SBIR Phase I: Development of a scalable soil nitrogen measurement system for efficient nitrogen fertilizer management

SBIR 第一阶段：开发可扩展的土壤氮测量系统，以实现高效的氮肥管理

• 批准号: 1548251
• 负责人: Saeed Khan
• 金额: $ 15万
• 依托单位: Soil Diagnostics, Inc.
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2016
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2016-01-01 至 2016-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1548251&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SBIR; Phase; Development; scalable; soil

The broader impact/commercial potential of this project will be to enhance the economic feasibility of site-specific, variable-rate nitrogen fertilizer management and to increase profitability for corn growers in the U.S. Midwest. This R&D project will lead to new commercial opportunities for implementing site-specific nitrogen recommendation services to approximately 36 million hectares annually under corn production. The simplified soil testing system will enable crop advisers to recommend appropriate nitrogen fertilizer application rates in contrast to non-site-specific recommendations that often exceed crop requirements. There will be a growing demand for independent agronomists and crop consultants who utilize this system to expand the market for precision agriculture, creating employment and business opportunities in the agricultural sector and rural communities. Equally important, the resulting reduction in fertilizer application will reduce non-point source nitrate pollution of natural water resources.The proposed technology development will directly contribute a rational basis for resolving existing and potential legal conflicts arising out of non point source nitrate pollution.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project addresses a Grand Challenge articulated by the National Academy of Engineering, namely to ?Manage the Nitrogen Cycle?, by providing an actionable soil test that has the potential to reduce fertilizer application by 35% ($70/hectare) on average without impacting corn yields in the Midwest, for annual potential savings of $1.9 bn. This project will lead to a site-specific and industry-transforming alternative to the existing system for nitrogen fertilizer management. The proposed system is based on an established and independently validated soil organic nitrogen assay that currently has limited commercial viability due to labor, skill, and resource requirements. The goal of the project is to increase the economic feasibility of site-specific fertilizer management, by developing, evaluating, and validating a redesigned assay system that allows routine use in a commercial setting and thereby provides a quantitative basis for site-specific nitrogen management. Anticipated technical outcomes include a significant increase in throughput capacity for soil organic nitrogen testing, lower test costs, and reduced capital, space, and skilled labor requirements.

该项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力将是提高特定地点可变氮肥管理的经济可行性，并提高美国中西部玉米种植者的盈利能力。这一研发项目将带来新的商业机会，每年在约3600万公顷的玉米生产中实施特定地点的氮推荐服务。简化的土壤测试系统将使作物顾问能够建议适当的氮肥施用量，而不是经常超过作物需求的非特定地点的建议。对独立农学家和作物顾问的需求将日益增长，他们利用这一系统扩大精准农业市场，在农业部门和农村社区创造就业和商业机会。同样重要的是，由此减少的化肥施用将减少自然水资源的非点源硝酸盐污染。拟议的技术开发将直接为解决非点源硝酸盐污染引起的现有和潜在的法律的冲突提供合理的基础。这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目解决了美国国家工程院提出的一个重大挑战，即？如何管理氮循环？通过提供可操作的土壤测试，有可能在不影响中西部玉米产量的情况下，平均减少35%的化肥施用量（70美元/公顷），每年可能节省19亿美元。这一项目将为现有的氮肥管理系统提供一种针对具体地点和改变行业的替代方案。拟议的系统是基于一个既定的和独立验证的土壤有机氮测定，目前有有限的商业可行性，由于劳动力，技能和资源的要求。该项目的目标是通过开发、评估和验证重新设计的分析系统来提高特定地点肥料管理的经济可行性，该分析系统允许在商业环境中常规使用，从而为特定地点的氮管理提供定量基础。预期的技术成果包括显著提高土壤有机氮测试的吞吐量，降低测试成本，减少资本，空间和熟练劳动力的要求。