PROCEEDINGS
OF THE TOMSK ORDER OF THE RED BANNER OF LABOR POLYTECHNIC
INSTITUTE named after S. M. KIROV

Vol. 178　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　1969

ON THE WORK OF THE ALL-UNION SCIENTIFIC-RESEARCH INSTITUTE OF THE PEAT INDUSTRY ON THE USE OF PEAT FOR FERTILIZERS

S. V. ZUBKOVA

One of the most effective means of increasing the fertility of podzolic soils of the non-chernozem zone, as well as increasing the yields of agricultural crops and steadily reducing costs under the conditions of the Northwestern zone of the RSFSR, is the application of organic and mineral fertilizers. The solution of this problem requires a significant improvement in the entire culture of agriculture, and in this regard the questions of creating and maintaining soil fertility at a high agrotechnical level deserve special attention.

In connection with the decisions of the December Plenum of the CPSU Central Committee, agriculture will receive a large quantity of mineral fertilizers, but it would be a grave mistake to weaken attention to the use of organic fertilizers.

Academician D. N. Pryanishnikov wrote: “It is wrong to think that, with the development of the chemical industry and the widespread distribution of mineral fertilizers, the importance of manure should recede into the background.” This statement is fully confirmed by the life and practical activity of agricultural enterprises in Leningrad Oblast.

Under our conditions, with an acute shortage of manure, the problem of organic fertilizers can be solved only by using peat for the production of peat bedding for livestock and peat-mineral-ammonia fertilizers.

The extraction of peat for agricultural use has increased significantly in recent years, both at large industrial peat enterprises of the Leningrad Peat Trust and at smaller enterprises under the jurisdiction of the Water Management Administration. Thus, in 1959 the Leningrad Peat Trust prepared 5.8 million tons of PMAF, and in subsequent years production of PMAF increased to 1 million tons.

Gross production of crop-growing products in Leningrad Oblast increased by 13% compared with the preceding year (1964). State farms and collective farms received (in 1965), on average from each hectare sown: vegetables—234 centners, potatoes—149 centners, grain—14.5 centners, fodder root crops—308 centners. This is the highest yield of field crops in our oblast in the last 10 years.

Such a harvest was obtained as a result of persistent labor and the struggle for a high culture of agriculture. In particular, the farmers of the oblast

[they] became considerably better and more effective at fertilizing the soil, paying more attention to land-reclamation work, raising the level of labor mechanization, etc.

It is known that fertilizers play a decisive role in increasing soil fertility. In the past year, the state farms and collective farms of the region applied, on average, 14.2 tons of organic and 4.9 centners of mineral fertilizers per 1 ha of arable land. This is three times more than was applied in 1956.

The main types of organic fertilizers used are: manure on a peat base, peat-mineral and peat-mineral-ammonia composts. In the total volume of organic fertilizers being prepared, manure now accounts for 70%; the remaining share belongs to composts.

In 1965, 824 thousand tons of peat were prepared and used for bedding, which is 25 times more than in 1958.

Along with manure, in recent years TMAF and TMF have become widespread on the state farms and collective farms of the region. These fertilizers are prepared mainly by machine-reclamation stations and enterprises of the Leningrad Peat Trust. The industrial peat enterprises of the trust are the principal suppliers of peat fertilizers for the state farms of the region. In Leningrad Region, TMAF is prepared at 11 peat enterprises located in 7 administrative districts: Vyborg, Vsevolozhsk, Volkhov, Gatchina, Luga, Tikhvin, and Tosno. In addition, TMAF for the state farms of Leningrad Region is brought in from the “Zaplyusskoye” peat enterprise in Pskov Region and “Tesovo” in Novgorod Region.

The industrial method of producing TMAF is oriented mainly toward the preparation of high-quality concentrated types of TMAF for application to the soil in doses of 6–10 tons per 1 ha. Production of TMAF at the smaller peat enterprises of the Water Management Administration and other agricultural organizations is aimed at preparing TMAF with a reduced nutrient content for application to the soil in doses of 20–30 tons per 1 ha and in a volume that would satisfy the needs of farms located in close proximity to the peat extraction site.

