HK40064792A - Hydrophobic coatings to improve the physical quality parameters of fertilizers - Google Patents

Description

Hydrophobic coating for improving physical quality parameters of fertilizers

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application No.62/793,582 filed on 2019, month 1, day 17, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Technical Field

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to hydrophobic or superhydrophobic coatings for reducing agglomeration (caking), degradation (cracking), and dust generation of granular fertilizers during storage, transportation, and application. In particular, the present disclosure describes a rough coating or surface treatment using low surface energy compounds that minimizes the effects of humidity and temperature cycling of the fertilizer for the purpose of reducing agglomeration, degradation, and dust. In embodiments, the coating may be added to the fertilizer at one time, may also contain one or more micronutrients and/or secondary nutrients, and produces free-flowing characteristics.

Background

Many agricultural fertilizers are produced as follows: pelletised, then dried and cooled, and then stored for long periods of time before soil application. An inherent problem during conventional storage is the high tendency of a large portion of the fertilizer to form lumps and agglomerates. The formation of hard lumps and agglomerates is generally the result of a periodic variation in humidity with diurnal temperature variations. During the humidification, moisture condenses out of the air and/or moisture within the granules migrates out and the fertilizer begins to dissolve. When the humidity is reduced and the temperature cools, crystal bridges are formed during recrystallization, forming salt bridges that lock the particles together. These lumps and agglomerates are produced in most fertilizer storage facilities.

When packaged or shipped, fertilizers that have agglomerated are more likely to produce dust due to the shifting of these crystals. This makes the fertilizer significantly more difficult to handle and distribute on land as the dust tends to become airborne and its application is difficult to control, ultimately leading to uneven nutrient distribution and potential health and safety issues for the user. When the fertilizer pieces are hard and remain unaffected by transport, these can lead to clogging of the spreading equipment, as well as uneven nutrient distribution and equipment wear.

The critical relative humidity or CRH at which most fertilizers absorb moisture from the air and suffer physical degradation due to caking is between 60% and 75% relative humidity (at 35 ℃ or 95 ° F). At this humidity, moisture in the air is deposited on the fertilizer and the surface dissolution process begins. When fertilizers with different CRHs are blended together, the CRH of the blend changes and is affected by the lowest CRH component, which can make the blend prone to clumping under normal storage conditions. This can significantly limit some possible blending partners and their storage capacities.

Coating of the granular fertilizer reduces the likelihood of degradation. However, many hydrophobic coatings used on fertilizers are cost prohibitive for large acres of commercial use and are therefore only used in the more profitable high value product areas such as the turf industry, e.g., golf courses.

The step of incorporating a hydrophobic Coating onto the Fertilizer to substantially slow the release of nutrients from the Fertilizer to form a controlled or sustained release Fertilizer has been undertaken, such as those described in U.S. patent No. 7,452,399 entitled "Coating for a feeder", U.S. patent No. 4,857,098 entitled "Sulfur-Coated feeder Granules and Process of Making the Same" and U.S. Application 14/351,560 entitled "Encapsulated nitro feeder Composition with Fire-extracting and Fire-spraying modification conditioning treatment conditioning Process and Application Process", all of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. However, these coatings do not necessarily provide an improvement in caking tendency and dust formation. In addition, these types of coatings are generally derived from synthetic polymers and have not been tested for their long-term effectiveness in soil. Natural products (e.g., waxes and oils) are sometimes used due to their anti-caking ability, such as those described in U.S. patent No.6,355,083B 1, entitled "last Control Composition for Fertilizer and Method of Treatment of Fertilizer," which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, but generally they do not provide the benefit of having the desired longevity for Fertilizer storage. Thus, these coatings can result in a significant reduction in the shelf life of the fertilizer and are often difficult to apply uniformly to irregular surfaces.

Inert inorganic particles have been included in some coatings as fillers to try to seal the pores of a mass of fertilizer particles, slowing water ingress and thus slowing the release of nutrients from the product, as described, for example, in PCT application publication No. WO2000/076649, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. In order to use fillers to control and slow the release of nutrients, coatings in amounts of up to 20% by weight are required, as described for example in european patent application publication No. EP 0976699, and it is generally necessary to include other hydrophobic compounds such as amines to further slow the dissolution, as described in french patent application publication No. FR 2155883a2, which are all incorporated herein by reference in their entirety; however, this is not necessary for the anti-blocking coating.

