassium nitrate, based on the reaction of more accessible and cheaper potassium chloride and sodium nitrate:
KCl + NaNO 3 → KNO 3 + NaCl
There are several other ways to get potassium nitrate. This is the interaction of ammonium nitrate and potassium chloride with the formation of potassium nitrate and ammonium chloride, the latter is easily separated:
KCl + NH 4 NO 3 → KNO 3 + NH 4 Cl
KOH + HNO 3 → KNO 3 + ammonia by nitrobacteria, which is facilitated by moisture and heat, so the largest deposits are located in countries with a hot climate.
In very small quantities it is found in plants and animals, it is an intermediate product in the processing of soil potassium sulfate and carbonate.

Application

Today, potassium nitrate finds its main application as a valuable fertilizer, as it combines two elements that partially block the absorption of each other by plants when they are part of separate compounds.
It is indispensable in the manufacture of black powder and some other compounds (for example, caramel rocket fuel), which are now almost completely used in the production of pyrotechnics.
It is also used in the electrovacuum industry and optical glassmaking for bleaching and brightening technical crystal glasses and for imparting strength to glass products.
The melt is often used in laboratories and hobbyists to obtain elemental potassium by electrolysis, along with potassium hydroxide.
It is used as a strong oxidizing agent in metallurgy, in particular in the processing of nickel ores.
In the food industry, potassium nitrate is used as a preservative E252. By itself, it does not have a well-defined antibacterial effect, but it is formed in meat products (where potassium nitrate is most widely used) potassium nitrite.

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Physical and chemical characteristics

Potassium nitrate (potassium nitrate) is an anhydrous white crystalline salt (less often with a yellowish tint).

physical characteristics

• Density - 2.11 g / cm 3.
• Melting point - 334 °C
• When heated above 338 °C, it decomposes into potassium nitrite and oxygen.
• Solubility of potassium nitrate in 100 grams of water:
  • o at 20 °C - 31.5 g,
  • o at 40 ° C - 63.9 g,
  • o at 60 ° C - 109.9 g,
  • o at 114 ° C - 312 g.

In solutions of nitric acid, the solubility of potassium nitrate first decreases with increasing concentration, and then increases. The minimum solubility is observed at 50 °C and is equal to 24.91% when the solution contains 27.63% nitric acid and 47.46% water.

Two crystalline modifications of potassium nitrate are known. At low temperatures rhombic crystals are formed, at high - rhomboendric.

Potassium nitrate as a fertilizer refers to complex two-component fertilizers containing and.

Mass fraction of water - no more than 0.1%.

Impurities (ballast) are practically absent. Hygroscopicity is low.

Application

Agriculture

Potassium nitrate (potassium nitrate) is used as a fertilizer for various crops.

Ammophoska brands registered and approved for use in Russia as a fertilizer are in the table on the right.

Industry

Potassium nitrate is used in the glass industry for optical glass melting, the manufacture of mixtures for bleaching and brightening crystal glasses, for increasing the strength of glass products, and for bleaching and brightening technical glass.

Potassium nitrate is used in the vacuum industry, in the production of black powder, in the manufacture of enamels, thermal salts, and heat carriers.

In the food industry, potassium nitrate is used as a preservative.

Behavior in soil

The transformation of potassium nitrate in the soil is due to the interaction with the soil solution and the soil-absorbing complex of potassium ions and nitric acid in the composition of the substance. When applied to the soil, the fertilizer quickly dissolves in the soil solution.

Potassium cations interact with PPC, as well as ions of one-component potassium fertilizers, in two types of absorption: exchange (physico-chemical) and non-exchange (fixation).

The anion of nitric acid provides the fertilizer with the properties of nitrate forms of nitrogen fertilizers. Nitrate forms, like single-component nitrogen fertilizers, move along with soil moisture and can be absorbed only in the warm season by plants or soil microflora in a biological way.

Application on various types of soil

Potassium nitrate is introduced into the soil depending on the content of potassium and nitrogen in it and the soil and climatic conditions of the region. The fertilizer is suitable for all types of soil. When applying to soils in regions with excessive moisture, the possibility of nitrogen loss should be taken into account.

Application methods

Potassium nitrate is used for root and foliar dressings throughout the growing season.

Impact on crops

Potassium nitrate as a nitrogen and potassium fertilizer is a source of nitrogen and potassium for plants. It practically does not contain chlorine and is suitable for fertilizing chlorophobic crops, in particular, potatoes, tobacco, grapes and others.

Perennial fruit and berry crops with late autumn top dressing, they increase winter hardiness and frost resistance.

Receipt

In nature, potassium nitrate occurs in the form of poor deposits. At home, potassium nitrate can be obtained from composts, which include manure, ash, lime, brushwood and other organic matter. As a result of biochemical processes, potassium nitrate is formed in such compost. It is leached with water, obtaining a relatively pure product.

AT chemical industry Potassium nitrate is obtained in several ways:

• Neutralization of alkalis with nitric acid.
• Absorption of nitrous gases by potassium alkalis.
• in a conversion way. This is the most common way to get potassium nitrate. It is based on the exchange decomposition of potassium chloride and sodium nitrate.

NaNO 3 + KCl → NaCl + KNO 3