Review on super absorbent polymer application for improving fertilizer efficiency and controlling agricultural non-point source pollutions

Super absorbent polymer (SAP) is a new type of multifunctional material in drought resistant and pollution control. SAP can quickly absorb water and fertilizer for increasing soil crumb structure and porosity, restraining soil evaporation, promoting crop physiological function and reducing fertilizer loss, so as to result in significant improvement of water and fertilizer use efficiency and marked reduction in fertilizer pollution. In recent years, SAP has been widely used in agricultural nonpoint source pollution control as a chemical product of absorbing and storing water and fertilizer. The paper expounds its acting mechanism and efficiency in controlling pollution, introduces the researches on its main antifouling function, and emphatically summarizes the researches of SAP application in agricultural production and the development of agricultural antifouling absorbent agent. In the end, the problems existing in the field are discussed and the future research fields are proposed.