Urea is one of the most widely used nitrogen fertilizers. However, it is lost to the environment via processes such as denitrification, surface runoff, volatilization, and leaching. In this paper, a novel material is reported on, with low production cost and avoiding the use of harmful solvents, with a pastille morphology developed by a simple method from a mixture of wheat gluten and urea, with potential use as a prolonged-release system of urea (PRSU). The PRSU obtained was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, kinetics of water absorption, equilibrium water content (EWC), Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy analysis, and release kinetics. The PRSU diameter was 2.46 cm, and its thickness was 0.17 cm. The PRSU showed physical and structural characteristics such as micropores and hollow fractions in its structure. In addition, the wheat gluten pastille is classified as a swelling material and demonstrated an EWC of 58.47 ± 1.50%. FT-IR analysis of the samples showed hydrogen-bond interactions between the amino and carbonyl groups in the urea and the wheat gluten proteins. Laboratory tests showed that the system can release 97% of the urea within 8–10 h. These results showed that the PRSU presents suitable characteristics for its application as a fertilization alternative for carrying out better agronomic practices.

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获得基于小麦面筋的尿素缓释系统的简单方法：开发和表征

尿素是应用最广泛的氮肥之一。然而，它会通过反硝化、地表径流、挥发和浸出等过程流失到环境中。在本文中，报道了一种新型材料，生产成本低，避免使用有害溶剂，通过简单的方法从小麦面筋和尿素的混合物中开发出一种锭剂形态，具有作为缓释系统的潜在用途尿素 (PRSU)。获得的 PRSU 通过扫描电子显微镜、吸水动力学、平衡水含量 (EWC)、傅里叶变换红外 (FT-IR) 光谱分析和释放动力学进行表征。PRSU 直径为 2.46 厘米，厚度为 0.17 厘米。PRSU 在其结构中显示出物理和结构特征，例如微孔和中空部分。此外，小麦面筋锭剂被归类为溶胀材料，其 EWC 为 58.47 ± 1.50%。样品的 FT-IR 分析显示尿素中的氨基和羰基与小麦面筋蛋白之间存在氢键相互作用。实验室测试表明，该系统可以在 8-10 小时内释放 97% 的尿素。这些结果表明，PRSU 具有适合其作为施肥替代方案应用的合适特性，以进行更好的农艺实践。