Preparation & Application Of Some Phosphoborosilicate Glasses Containing Micronutrients As Plant Fertilisers

Some selected phosphoborosilicate glasses containing one or more of the micronutrients: Cu, Mn, Fe, Zn & Mo were prepared from analytical grade chemicals. The grain method was applied to measure the corrosion behaviour of the glass towards the action of different solutions: water, citric acid, & HCL at 95 C for prolonged times of immersion. The weight loss from the grains after each specific time was calculated & compared. The leached solutions were chemically analysed to determine the amount of K+ & P5+ released during the corrosion tests & the data were evaluated. Experimental results reveal that a decrease in K2O content lowers the wt loss%, & that the HCl solution corrodes the glasses more than the citric acid solution or distilled water. Citric acid solution is observed to extract K+ and P5+ ions to a greater extent than the HCl solution and water.