Therefore, there is a need for an environmentally responsible and low cost coating that reduces the caking tendency of water-soluble fertilizers, especially those having irregular angular shaped particles, such as compacted potassium chloride (which makes it difficult to obtain a uniform coating).

Disclosure of Invention

Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to hydrophobic or superhydrophobic coatings for fertilizer granules. A hydrophobic coating is a coating having a contact angle of 90 degrees or more when measured from a surface, while a superhydrophobic coating is a coating having a contact angle of 140 degrees or more. Hereinafter, for simplicity, "hydrophobic" is used to describe a hydrophobic or superhydrophobic state. The hydrophobic coating of embodiments includes a particulate roughening additive and a low surface energy hydrophobic component, such as a wax, wax emulsion, or oil treatment. In embodiments of the present disclosure, the one or more additives of the hydrophobic coating result in a micron-scale surface roughness on the surface of the fertilizer, which may itself, but need not, increase the hydrophobicity and/or nutritional value of the fertilizer. The hydrophobic coating on the fertilizer granules serves to protect the water-soluble fertilizer granules from the ingress of moisture.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the hydrophobic coating material is in a liquid or molten state. One or more additives are then incorporated into the molten or liquid hydrophobic coating material. The hydrophobic coating material is sprayed or surface rolled onto base fertilizer particles containing one or more primary nutrients, such as phosphorus-, nitrogen-, and/or potassium-based fertilizers (collectively "NPK fertilizers"). In embodiments, suitable fertilizer granules may include, for example, nitrogen-containing fertilizers, such as nitrates and urea; potash-containing fertilizers, such as potash including potassium chloride (MOP) or potassium Sulfate (SOP); phosphorus-containing fertilizers, such as phosphate fertilizers including ammonium phosphate (e.g., monoammonium phosphate (MAP) or diammonium phosphate (DAP)), calcium phosphate fertilizers including Single Superphosphate (SSP) or Triple Superphosphate (TSP), potassium phosphate, calcium phosphate, or any combination thereof. The additives in the hydrophobic coating provide roughness that reduces the contact area between the surface and the water droplets, promoting water flow out of the surface, thereby preventing or reducing water ingress.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the fertilizer granules are first coated with a roughening material. According to this embodiment, the micro-particulate roughening additive is first added to one or more continuous or discontinuous coatings around the base fertilizer particles, for example by conventional coating methods such as spraying. After coating the particles with the particulate roughening compound, a low energy hydrophobic material, such as wax and/or oil, is then added to one or more continuous or discontinuous coatings around the coated base fertilizer particles. The time between the application of the roughening compound and the coating may vary depending on the convenience of the process design.

In a third embodiment, the surface roughness is the result of physical treatment (e.g. mechanical abrasion of the surface), or by purposefully making a rough surface during base particle manufacture. One example of this is to control the rate of crystallization and the degree of annealing of the base particles to ensure the desired surface roughness. Thus, sufficient surface roughness may only require a low energy superhydrophobic coating with or without additives.

In another alternative embodiment, a hydrophobic coating with or without roughening additives is applied to the base fertilizer particles and patterned upon application or subsequent application to the particles. For example, micro-pleating (micropenization) may be formed with the coating still in a liquid, molten, or other fluid state to create a micro-roughened surface pattern.

The above summary is not intended to describe each illustrated embodiment or every implementation of the present invention. The following detailed description more particularly exemplifies these embodiments.

Drawings

The subject matter of the present invention can be more completely understood in consideration of the following detailed description of various embodiments in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a fertilizer granule containing a superhydrophobic coating according to one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a fertilizer granule containing a superhydrophobic coating according to an alternative embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a roughened fertilizer according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a comparison of fertilizer granules illustrating the effect of various fertilizer coatings on the caking tendency of fertilizers according to embodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a graph comparing moisture uptake of fertilizers according to embodiments of the invention;

FIGS. 6A and 6B are a comparison of moisture repulsion and absorption according to embodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a graph comparing caking tendencies of fertilizers according to embodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a graph comparing the abrasion resistance of coated fertilizers according to embodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a graph comparing product dust of coated fertilizers according to embodiments of the invention;

fig. 10 is a graph comparing product degradation of coated fertilizers according to embodiments of the present invention.

While various embodiments are amenable to various modifications and alternative forms, specifics thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the intention is not to limit the invention to the particular embodiments described. On the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the subject matter defined by the appended claims.

