JP6855809B2 - Covered seeds, method of producing covered seeds and method of sowing covered seeds - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to coated seeds, a method for producing coated seeds, and a method for sowing coated seeds.

With the aging of agricultural workers, it is important to save labor in agricultural work. For example, in paddy rice cultivation, a direct sowing method in which paddy rice seeds are sown directly in a paddy field is becoming widespread for the purpose of saving the trouble of raising seedlings and transplanting. At this time, if various plant seeds including paddy rice seeds are sown directly in the cultivated area, there is an increased possibility that the seeds will be eaten by birds, which is a bird damage. Therefore, in particular, for paddy rice seeds, an attempt has been made to prevent the floating and outflow of seeds and bird damage in paddy fields by coating the paddy rice seeds with iron powder (for example, Patent Document 1 below). See.).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2012-70728 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2016-136861

However, when the seeds of plants such as paddy rice are coated with iron powder as disclosed in Patent Document 1, the metallic iron constituting the iron powder generates heat due to oxidation, which may impair the growth of the seeds. It turned out to be expensive. Further, since iron powder is a relatively expensive coating material, if a coating material containing iron powder as a main component as disclosed in Patent Document 1 is used, the material cost increases.

On the other hand, steelmaking slag generated from a steelmaking process using a blast furnace using natural iron ore, coal, and limestone as raw materials is used for fertilizer and has the property of solidifying. Therefore, it is conceivable to use such steelmaking slag as a seed coating material instead of the iron powder disclosed in Patent Document 1.

However, there are many types of steelmaking slags having different compositions, and the cohesiveness also varies. When the steel-making slag is used alone for seed coating, the coating may not solidify firmly depending on the type of steel-making slag, and the coating may be easily peeled off or broken.

Further, the steelmaking slag is alkaline with a pH of about 11, but in paddy rice seeds coated with steelmaking slag that germinates under flooded conditions, the void ratio between the steelmaking slag particles is larger than that of iron powder coating or the like. Since it is considered that sufficient water exchange occurs between the peri-seed environment and the seed surface through the inside of the coating, it is considered that the paddy rice seeds can germinate without being significantly affected by alkalinity. .. On the other hand, in seeds of plants that germinate under non-flooded conditions, water exchange inside the coating does not easily occur and is easily affected by high pH due to steelmaking slag, so germination occurs under non-flooded conditions. Seeds of slag plants are thought to be difficult to germinate.

The above-mentioned Patent Document 2 which discloses the seed coating material discloses that slag is used as the seed coating material, and as an example of the slag, steel slag or steelmaking slag is mentioned. However, the only slag that has been specifically verified in Patent Document 2 is the slag obtained by melting and then cooling sewage sludge (sewage sludge molten slag), and the steel slag or steelmaking slag is specifically. No verification has been done.

Further, in Patent Document 2, a binder is used to coat the slag. According to the verification by the present inventors, even if the seeds are coated with powdered sewage sludge slag, the sewage sludge molten slag alone does not have the property of solidifying, and is disclosed in Patent Document 2 above. When the sludge is used as a seed coating material, it is necessary to use a substance having a solidifying property such as gypsum as a binder. The iron powder disclosed in Patent Document 1 and the like hardens itself by oxidation, so that the binder is not an essential component. However, in Patent Document 2, the binder is essential, so that the material cost is high. Is worried about the rise.

Further, in the sewage sludge molten slag used in Patent Document 2, there is a possibility that harmful heavy metals derived from sewage may be mixed, and there is a concern that harmful heavy metals may be absorbed and accumulated in germinated plants.

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to suppress bird damage and to efficiently grow seeds while further reducing the cost. It is an object of the present invention to provide a coated seed, a method for producing a coated seed, and a method for sowing the coated seed.

As a result of diligent studies to solve the above problems, the present inventors have focused on the fact that steel slag produced as a by-product in the steel manufacturing process has a relatively low material cost and has a fertilizer effect. The idea was to coat various seeds with such steel slag, and the present invention was completed.
The gist of the present invention completed based on the above findings is as follows.

