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Alternative to explosive fertiliser found

Honeywell International in the United States has found an alternative to explosive fertiliser, according to a Reuters report.

The manufacturer announced on Tuesday that it has developed a safer alternative to ammonium nitrate, an ingredient used in traditional fertiliser that can also be used to make bombs.

According to Reuters, Honeywell said it has fused ammonium nitrate with ammonium sulfate to create a new dry nitrogen fertiliser that it hopes to sell to fruit, vegetable and nut tree producers.

“Ammonium nitrate … is a very good fertilizer. Obviously, it has a lot of downsides because it’s a very good fuel source for explosives, and there have been terrorist activities in the past,” Honeywell director of strategic marketing, Mark Murray, told Reuters.

A bomb made from ammonium nitrate was set-off in the US in 1995, killing 168 people.

According to a researcher at Brigham Young University in Utah, ammonium nitrate’s use in fertiliser will become extinct eventually.

Honeywell’s Australian business can be contacted on www.honeywell.com.au

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