"Sea of death" reborn with modern agriculture

BEIJING, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- At the rim of China's largest desert Taklimakan, the remote Lop Nur area used to be barren and lifeless. Thanks to the application of totally water-soluble potassium fertilizer, the area shows vitality.

A production line of the fertilizer, fulfilling modern agricultural irrigation demands, has been put into test run at Lop Nur, a dried lake located in northwest China and known as the "sea of death" for its high salt content.

Potassium is a main element for crop growth. Traditional potash products were not suitable for drip irrigation due to their coarse particles. The new water-soluble fertilizer is easier to be absorbed by the soil.

A research and development group from the SDIC Xinjiang Luobupo Potash Co. Ltd., the developer of the fertilizer production line, visited local farmers to learn about their needs and constructed a plant with an annual output of 1.5 million tonnes of potassium sulfate and 100,000 tonnes of potassium sulfate magnesium fertilizers.

The potassium fertilizer labeled "Luobupo" brand has won users' trust, according to the Science and Technology Daily.

By September 2021, more than 18 million tonnes of potassium fertilizer were transported out of Lop Nur, accounting for about 45 percent of the domestic market share.

Previously, 70 percent of potassium fertilizers in China relied on imports, reported by the newspaper. Till the end of the 1990s, geologists discovered the world's largest sulfate potassium brine deposit at Lop Nur.

In 2012, a potassium fertilizer project with an annual output of 1.2 million tonnes was put into operation.

Lop Nur area experiences more than 200 days of seven or above level wind force per year, said the newspaper.

Due to its geological, geographical and historical values, Lop Nur has attracted the attention of scientists from home and abroad since the mid-19th century.

The annual precipitation of the area is 39 mm in Lop Nur, while the evaporation exceeds 4,800 mm, said the newspaper. Foreign experts declared that it was impossible to produce potassium sulfate here.

The research group from the SDIC Xinjiang Luobupo Potash Co. Ltd., replaced the freshwater with brackish water from the edge of the desert. Consequently, the amount of water used in producing one tonne of potassium sulfate is only a third of that used by traditional processes.

The enterprise has achieved 71 patents in the research of salt lake potassium resources and other elements in Lop Nur. It promised to invest more in research and promote sci-tech innovation and achievement transformation.

"We will also introduce more products to benefit farmers," said Li Shoujiang, general manager of the enterprise.

Together with the production line, railway transport projects, power plants and water supply projects have been built in Lop Nur which is transforming into a "sea of fortune."