Resolutions of the Councils of Ministers of the USSR and of the RSFSR provide for the development of issues of national-economic importance in the field of the theory, technology, mechanization, and application of highly effective peat-based fertilizers—peat-mineral-ammonia fertilizers (TMAF).

In accordance with this, our institute carried out the following work:

1) the main questions determining the technology of TMAF production were studied, and a method was developed for evaluating peat as a raw material for TMAF production;

2) a technology for field production of TMAF and a set of machines were developed and introduced; these are currently operating at industrial enterprises producing TMAF;

3) a new, more advanced technology for field production of high-quality TMAF with full mechanization of all processes was developed and tested, using the MTU-1 machine created by the institute, eliminating the shortcomings of the previously developed technology;

4) a technology was developed for factory production of high-quality complex peat-humin fertilizers (of the “Folgumon” type), a working design was completed for a pilot-industrial installation, and construction of it was begun at the “Naziya” peat enterprise in Leningrad Region;

5) primary tests were carried out and the comparative agro-economic efficiency of TMAU of field and factory production was determined under the conditions of state farms of Leningrad Oblast in the non-chernozem zone of the USSR.

At the peat enterprises of the Leningrad Peat Trust, peat-mineral-ammonia fertilizers (of the “Gumobi” type) are prepared by the field method according to the technological scheme developed by VNIITP, the Leningrad Peat Trust, and the North-Western Research Institute of Agriculture. The mineral components used are: phosphorite meal, superphosphate, potassium chloride, and ammonia water. The rates and doses of the indicated mineral fertilizers are established depending on the specified concentration of the peat-mineral-ammonia fertilizers proposed for procurement.

In the first years (1958—1962) ammonia water was added at a rate of 10—20 l per 1 t of peat of 60% moisture content; in recent years TMAU have been prepared at a considerably higher concentration (taking into account the maximum absorption capacity of peat for nitrogen) of ammonia water, having established the maximum absorption capacity; the phosphorus and potassium mineral components are added in an N : P : K ratio of \(1 : 1 : 1\).

Studies by VNIITP over the last three years have shown that the most optimal N : P : K ratio in TMAU is: for lowland peat—8 : 8 : 8 kg of each element per 1 t of peat of 60% moisture content; for raised-bog peat—11 : 11 : 11 kg of each element per 1 t of peat of the same moisture content.

The production of concentrated fertilizers on podzolic soils of a medium degree of cultivation makes it possible to reduce the dose of TMAU by 3—4 times without reducing the agronomic effect.

An evaluation of the quality of TMAU prepared by the field method, with phosphorus and potassium fertilizers introduced into the deposit and ammonia water into piles of peat, showed that the fertilizers meet the requirements set by the MRTU, and that the content of ammoniacal nitrogen, phosphoric acid, and potassium generally deviates by no more than 30% from the specified amount.

Individual cases of the production of industrial TMAU of reduced quality are explained by violations of the technological process of their production or by the use of poor-quality initial mineral fertilizers and ammonia water.

With the existing technology for the production of TMAU, depending on their concentration and quality, prices for 1 t of fertilizers supplied to the state farms and collective farms of the oblast are systematically revised. Thus, in 1964, by decision of the Leningrad Oblast Executive Committee, the following prices were approved for TMAU: with an N content from 0.62% to 2.5% on absolutely dry peat—from 2 rubles 15 kopecks to 4 rubles 15 kopecks.

The main direction in resolving the question of establishing firm prices for TMAU is the solution of the problem of quality and standardization through the development of a more advanced technology for preparing fertilizers.

To resolve the question of industrial production of high-quality peat fertilizers, VNIITP in 1961 developed a design and in 1964 created an experimental MTU-1 machine (Fig. 1). Tests of the MTU machine were carried out in 1965 at the “Naziya” peat enterprise.

