What is the Difference Between Prilled and Granular Urea

The key difference between prilled and granular urea is that prilled urea takes a little time to dissolve in water, whereas granular urea takes a lot of time to dissolve.

Prilled urea and granular urea are two types of solid nitrogen fertilizers that are used in agriculture. Prilled urea is a type of solid nitrogen fertilizer that easily dissolves in water. Granular urea is a type of solid nitrogen fertilizer that comes in the form of granules. Prilled urea dissolves quickly in water. This is because prilled urea has a high dimensional consistency and a small size. However, granular urea is easier to handle and store.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Prilled Urea
3. What is Granular Urea
4. Prilled vs Granular Urea in Tabular Form
5. Summary – Prilled vs Granular Urea 

What is Prilled Urea?

Prilled Urea is a type of solid nitrogen fertilizer that can easily dissolve in water. There are several uses of this type of urea due to its specific properties. We can manufacture this substance through the reaction between ammonia and carbon dioxide. It is largely important for agricultural purposes and as a nitrogen-rich fertilizer. Prilled urea is also known as ice melt urea or de-icer urea.

The benefits of using prilled urea over other de-icing products include its non-corrosive nature, biodegradable property, and efficiency in very low temperatures such as -6 Celsius degrees. Moreover, it does not usually damage concrete, lawns, and shrubs of metals.

What is Granular Urea?

Granular urea is a type of solid nitrogen fertilizer that comes in the form of granules. Generally, this type of nitrogen fertilizer contains about 46% nitrogen. This substance is produced from ammonia and carbon dioxide. Typically, granular urea has the highest nitrogen content among solid nitrogen fertilizers.

We can apply granular urea as it is. But sometimes, people add it after mixing it with phosphate and potash fertilizers. Most often, granular urea can be seen as a part of the total nitrogen-phosphorous-potassium (NPK) plant food mix. Since it is a granular form of urea, we can apply it directly to the soil via conventional spreading equipment. We can say that this is the most common form of nitrogen fertilizer all around the world.

What is the Difference Between Prilled and Granular Urea?

Prilled urea and granular urea are two types of solid nitrogen fertilizers that are useful for agricultural purposes. The key difference between prilled and granular urea is that prilled urea takes a little time to dissolve in water, whereas granular urea takes a lot of time to dissolve. This is because prilled urea has a high dimensional consistency and a small size. Moreover, it is difficult to handle and store prilled urea due to its hygroscopic nature. However, it is comparatively easy to handle and store granular urea.

The below infographic presents the differences between prilled and granular urea in tabular form for side by side comparison.

Summary – Prilled vs Granular Urea

Prilled urea and granular urea are two types of solid nitrogen fertilizers. The key difference between prilled and granular urea is that prilled urea takes a little time to dissolve in water, whereas granular urea takes a lot of time to dissolve. Moreover, it is difficult to handle and store prilled urea due to its hygroscopic nature. However, it is comparatively easy to handle and store granular urea.

Reference:

1. “Prilled Urea 25KG BAGS: Urea Prills: De-Icing Prills.” Rock Salt Shop.
2. “Granular Urea.” CF Industries.
3. “Granular Urea.” PhosAgro.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Urea – Kolkata 2003-11-07 00670” By Biswarup Ganguly – Own work (CC BY 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Granular Urea application – geograph.org.uk – 1219037” By Michael Trolove (CC BY-SA 2.0) via Commons Wikimedia