Detailed Description

According to the embodiment of the present disclosure shown in fig. 1, a hydrophobic coated fertilizer particle 100 may comprise a core fertilizer portion 102 and a hydrophobic coating material 103, the hydrophobic coating material 103 containing a particulate roughening additive or component 104 and a low surface energy hydrophobic material 106, the low surface energy hydrophobic material 106 being coated or otherwise applied onto at least a portion of the fertilizer 102.

According to an embodiment, fertilizer portion 102 comprises any suitable fertilizer, such as nitrates, urea, potash, phosphate fertilizers such as monoammonium phosphate (MAP), diammonium phosphate (DAP), monoperphosphate, triple superphosphate, potassium phosphate, calcium phosphate, or combinations thereof.

According to embodiments, the hydrophobic coating material 103 may include a dispersion, emulsion, suspension, or mixture of the particulate roughening additive 104 or roughening agent in the low surface energy material 106. In an embodiment, the roughening additive 104 may comprise silicates, sand, phosphate rock, calcium carbonate, gypsum, micronutrients, stearates (including for example, but not limited to, sodium stearate and zinc stearate), fatty acids (such as stearic acid), potash dust, or any combination thereof. In alternative embodiments, any particulate crystalline or amorphous compound having a solubility lower than the solubility of the base particles may be used. In one embodiment, the coating 103 comprises from about 0.01 wt% to about 10 wt%, more specifically from about 0.01 wt% to about 5 wt%, and more specifically from about 0.1 wt% to about 1.0 wt% of crystalline or amorphous particulate roughening additive, based on the total weight of the particle. These additives may or may not be hydrophobic in nature. The roughening additive 104 may be dispersed, emulsified or otherwise suspended in the hydrophobic material 106.

According to embodiments, the low surface energy hydrophobic material 106 may include candelilla wax, beeswax, carnauba wax, wax recovered from the food industry, wax emulsions, or combinations thereof. In other embodiments, the hydrophobic material 106 may be any plant or chemical based wax having a melting point of 50 ℃ to about 105 ℃ (about 122 ° F to about 221 ° F). In yet another embodiment, the hydrophobic material 106 may be a wax from the petroleum industry, such as slack wax, paraffin wax, microcrystalline wax, or a combination of oil and wax. Combinations of natural and synthetic waxes with any oil or no oil can be used to create hydrophobic or superhydrophobic coatings.

In another embodiment, the hydrophobic material 106 is comprised of any suitable natural, mineral, or synthetic oil. The oil may be any suitable natural, mineral or synthetic oil, for example a mineral white oil, but is preferably a vegetable oil, including rapeseed oil, sunflower oil, soybean oil, castor oil, linseed oil, olive oil or a modified vegetable oil. Other hydrophobic fatty acids, such as stearic acid, may also be used. In embodiments, any combination of waxes, oils, or fatty acids is contemplated. In embodiments, the hydrophobic wax, oil additive, or mixture coating of wax and oil additive comprises from about 0.01% to about 10% of the total fertilizer granule, more specifically from about 0.1% to about 5% by weight of the total fertilizer granule, more specifically from about 0.5% to about 2.0% by weight of the total fertilizer granule. The thin coating ensures hydrophobicity or superhydrophobicity while also providing dust control benefits and does not inhibit the release of nutrients of the fertilizer upon application to soil.

In the embodiment according to fig. 1, the method of forming the coated fertilizer granule 100 includes combining a predetermined amount of a particulate coarsening agent 104 with a predetermined amount of a hydrophobic material 106 to form a superhydrophobic coating material for coating the formed fertilizer granule. In this embodiment, the hydrophobic coating material 106 may be in liquid, solid, or molten form, and may be sprayed, curtain coated, or utilize any of a number of suitable coating techniques to form a continuous or discontinuous coating on the formed base fertilizer particles 102 to form a quantity of coated fertilizer particles 100. The granules are then dried or cooled.