Preparation of a mixture of mineral fertilizers for MTU machines is carried out by the DSS-0 dosing-mixing station, which was created by VNIITP in 1963, and in 1964—1965 underwent production tests at the “Shuvalovo” and “Naziya” peat enterprises. The results of the tests of the DSS station make it possible to recommend it, as well as the MTU-1 machine, for the manufacture of an experimental batch.

The delivery of mineral fertilizers to the MTU-1 machine is carried out by the tracked trailer GPS-2M, developed by VNIITP, with the standard hydraulically operated grapple loader PSh-0.4 installed on it. The PSh-0.4 loader transfers the fertilizer mixture from the trailer body into the hopper of the dosing unit of the MTU-1 machine.

Fig. 1. MTU-1 machine

The MTU-1 machine, the DSS-O dosing-and-mixing station, and the GPS-2M trailer with the PSh-0.4 loader were accepted by the State Commission acting on the basis of the order of the State Committee for the Fuel Industry under Gosplan of the USSR of October 16, 1965.

In addition to TMAF produced by the field method, a characteristic feature of which is the presence of beneficial microflora (according to data from the All-Union Scientific Research Institute of Microbiology), VNIITP has developed a technology for the factory production of TMAF fertilizers of the “Folhumon” type. The first batch of such fertilizers, prepared at a pilot-production installation, was tested under field conditions.

Concentrated peat-mineral-ammonia fertilizers of factory production are a dark-brown, free-flowing powder with the smell of ammonia, transported in hermetic polyethylene packaging.

The fertilizers are distinguished by uniformity (variation in the content of mineral components not exceeding ±3%), stability of properties regardless of storage time, and a high content of nutrients. One ton of factory-produced TMAF contains 23–30 kg of assimilable nitrogen, K$_2$O and P$_2$O$_5$, which, calculated on the dry matter of the fertilizer, amounts to 5% of each. In addition, the fertilizer contains more than 5% soluble humic substances, which act as a plant-growth stimulant.

The scheme for preparing TMAF at factory installations is as follows: into the crushed and screened peat, a specified quantity of mineral components is introduced by special dosing units; then the resulting peat-mineral mixture is saturated in a special mixer with gas-

with gaseous ammonia, after which the finished fertilizers are packed in polyethylene bags weighing 20–30 kg.

The low application rate of the fertilizers makes it possible to transport them over considerable distances and to carry out mechanized application. Thus, in 1964–1965, TMAF of factory production was successfully incorporated into the soil by an AU-4 machine when planting potatoes at the state farms “Detskoselskii,” “Gomontovo,” and “Bugry,” as well as on the fields of the Institute of Mechanization and Electrification of Agriculture of the Northwest and at the Volosovo MMS.

Efficiency of the Use of TMAF

The issues of determining the efficiency of using industrially produced TMAF in Leningrad Oblast are being studied mainly by the Northwestern Scientific Research Institute of Agriculture and the All-Union Scientific Research Institute of the Peat Industry.

The development of issues connected with the production and use of peat-mineral-ammonia fertilizers is being carried out in cooperation with such organizations as the oblast administration for the production and procurement of agricultural products, the Leningrad Peat Trust, and the oblast water-management administration.

The results of six years of work by VNIITP and the Northwestern Scientific Research Institute of Agriculture (1960–1965) on the use of TMAF under production conditions on the fields of state farms in Leningrad and Vladimir oblasts testify to the high agroeconomic efficiency of these fertilizers. The increase in the potato yield at the Zhdanov and “Bugry” state farms on plots fertilized with TMAF amounted to 60–100% in comparison with control plots.

The high efficiency of TMAF is also shown by the experience of the state farms “Krasnaya Baltika,” “Prigorodnyi,” “Detskoselskii,” “Gomontovo,” and other farms. Table 1 gives data on crop yields, averaged over three years.

Table 1

Yield of agricultural crops with the use of TMAF produced by the field method

(data of VNIITP)

Continuation of Table 1

In 1966, on farms of Leningrad Oblast it was planned to apply 160 thousand tons of TMAU.

