SBIR-STTR Award

The proper level of nutrients is important for effective crop yields. In modern agriculture the application of fertilizers is a key part of nutrient management. Often the high water-solubility and volatility of common fertilizers results in significant losses of nutrients that dramatically reduce the effectiveness of fertilizers. Modification of fertilizer products by applying polymer coatings has been shown to overcome this issue by enabling prolonged nutrient supply. There are many commercial “controlled release fertilizers” (CRFs) that are coated by polymeric coatings. However despite the improved performance of CRFs their use is still quite limited due to their high cost and the lack of biodegradability of synthetic coatings for CRFs. Production of polymer-coated CRFs typically involves the use of petroleum-based polymers and additives. Most polymers used in CRFs such as polyolefins polyesters polyurethanes and polyacrylates inhibit the biodegradability of the coating material which detracts from their environmental benefits. There is a major need and a significant research effort to develop environmentally friendly biodegradable polymeric coatings for agricultural uses. Renuvix is developing a unique technology that transforms plant-sourced monomers into new biodegradable biobased polymers that show the potential to be effective barrier coatings for enhanced efficiency fertilizers. These coating products offer naturally inherent biodegradability that coincides with the corporate vision of Renuvix team to bring bio-based and environmentally friendly polymers to the marketplace. The primary objective of the Phase I SBIR project is to demonstrate the feasibility of the biobased biodegradable polymers for the production of novel coatings for controlled release fertilizers.