In the embodiment according to fig. 2, the particulate coarsening agent 204 may be applied to the surface of the fertilizer granule 202 prior to applying the low energy material 206 to the fertilizer granule 202. In this embodiment, particulate coarsening agent 204 may be applied in the form of a liquid, solid, or melt, and may be sprayed, curtain coated, or coated with any of a number of suitable coating techniques to form a continuous or discontinuous coating on the formed fertilizer particle 202 to form a quantity of coated fertilizer particles. According to this embodiment, the particulate crystalline or amorphous coated particles are then coated with a low energy material 206. The low surface energy material 206 may be in liquid, solid, emulsion, or molten form and may be sprayed, curtain coated, or coated with any of a number of suitable coating techniques to form a continuous or discontinuous coating on the crystallized coated fertilizer particles to form a quantity of coated fertilizer particles 200. The granules are then dried or cooled.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure as shown in fig. 1 and 2, the crystalline or amorphous particulate additive creates a micron-scale roughness on the surface of the fertilizer 104, 204. In this embodiment, the roughening of the fertilizer particles may be produced by using a wide variety of the aforementioned crystalline or amorphous particulate additives. The size of the additive may be from about 50nm to about 250 μm. In the most preferred embodiment, these materials may range in size from about 10 μm to about 150 μm. In other embodiments, the size of the additive is greater than 150 μm. According to the embodiment of the present disclosure shown in fig. 3, the micron-scale surface roughness ensures that the surface area occupied by any deposited moisture droplets and fertilizer granules 306 is minimal compared to the case 302 without the coating. The roughness ensures that the water droplets remain spherical so that air trapped between the fertilizer 306 and the water droplets will not allow water to penetrate into the fertilizer granules. These coatings may also be applied to particles heated above ambient temperature to aid surface wetting of the hydrophobic low energy coating and optimize coating uniformity.

In embodiments, the particulate coarsening compound and the low energy hydrophobic additive produce a roughness that increases the hydrophobicity of the coating while having minimal impact on the flow, sprayability, or coatability of the coating. In the most preferred embodiment, the coating should be sufficiently degradable after application to the soil to allow ready release of fertilizer nutrients into the soil.

The following examples discuss specific embodiments of the present invention. The equipment used in the preparation of each example was a SPEX mixer-mill 8000M with a vibration-proof motor. In some embodiments, the mixer mill is operated with 1060 cycles/minute of oscillatory motion swinging 5.9cm back and forth and 2.5cm side to side.

Example materials were prepared in a batch mode by first filling the particles of uncoated MOP into a vial, then adding the appropriate particulate coarsening agent material, mixing for 1 minute, then heating with the low surface energy material and further mixing while naturally cooling to ambient temperature.

Example 1: MOP, MOP + wax, and MOP + wax and particulate coarsening agent

The lumps of uncoated MOP were compared to MOP with wax coating and MOP with wax and coarsening agent coating. The test conditions were to subject 4g of the sample to 35 ℃ (95 ° F) and 1kg weight, applied for 7 days at 80% relative humidity.

The caking tendency of the MOP is relatively high due to the particle size distribution and angular shape of the product. In bulk storage, as humidity naturally circulates, lumps form as hard shells on MOP stock. As shown in fig. 4, the MOP coated with finely ground phosphate rock and candelilla wax resulted in significantly less clumping than the MOP without surface treatment and the MOP treated with wax only.

Example 2: moisture absorption of MOP using wax and coarsening agent

The moisture uptake (% weight gain) of the coated fertilizer with 1.5% candelilla wax and a range of coarsening agents at 75% and 80% relative humidity was compared (fig. 5). The coarsening agent used in this example includes: phosphate rock, bentonite, calcium carbonate (CaCO)₃) Diatomaceous earth, elemental sulphur (El S), from SKY SpringApatite Nanoparticles (Ca) from Nanoparticles Inc₅(PO₄)₃(F, Cl, OH)), apatite nanoparticles from MK Nano, dolomite (CaCO)₃.MgCO₃) Gypsum (CaSO)₄.2H₂O) and zinc oxide (ZnO). The ratio of added coarsening agent is between 0.1% (element S) and 2.4% (dolomite). Moisture absorption was evaluated after exposure to 75% and 80% relative humidity (25 ℃) for 3 hours.

As shown in the graph in fig. 5, the coated fertilizer composition using candelilla wax and phosphate rock resulted in the lowest moisture uptake at 80% RH.

Example 3: MOP, MOP + ZnO wax emulsions and caking tendencies of Zinc stearate coarsening Agents and candelilla wax

In this example, the MOP particles were coated with a wax emulsion coating applied at a rate of 1.5 wt% to a fertilizer having 0.5 wt% Zn (from Zn0) or a zinc stearate/candelilla wax coating. Referring to fig. 6A and 6B, after 15 days at 80% RH, moisture was drained from the coated fertilizer composition (see fig. 6A), but was absorbed by the particles of uncoated MOP (see fig. 6B). The force required to break up a sample of approximately 3g of the agglomerated fertilizer after 30 days at 22 ℃ at 80% RH, followed by drying overnight at 40 ℃ and equilibration to ambient temperature is shown in figure 7. As shown, ZnO and zinc stearate coarsening agent in the wax emulsion or melt both significantly reduced the caking tendency of the uncoated MOP.