The state farms “Prigorodny,” named after Zhdanov, “Bugry,” “Gomontovo,” named after Telman, and many others apply annually an average of 25–30 tons of organic fertilizers per 1 ha of arable land. As a result, these farms obtain high, stable yields. Moreover, thanks to organic fertilizers, previously infertile land areas have been transformed into fertile lands. At the “Detskoselsky” state farm the amount of fertile land, rich in phosphorus and potassium, increased from 30–40% in 1959 to 70–80% in 1965.

The agro-economic effectiveness of applying factory-produced TMAU by means of the AU-4 apparatus under production conditions is given in Table 2.

However, it should be said that when organic fertilizers are applied to the soil, the desired results are not always achieved. The matter is not only that a large quantity of fertilizers per 1 ha must be applied; they must be used sensibly and rationally, taking into account the quality of the fields, the se-

Table 2

Agronomic effectiveness of applying TMAU3 with AU-4 apparatuses under production conditions (data of VNIITP, 1965)

crop rotation, cartograms, and the needs of the crop for a particular fertilizer, as well as to observe all other agrotechnical methods in the struggle for high yields.

We have numerous examples in which state farms and collective farms apply a sufficient quantity of fertilizers, yet yields remain low. Thus, last year the state farms of the Vyborg and Podporozhye administrations applied 4.7 centners of mineral and 12.6 tons of organic fertilizers per 1 ha of arable land, i.e., as much as was applied on average in the region. The yields obtained, however, were considerably below the regional averages: grain crops only 8.3–9 centners, potatoes 90–99 centners, vegetables 163 centners, and fodder root crops 215 centners per 1 ha.

This situation is explained chiefly by the fact that these farms did not take care to use the available fertilizers effectively and neglected advanced agrotechnics.

As in previous years, much attention to the procurement and carting of organic fertilizers is being paid by the state farms “Prigorodny,” “Krasnaya Baltika,” “Detskoselsky,” named after Zhdanov, and a number of others.

Here fertilizers are distributed among the fields in strict accordance with crop rotations; their proper stacking is monitored with such calculation that, in spring, when fertilizers are incorporated into the soil, machinery can be used more productively.

Successful fulfillment of plans for the procurement and carting of fertilizers, and the effective use of each type of fertilizer with due regard for soil fertility and the nature of the crop being sown, are the guarantee of a further increase in yields and, consequently, of strengthening the economy of the state farms and collective farms of the region.

Acquaintance with the experience of using peat–mineral–ammonia fertilizers under row crops makes it possible to note the following:

1. With proper preparation and observance of the established conditions of application (uniform application, optimal doses, timely incorporation, observance of storage conditions), PMAF provide economically advantageous yield increases in comparison with the control. Thus, yield increases per 1 ha amount to 60–100 centners for potatoes, 150–250 centners for cabbage, and 100–150 centners for sugar beet, which considerably exceeds the yield increases obtained when manure and a complete mineral fertilizer are applied.

2. Taking into account the heterogeneity of the soil cover in degree of cultivation and the possible availability on farms of PMAF of different concentration, on poorly cultivated and depleted soils PMAF with a reduced concentration of mineral components in the organic mass of peat should be used, namely at a dose of 20–25 tons per 1 ha (with the content in the per-hectare dose \(N_{60}P_{60}K_{60}\)); on well-cultivated soils it is advisable to adopt reduced doses—6.5–10 tons per 1 ha—of more concentrated forms of these fertilizers with the same NPK content in the application dose.

3. Local application of concentrated fertilizers under potatoes (in the furrow, nest, or hole) is a highly effective method of using these fertilizers on soils of low, medium, and increased cultivation, since the application rates with this method can be reduced by 2–3 times, while the effectiveness of 1 ton of fertilizers increases considerably.

4. In order to reduce the cost of transporting PMAF, their delivery to consumers should be carried out by high-capacity road trains over distances within a radius of 20–60 km from the place where they are prepared; at distances up to 20 km, dump trucks should be used effectively.