(1) A coated seed containing a blast furnace slag and at least one of quicklime or slaked lime and having a coating layer covering the surface of a predetermined seed.
(2) The coated seed according to (1), wherein the coating layer does not contain iron powder.
(3) The content of at least one of the quicklime or slaked lime in the coating layer is 5% by mass or less on the outside with respect to the mass of the blast furnace slag, according to (1) or (2). Covered seeds.
(4) The blast furnace slag contains CaO of 35% by mass or more and 45% by mass or less, SiO _{2 of} 25% by mass or more and 40% by mass or less, MgO of 2% by mass or more and 15% by mass or less, and 8% by mass or more and 20. The coated seed according to any one of (1) to (3), which contains at least one of Al ₂ O _{3 of mass% or less so as to have a total of 100 mass% or less.}
(5) The coated seed according to any one of (1) to (4), wherein the blast furnace slag is a blast furnace slag that passes through a sieve having a pore size of 600 μm.
(6) The coated seed according to any one of (1) to (5), wherein the blast furnace slag is a blast furnace slag that passes through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm.
(7) The coated seed according to any one of (1) to (6), wherein the blast furnace slag is a blast furnace granulated slag.
(8) The coated seed according to any one of (1) to (7), wherein the coating layer further contains at least one of electric furnace steelmaking slag or coal ash.
(9) The electric furnace steel slag contains CaO of 15% by mass or more and 60% by mass or less, SiO _{2 of} 10% by mass or more and 20% by mass or less, MgO of 2% by mass or more and 10% by mass or less, and 3% by mass. The coated seed according to (8), which contains at least one _{of Al 2} O ₃ of 20% by mass or more and 20% by mass or less so that the total is 100% by mass or less.
(10) The coal ash contains 15% by mass of CaO of 1% by mass or more and 10% by mass or less, SiO _{2 of} 40% by mass or more and 75% by mass or less, Fe 2O _{3 of 2} % by mass or more and 20% by mass or less. The coated seed according to (8) or (9), which contains at least one _{of Al 2} O _{3 of} % or more and 35% by mass or less so that the total is 100% by mass or less.
(11) The coated seed according to any one of (8) to (10), wherein the electric furnace steelmaking slag is an electric furnace steelmaking slag that permeates a sieve having a pore size of 600 μm.
(12) The coated seed according to any one of (8) to (11), wherein the coal ash is a coal ash that passes through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm.
(13) The content of the electric furnace steelmaking slag in the coating layer is more than 0% by mass and 30% by mass or less with respect to the total mass of the coating layer, any one of (8) to (12). Covered seeds described in 1.
(14) The content of the coal ash in the coating layer is 0% by mass or more and 20% by mass or less with respect to the total mass of the coating layer, in any one of (8) to (13). The coated seeds described.
(15) the covering layer, plaster, cement, and, further at least one member selected from the group consisting of molasses containing, (1) to (14) or one for coated seeds according to.
(16) The seeds according to any one of (1) to (15), wherein the seeds are seeds of a plant cultivated in a flooded state or seeds of a plant cultivated in a non-watered state. Coated seeds.
(17) The coated seed according to (16), wherein the seed of the plant cultivated in the flooded state is a seed of a gramineous plant.
(18) The coated seed according to (17), wherein the seed of the Gramineae plant is a paddy rice seed.
(19) The coated seed according to (16), wherein the seed of the plant cultivated in a non-flooded state is a seed of a gramineous plant, a legume family plant, a Polygonaceae plant, an edible herbaceous plant, or a useful plant. ..
(20) The seeds of the rice family plant are land rice seeds, corn seeds, or wheat seeds, the seeds of the legume family plant are soybean seeds or azuki seeds, and the seeds of the tadashi family plant are The buckwheat seeds, the seeds of the edible herbaceous plant are carrot seeds, tomato seeds, or citrus seeds, and the seeds of the useful plants are turf seeds, grass seeds, green fertilizer plant seeds, or flowering tree seeds. , (19).
(21) The coated seed according to any one of (1) to (20), wherein at least one of a disinfectant, an insecticide or a herbicide is attached to the surface of the coating layer.
(22) The coated seed according to any one of (1) to (21), wherein the coating layer further contains an alginic acid compound.
(23) The coated seed according to any one of (1) to (22), wherein the seed is a starch-coated seed.
(24) A method for producing coated seeds, wherein a predetermined seed is coated with a mixture obtained by mixing at least one of blast furnace slag, quicklime or slaked lime, and water.
(25) The method for producing coated seeds according to (24), wherein the mixture does not contain iron powder.
(26) The method for producing coated seeds according to (24) or (25), wherein the mixture further contains at least one of electric furnace steelmaking slag or coal ash.
(27) The coated seed according to any one of (24) to (26), wherein the ratio of the water in the mixture is 10% by mass or more and 80% by mass or less with respect to the total mass of the mixture. Production method.
(28) said mixture, gypsum,及Beauty, further comprising at least one member selected from the group consisting of cement, (24) the production method of the coated seed according to any one of - (27).
(29) The method for producing coated seeds according to any one of (24) to (28), wherein the water is water containing 10% by mass or more and 50% by mass or less of molasses.
(30) A method for sowing coated seeds, wherein the coated seed according to any one of (1) to (23) is directly sown in the cultivation area for cultivating the seed.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to suppress bird damage and efficiently grow seeds while further reducing the cost.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail.