Example 4: MOP resistance to time change with MOP coated with ZnO and wax emulsions containing different ratios and wax sources Grindability.

The percent degradation was calculated as the weight% of particles smaller than 250 microns remaining after 30 seconds (three replicates) of 10g of sample (+1-3.35mm) in a Spex-mixer/mill (8000M). The percent degradation of these coatings was reduced by a factor of about 10 compared to the uncoated samples, as shown in figure 8.

Example 5: product degradation and dust formation

Referring to fig. 9 and 10, the product degradation and dust formation of samples with moisture control coatings as described herein were compared to the case of uncoated MOP. In the figure, samples #1A-C and #2-C were coated with a sodium stearate coarsening agent in an amount of 2lb stearate per ton of fertilizer granule and a hydrophobic coating formed from VM160 petroleum with 5% amine in an amount of 3lb coating per ton of granule. Sample #3 was coated with the same coarsening agent and hydrophobic coating formulation, but the coarsening agent was increased to 3.5 lb/ton. As shown, the dust generation and percentage of cracking was significantly reduced for the coated samples compared to the uncoated baseline samples.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its essential attributes; the described embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. The claims presented herein are for the purpose of ensuring the sufficiency of the present application for establishing foreign priority and for no other purpose.

Various embodiments of systems, devices, and methods are described herein. These embodiments are given by way of example only and are not intended to limit the scope of the claimed invention. Furthermore, it is to be understood that various features of the described embodiments may be combined in various ways to produce numerous additional embodiments. In addition, while various materials, dimensions, shapes, configurations, and locations, etc. have been described for use with the disclosed embodiments, other materials than those disclosed can be used without departing from the scope of the claimed invention.

One of ordinary skill in the relevant art will recognize that the subject matter herein may include fewer features than illustrated in any single embodiment described above. The implementations described herein are not meant to be an exhaustive presentation of the ways in which the various features of the subject matter herein may be combined. Thus, embodiments are not mutually exclusive combinations of features; rather, as one of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate, various embodiments may include different combinations of individual features selected from different individual embodiments. In addition, elements described with respect to one embodiment may be implemented in other embodiments even if not described in these embodiments, unless otherwise specified.

Although a dependent claim may refer in the claims to a particular combination with one or more other claims, other embodiments may also include combinations of a dependent claim with the subject matter of each other dependent claim, or combinations of one or more features with other dependent claims or independent claims. Such combinations are presented herein unless indicated otherwise, and no particular combination is intended.

Any incorporation by reference of documents above is limited such that no subject matter is incorporated that is contrary to the explicit disclosure herein. Any incorporation by reference of the above documents is further limited such that the claims included in that document are not incorporated herein by reference. Any incorporation by reference of documents above is further limited such that any definitions provided in the documents are not incorporated by reference herein unless expressly included herein.

For purposes of interpreting the claims, it is expressly intended that the provisions of 35u.s.c. § 112(f) are not to be incorporated herein unless the claim sets forth the particular term "means for … …" or "step for … …".

Claims (30)

1. A fertilizer product comprising a plurality of coated particles for moisture control, the coated particles each comprising:

base fertilizer particles; and

a moisture control coating applied to the base fertilizer particles, the coating comprising a hydrophobic material component and a roughening component.

2. The fertilizer product of claim 1, wherein the roughening component has a lower solubility than the base fertilizer particles.

3. The fertilizer product of claim 1 or 2, wherein the roughening component comprises particulates having a particle size of from about 10 μ ι η to about 150 μ ι η.

4. The fertilizer product of any preceding claim, wherein the roughening component is selected from the group consisting of: silicates, sand, phosphate rock, calcium carbonate, gypsum, zinc, manganese, iron, copper, molybdenum, boron, chloride, cobalt, sodium, sulfur in the form of sulfate, elemental sulfur, zinc stearate, sodium stearate, stearic acid, potash dust, and combinations thereof.

5. The fertilizer product of any preceding claim, wherein the roughening component is present in an amount of about 0.01 wt% to about 10 wt%, based on the total weight of the particles.

6. The fertilizer product of claim 5, wherein the roughening component is present in an amount of about 0.1 wt% to about 1.0 wt% of the total weight of the particle.

7. The fertilizer product of any preceding claim, wherein the hydrophobic material component comprises a wax, an oil, a fatty acid, or a combination thereof.

