Summary
This study addresses quality control challenges in locally blended fertilisers by developing empirical calibrations for handheld portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) spectroscopy. High-accuracy models were established for detecting major nutrients (P, Ca) and micro-nutrients (Mn, Fe, Cu), as well as potential contaminants (Cr, Ni, As), offering a rapid, field-deployable alternative to conventional laboratory methods. The approach demonstrates that pXRF can support compliance with fertiliser regulations and help prevent trace element accumulation in soils and crops, particularly relevant where conventional characterisation methods are costly or inaccessible.
UK applicability
The pXRF calibration approach could support UK fertiliser quality assurance and regulatory compliance, particularly for monitoring trace element contaminants in imported or blended fertilisers. However, applicability depends on whether UK-specific fertiliser matrices and contaminant profiles align with those used in the calibration dataset, which is not specified in the abstract.
Key measures
R² values for calibration and validation models; regression coefficients; prediction accuracy for macro-nutrients (Mg, P, S, K, Ca), micro-nutrients (Mn, Fe, Zn, Mo), and trace elements (Co, Ni, As, Se, Cd, Pb); concentration ranges tested (0–1000 mg kg⁻¹)
Outcomes reported
The study developed and validated empirical calibrations for portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) to measure macro- and micro-nutrients and trace element contaminants in fertilisers. pXRF models achieved high accuracy (R² ≥ 0.97) for major nutrients and good performance (R² ≥ 0.80) for trace element contaminants including Co, Ni, As, Se, Cd and Pb.
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