(About coated seeds)
First, the coated seeds according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail.
The coated seed according to the present embodiment contains a blast furnace slag and has a coating layer that covers the surface of a predetermined seed.

<About seeds>
In the following, first, the seeds used for the coated seeds according to the present embodiment will be briefly described.
As the seeds used for the coated seeds according to the present embodiment, seeds of a plant cultivated in a flooded state or seeds of a plant cultivated in a state of not being flooded can be used. Here, "seed cultivated in a flooded state" means a seed cultivated in a state where the surface of the soil is submerged in water, and "seed cultivated in a state of not being flooded" means. It means seeds that are cultivated without being flooded and the surface of the soil is submerged in water.

Of the above two types of seeds, examples of seeds of plants cultivated in a flooded state include seeds of gramineous plants. The seeds of such grasses are not particularly limited as long as they are cultivated in a flooded state, and any known seeds of grasses can be used. Among the seeds of gramineous plants cultivated in such a flooded state, for example, paddy rice seeds can be mentioned.

Of the above two types of seeds, the seeds of plants cultivated in a non-flooded state include, for example, grass seeds, legume seeds, buckwheat seeds, and edible plant seeds. In addition, seeds of useful plants and the like can be mentioned.

The seeds of gramineous plants as described above are not particularly limited as long as they are cultivated on land that is not flooded, and any known gramineous plant seeds can be used. Among the seeds of gramineous plants cultivated on land that are not flooded, for example, upland rice seeds, corn seeds, wheat seeds and the like can be mentioned.

The seeds of the above-mentioned legumes are not particularly limited as long as they are cultivated on land that is not flooded, and any known legume seeds can be used. Among the seeds of legumes cultivated on land that are not flooded, for example, soybean seeds, adzuki bean seeds and the like can be mentioned.

The seeds of the Polygonaceae plant as described above are not particularly limited as long as they are cultivated on land that is not flooded, and any known Polygonaceae plant seed can be used. Among the seeds of Polygonaceae plants cultivated on land that are not flooded, for example, buckwheat seeds and the like can be mentioned.

The seeds of the above-mentioned edible herbaceous plants are not particularly limited as long as they are the seeds of edible herbaceous plants (so-called vegetables) cultivated on land that is not flooded, and known seeds of edible herbaceous plants should be used. Is possible. Typical seeds of edible plants and plants cultivated on land that are not flooded include carrot seeds, tomato seeds, sugar beet seeds and the like.

The seeds of useful plants as described above are not particularly limited as long as they are cultivated on land that is not flooded, and known useful plant seeds can be used. Typical examples of seeds of useful plants cultivated on land that are not flooded include turf seeds, grass seeds, plant seeds for green manure, flowering tree seeds, and the like. Of these, the green manure plant is a plant that is used as a fertilizer for crops to be cultivated later by cultivating the cultivated plant as it is without harvesting it into the soil. Examples of such a plant for green manure include sorghum and the like.

