Potassium humate is a black or dark brown solid with a slightly metallic luster. It is highly water-soluble, and its aqueous solution is a dark brown alkaline liquid. It is a condensation system composed of multiple ring structures, containing highly reactive acidic groups, methoxy groups, carboxyl groups, and atoms of oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur. It possesses functions such as ion exchange, adsorption, peptization, and complexation.
Potassium humate is a product of the high fusion of humic acid and potassium, and is the basic raw material for manufacturing potassium humate fertilizer. As a highly efficient organic compound potassium fertilizer, potassium humate fertilizer can effectively promote the absorption of potassium ions by plants. Its fertilizer utilization rate is more than 80% higher than that of ordinary potassium fertilizers.
Applying potassium humate fertilizer can promote crop yield, improve crop quality, enhance crop resistance, improve soil properties, and effectively avoid soil acidification, compaction, and pollution caused by the long-term use of traditional fertilizers (such as potassium sulfate, urea, and diammonium phosphate). As a raw material for water-soluble humic acid fertilizers, it plays an important role in the development of ecological agriculture and food safety.
Potassium humate, when mixed with urea, phosphate fertilizer, potash fertilizer, and trace elements, can be produced into a highly efficient, multifunctional compound fertilizer. This fertilizer provides various macro-, meso-, and micro-elements needed by plants, as well as organic matter including humic acid, fulvic acid, amino acids, and sugars. Potassium humate also has applications as a treatment agent in oil drilling fluids, preventing wellbore collapse. Therefore, the preparation of potassium humate is of significant importance.
Studies have found that applying potassium humate to vegetables and other crops can increase the sugar and vitamin C content, thereby improving the nutritional value of the products. The application of potassium humate to crops such as corn, rice, and wheat can improve seed germination rate, stress resistance, and crop quality. It also has research value in improving soil physicochemical properties, soil microbial richness, and soil fertility.
Potassium humate can enhance the plant's salt stress defense response, directly or indirectly improve the overall performance of plants under salt stress, and increase the activity of antioxidant defense systems, including non-enzymatic (proline, ASA, GSH and TOC) and enzymatic antioxidants (SOD, GAT), leading to improved photosynthetic efficiency and thus improved plant performance.
