Urea being water soluble fertilizer is tend to dissolve rapidly in water than urea prills with any protective coating. Hydrolysis of water urea prills application in soil make available for plant uptake after transformation into absorbable forms. But under soil system, the phenomenon of dissolution and transformation is entirely different and governed by soil biochemical activities and climatic parameters.
Thus, I just want to know:
How long it will take to dissolve in distilled water without any soil media ?
Will it transform to other forms of nitrogen or remain same, if this incubation prolong for >24 hours ?
@ Shiv, urea dissolves immediately in distilled water. It initially breaks down as ammonium, then turns into nitrate. Although the breakdown begins immediately but the entire process may take maximum up to 2 days. In Neem coated urea, they put a layer of neem over the plain urea that increases the breakdown time as well as the land fertility capacity that leads to the higher production of crops. The unwanted urea washed away with the water or gets diluted in the air as nitrogen.
No , i dont think , there will be any difference in product type as a result of transformation of urea versus neem coated urea, except the dissolution time taken for urea to be dissolved completely....
Generally, nitrogenous fertilizers like urea is very much unstable in touch of water even in touch of air. Nitrogen use efficiency in rice field is only 30 to 40% and rest of N is lost through volatilization, leaching, perculation etc.
Normal/Prilled urea start to dissolve at just after mix with distilled water, however it can take 1 t0 2 days for total dissolovement. The neem coated urea will take more time for dissolove that means it more stable and more efficient than prilled urea.
We all know that nitrogen first convert to ammonium under un-aerobic condition and turn to nitrate in aerobic condition.
Thanks
thank you Biswajit Karmakar Sir for your comment and contribution.
The transformed or converted products are same while normal urea and neem coated urea prill are dissolved in distilled water. The produced forms are ammonium in absence of oxygen and nitrate in aerobic condition. But the dissolving time is different. Normal urea starts to dissolve quickly immediately after contact with water. And it takes 24 hours or more for its complete dissolution. In contrast, neem coated urea is a form of urea covering with a coat of neem which takes longer time to breakdown the coat and dissolve in water.
The molecular formula for urea is CO-(NH2)2. When urea dissolves in water it form hydrogen bonds which will be two fold, hydrogen atoms bonded to water will align to the partially eletronegative area of the amine group or oxygen of the carbonyl and the hydrogen bonded to the amine group will be attracted and associated to the oxygen end of a water molecule. It is also possible that a very small portion of molecules will protenate the amine group from water which would make a solution of urea ever so slightly basic while it sets up a equilibrium forming ammonium cyanate and ammonium ion. The release of ammonium ion and ammonium cyanate will be less in neem coated prilled urea than normal urea (Uncoated).
The granules of both normal and neem coated urea don't consist of any protective physical coat which can act as barrier against the dissolution of molecule in water. So that, these grains will start dissolving right after the incubation in water and may completely dissolve within 2-3 hours.
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