In addition, bristles may be present on the surface of various seeds as described above. The presence of bristles on the surface of the seed can lead to a phenomenon in which the adhesion between the coating layer and the seed, as described in detail below, is weakened. In order to suppress the possibility of such a phenomenon occurring, the surface of the seeds may be covered with starch by immersing various seeds as described above in an aqueous starch solution. This makes it possible to improve the adhesion between the coating layer and the seed, which will be described later. The concentration of the starch aqueous solution in which the various seeds are immersed as described above (that is, the mass ratio of starch to the total mass of the aqueous solution) is not particularly specified, but is, for example, 40% by mass to 80% by mass. Is preferable. By immersing the various seeds as described above in the starch aqueous solution having such a concentration, it is possible to more reliably improve the adhesion between the coating layer and the seeds.

The seeds applicable to the coated seeds according to the present embodiment have been briefly described above.

<About the coating layer>
Subsequently, the coating layer formed on the surface of the seed as described above will be described in detail.
The coating layer according to the present embodiment formed on the surface of seeds as described above contains blast furnace slag having a predetermined component. Hereinafter, the blast furnace slag contained in the coating layer will be described in detail.

[About blast furnace slag]
In the steel manufacturing process using a blast furnace that uses natural products such as iron ore, coal and limestone as raw materials, by-products called slag are generated. By-produced slag is roughly classified into blast furnace slag produced by the ironmaking process in the blast furnace and steelmaking slag produced by the steelmaking process. The steelmaking slag produced as a by-product in the steelmaking process exhibits a strong alkalinity of about pH 11-12, but the blast furnace slag produced as a by-product in the ironmaking process has a pH of about 10 and is weaker in alkalinity than the steelmaking slag. Steelmaking slag and blast furnace slag are both substances that show solidification, although there are differences in the rate of consolidation.

The components of blast furnace slag produced as a by-product in the steelmaking process are analyzed and controlled in the same manner as steelmaking slag, and contain various fertilizer effective elements such as Ca, Si, and Mg. Therefore, it is possible to use blast furnace slag as a fertilizer raw material in the same manner as steelmaking slag which has been conventionally used as a fertilizer raw material. Further, as with steelmaking slag, since an extremely large amount of blast furnace slag is produced annually in Japan alone, blast furnace slag can be obtained at low cost and material costs can be suppressed.

Blast furnace slag contains almost no iron. Therefore, it is not necessary to consider the damage to the seeds due to the heat generated by the oxidation of iron, which is a concern in the seed coating with iron powder as in Patent Document 1. Blast furnace slag also has the property of consolidating, as mentioned earlier. The porosity between the blast furnace slag particles is much larger than the porosity between the consolidated iron powder particles, even in the consolidated state. Due to the large void ratio in the solidified state, seeds coated with blast furnace slag receive oxygen and water required for seed germination and growth from the outside of the coating layer compared to seeds coated with iron powder. It is possible to reach the seeds inside the coating layer more easily. Therefore, it is possible to preferably apply seed covering with blast furnace slag to the seeds of plants cultivated in a flooded state.

In addition, seed covering with blast furnace slag can also be applied to seeds of plants cultivated without flooding. Regarding the germination of seeds, in the case of directly sown seeds that germinate without being flooded, it is important that water infiltrates the inside of the coating layer and the coating layer itself has a water retention capacity. Coating with blast furnace slag has a large void ratio between blast furnace slag particles and has a higher water retention capacity than iron powder coating, so it is also suitable for germination of seeds cultivated under non-flooded conditions. Therefore, the coating with iron powder as disclosed in Patent Document 1 is mainly limited to rice seeds cultivated in a flooded state (that is, paddy rice seeds), whereas the coating with blast furnace slag is used. Is also applicable to the direct sowing of seeds of any plant grown without flooding.

Some of the above-mentioned plant seeds are sensitive to the pH of the environment in which the seeds are exposed. For example, legumes have a high pH in the surrounding environment (when they show strong alkalinity). Is more likely to have problems with its growth. Therefore, by using blast furnace slag having a lower pH as the main component of the coating layer, it is possible to further suppress the influence of alkalinity on the seeds as compared with the case of using steelmaking slag, and it is more possible to suppress the influence of alkalinity on the seeds. It is possible to cover many plant seeds.

Further, since the blast furnace slag exhibits an alkalinity of about pH 10, when the birds and animals contain seeds having a coating layer containing the blast furnace slag in their mouths, the birds and animals exhibit the seeds due to the alkalinity of the blast furnace slag. It spits out without swallowing. As a result, it becomes possible to suppress feeding damage caused by birds and beasts.