8. The fertilizer product of claim 7, wherein the hydrophobic material component comprises a wax selected from the group consisting of: candelilla wax, beeswax, carnauba wax, plant derived waxes, paraffin waxes, slack waxes, microcrystalline waxes, emulsions of waxes and oils, and combinations thereof.

9. The fertilizer product of claim 7, wherein the hydrophobic material component comprises an oil selected from the group consisting of: mineral white oil, petroleum, rapeseed oil, sunflower oil, soybean oil, castor oil, linseed oil, olive oil, modified vegetable oils, and combinations thereof.

10. The fertilizer product of any preceding claim, wherein the hydrophobic material is present in an amount of about 0.01% to about 10% of the total fertilizer granule.

11. The fertilizer product of claim 10, wherein the hydrophobic material is present in an amount of about 0.5 wt% to about 2.0 wt% of the total fertilizer granule.

12. The fertilizer product of any preceding claim, wherein the base fertilizer particle is selected from the group consisting of: nitrates, urea, potassium chloride, potassium sulfate, monoammonium phosphate (MAP), diammonium phosphate (DAP), calcium monoperphosphate, calcium triperphosphate, potassium phosphate, calcium phosphate, and combinations thereof.

13. The fertilizer product of claim 1, wherein the moisture control coating comprises a ZnO-containing wax emulsion.

14. The fertilizer product of claim 1, wherein the moisture control coating comprises sodium stearate and/or zinc stearate as the roughening component, and one of petroleum and amine and candelilla wax as the hydrophobic material.

15. The fertilizer product of any preceding claim, wherein the outermost surface of the granule has a microscopic surface roughness from the moisture control coating.

16. A method of providing a moisture control treatment to fertilizer granules, the method comprising:

providing a plurality of fertilizer granules; and is

Coating the fertilizer particles with a moisture control treatment material comprising a hydrophobic material and a roughening component.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein coating the fertilizer granule comprises:

coating the fertilizer granules with the roughening component; and is

The fertilizer particles having the roughening component applied thereto are then coated with the hydrophobic material.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein coating the fertilizer granule comprises:

combining the roughening component and the hydrophobic material; and is

The fertilizer particles are then coated with a roughening component and a hydrophobic material in combination.

19. The method of any one of claims 16-18, wherein the roughening component comprises particles having a size of about 10 μ ι η to about 150 μ ι η.

20. The method of any one of claims 16-19, wherein the roughening component is selected from the group consisting of: silicates, sand, phosphate rock, calcium carbonate, gypsum, zinc, manganese, iron, copper, molybdenum, boron, chloride, cobalt, sodium, sulfur in the form of sulfate, elemental sulfur, zinc stearate, sodium stearate, stearic acid, potash dust, and combinations thereof.

21. The method of any one of claims 16-20, wherein the roughening component is present in an amount of about 0.01 to about 10 wt% based on the total weight of the particle.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the roughening component is present in an amount of about 0.1 to about 1.0 wt% of the total weight of the particles.

23. The method of any one of claims 16-22, wherein the hydrophobic material component comprises a wax, an oil, a metal salt of a fatty acid, or a combination thereof.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the hydrophobic material component comprises a wax selected from the group consisting of: candelilla wax, beeswax, carnauba wax, plant derived waxes, paraffin waxes, slack waxes, microcrystalline waxes, emulsions of waxes and oils, and combinations thereof.

25. The method of claim 23, wherein the hydrophobic material component comprises an oil selected from the group consisting of: mineral white oil, petroleum, rapeseed oil, sunflower oil, soybean oil, castor oil, linseed oil, olive oil, modified vegetable oils, and combinations thereof.

26. The method of any one of claims 16-25, wherein the hydrophobic material is present in an amount of about 0.01% to about 10% of the total fertilizer granule.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the hydrophobic material is present in an amount of about 0.5% to about 2.0% by weight of the total fertilizer granule.

28. The method of any one of claims 16-27, wherein the base fertilizer particles are selected from the group consisting of: nitrates, urea, potassium chloride, potassium sulfate, monoammonium phosphate (MAP), diammonium phosphate (DAP), calcium monoperphosphate, calcium triperphosphate, potassium phosphate, calcium phosphate, and combinations thereof.

29. The method of claim 16, wherein the moisture control coating comprises a ZnO-containing wax emulsion.

30. The method of claim 16, wherein the moisture control coating comprises sodium stearate and/or zinc stearate as the roughening component, and one of petroleum and amine and candelilla wax as the hydrophobic material.