Nitrates: The basic raw materials for commercial fertilizers are Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium. The use of commercial fertilizer has greatly increased in order to maintain the productive capacity of the soil. Nitrogen is also needed for making explosives and dyes and drugs, etc. 80 per cent of its production is used in agriculture. Natural nitrates, by-products of blast furnaces and coke ovens and synthetic nitrates are the present-day sources of nitrogen supply.
Chilean Nitrate: Mineral nitrate was first found in Chile. Chile is fortunate in having large nitrate beds scattered over a wide area of 450 miles in the desert area and in the Pampas areas and low coastal regions. Soft nitrate ore known as Caliche is obtained by removing with the help of steam shovels the cover of non-nitrogen bearing materials. In 1885 Chile supplied more than 85 per cent of the world's nitrogen requirements. But now she supplies only 10 per cent. The rapid production of artificial nitrate at a decreasing cost in the U.S.A. and Europe has greatly reduced the market of Chilean nitrate in the present times.
Phosphorus: It is demanded as a raw material for fertilizer industry and it constitute the raw materials for a number of industrial products of chemical industry.
Sulphur: It is widely found in igneous rocks. Sulphur is used in the manufacture of sulphuric acid consuming about 75 per cent of the total supply of sulphur. Other uses are in the manufacture of fertilizers, insecticides, pulp and paper and explosives. Sulphur may be derived from three sources
(i) native sulphur,
(ii) sulphide of metals, chiefly iron (pyrite) and
(iii) sulphide ores such as copper, zinc and silver. The first two sources contribute most of the world's output.
Its main source of supply is phosphate rock. Other sources include super phosphates of lime, by-product phosphate from the slag of steel furnaces. More than 50 percent of phosphoric acid comes from the phosphate rock. The world reserve of phosphate rock is estimated at 34 billion tons. Russia and U.S.A. have 15 per cent and 12 per cent of the world's production. The U.S.A. produces 40 per cent of the world's total supply. In USA, Florida produces about 75 per cent and Tennessee 15 percent of phosphoric acid obtained from phosphate rock in U.SA
Kazakhstan and the region lying between the Volga and the Dniepr rivers contain huge reserves of phosphate rocks. Reserves are worked at Kara-Tan and Aktyubinsk in Kazakhstan. In west central Europe basic slag is the source of phosphorus.
Potassium: Potash is a salt-like material having potassium as the essential ingredient. It is needed not only to produce fertilizer but also needed by chemical industry in the manufacture of medicines, paints, paper, bleaching agents, explosives and soaps etc. About 90 percent of the production is used in the manufacture of fertilizer.
It is mined mainly in the sedimentary rocks. The chief sources are
(1) seawater, salt-lakes, etc.,
(2) deposits of soluble potash minerals,
(3) vegetable substance,
(4) animal materials,
(5) flue dust of cement plants and blast furnaces.
Potash was first produced in Alsace (across Germany and France) in 1910. The deposits occur on the flanks of Harz Mountains and extend northwest to Hanover. Major production of potash in U.S.A is obtained from the potash beds near Carlsbad, New Mexico and from the natural brines of Searles Lake, California, and from brines of Utah.
The French deposits occur in the upper Rhine valley in an area of about 70 sq. miles. The producing countries in order of importance are Germany, U.S.A., France, Russia and Spain.
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