Tech Blog

Can industrial grade urea be used in agriculture?

At present, there are three grades of urea on the market: Agricultural grade urea, Industrial grade urea and Automotive urea. Is there any difference between the different grades of urea?
Agricultural urea is one of the most widely used nitrogen fertilizers in the world. Its high nitrogen content and fast fertilizer effect, which can promote the rapid growth of crops, make it in great demand.

Can industrial grade urea be used instead of agricultural urea?

Whether it is agricultural or industrial urea, the main component is nitrogen, which is one of the three major nutrients needed for crop growth.

Theoretically, it will work as long as it can be effectively broken down and converted into ammoniacal nitrogen that crops can absorb. Although they are chemically similar, there are essential quality differences in how they each function.

One of the main concerns with industrial grade urea is the presence of biuret. Biuret is a by-product of the urea manufacturing process. In high concentrations, biuret can be toxic to plants. Agricultural grade urea is typically manufactured with strict controls to limit the biuret content to a very low level, usually less than 1%.

In contrast, industrial grade urea may have a biuret content that exceeds this threshold. When applied to crops, high biuret levels can cause leaf burn, stunted growth, and reduced yields. For example, in sensitive crops like citrus and some ornamentals, even a relatively small increase in biuret concentration can have a noticeable negative impact.

Purity level: Industrial-grade urea is produced to a lower purity standard than agricultural-grade urea. It may contain impurities such as diuretics, salts, heavy metals, and insoluble particles, which are usually removed during the additional processing required for agricultural urea. If industrial urea is applied directly to the soil, these impurities may inhibit plant growth or damage crops.
Additives: Agricultural urea contains additives such as anti-caking agents and inhibitors that prevent crystallization for uniform application, while industrial urea lacks these additives.
Particle size: Agricultural urea is refined to obtain a uniform size and dissolves quickly when sprayed or sprinkled on the field. Industrial urea has coarser particles that are less uniform, affecting how quickly it breaks down and releases nutrients after application. Uneven dissolution of coarse particles may result in inadequate fertilization of small patches of soil.
Regulations: Agricultural urea must meet more stringent regulatory standards for nutrient and contaminant content before being approved for field application.
Performance: Impurities in industrial urea can slow its rate of nutrient release into the soil and inhibit nutrient uptake by plants, affecting its fertilization efficiency.
Equipment issues: Industrial urea impurities risk clogging agricultural spray and broadcast precision application equipment.

So, the conclusion is that despite the chemical similarities between industrial and agricultural urea, they are worlds apart regarding practical application. Agricultural urea is specifically designed for agricultural production, with high purity, few impurities, and a production process that considers crop uptake and utilization.

Industrial urea, without a strict screening and transformation process directly used in farmland, is likely to cause soil pollution, affect crop growth, and even jeopardize the safety of agricultural products.