Furthermore, the seeds coated with such blast furnace slag germinate even though the blast furnace slag is weakly alkaline. The reason why seeds germinate despite being weakly alkaline is that acidic substances such as hydrogen ions and organic acids are secreted from the roots, and the weak alkalinity caused by the blast furnace slag that covered the seeds is neutralized, which is normal. It is considered that various germination is possible.

● Blast furnace slag containing a predetermined component The blast furnace slag having the above characteristics is preferably a blast furnace slag containing the following components. That is, the blast furnace slag which is the main component of the coating layer according to the present embodiment contains CaO of 35% by mass or more and 45% by mass or less, SiO _{2 of} 25% by mass or more and 40% by mass or less, and 2% by mass or more and 15% by mass. and following MgO, and 8% by weight to 20% by weight of _Al 2 _{O 3,} at least one of, it is preferred that the total is blast furnace slag containing such that 100% by weight or less.

◇ CaO: 35% by mass to 45% by mass
First, Ca will be described.
When the blast furnace slag comes into contact with water, Ca and Si and Al, which will be described later, are eluted and chemically bonded to each other to exhibit hydraulic slag. According to the present invention, this hydraulic property is utilized to attach and consolidate blast furnace slag to various seeds to coat various seeds. Therefore, in the present invention, Ca is an important element. Ca is also an essential fertilizer element for plants. When expressing the Ca content in fertilizers and steelmaking slag, the content is expressed in terms of oxide CaO. Therefore, the Ca content is also expressed as CaO below for blast furnace slag. And.

In the present embodiment, when the CaO content of the blast furnace slag used for coating various seeds is less than 35% by mass, it is possible that a sufficient amount of Ca cannot be eluted to develop hydraulic slag. On the other hand, blast furnace slag having a CaO content of more than 45% by mass is not produced by a normal steelmaking process and is difficult to obtain. In the present embodiment, the blast furnace slag used for coating various seeds is preferably able to be stably supplied in a large amount, and is preferably produced by a normal ironmaking process. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the CaO content of the blast furnace slag used for coating various seeds is 35% by mass or more and 45% by mass or less. The CaO content of the blast furnace slag is preferably 40% by mass or more and 44% by mass or less.

The CaO content can be measured by, for example, a fluorescent X-ray analysis method.

◇ SiO ₂ : 25% by mass to 40% by mass
Subsequently, Si will be described.
Si, along with Ca and Al, is an element that contributes to the hydraulic limeness of blast furnace slag. Therefore, Si is also an important element in the present invention. Although Si is not an essential element of plants, it is a very important fertilizer effect element especially for rice seeds such as upland rice. _{Silicic acid (SiO 2} ) accounts for about 5% of the dry weight of rice plants. In fertilizers and steelmaking slag, when the Si content is expressed, the _{content is expressed in terms of the oxide SiO 2} , so the same applies to blast furnace slag below as the Si content as _{SiO 2.} Will be represented.

_{In the present embodiment, when the content of SiO 2} of the blast furnace slag used for coating various seeds is less than 25% by mass, it may not be possible to elute a sufficient amount of Si to develop hydraulic slag. .. On the other hand, _{blast furnace slag having a SiO 2} content of more than 40% by mass is not produced by a normal steelmaking process and is difficult to obtain. In the present embodiment, the blast furnace slag used for coating various seeds is preferably able to be stably supplied in a large amount, and is preferably produced by a normal ironmaking process. _{Therefore, in the present embodiment, the content of SiO 2} of the blast furnace slag used for coating various seeds is 25% by mass or more and 40% by mass or less. _{The content of SiO 2 in} the blast furnace slag is preferably 30% by mass or more and 36% by mass or less.

The content of SiO ₂ can be measured by, for example, a fluorescent X-ray analysis method.

◇ MgO: 2% by mass to 15% by mass
Mg, along with Ca, Si and Al, is an element related to the hydraulic limeness of blast furnace slag. However, the contribution of Mg to hydraulic lime, such as the difference between the CaO content and the MgO content contained in the blast furnace slag, is smaller than that of Ca. In the present embodiment, since the blast furnace slag used for coating various seeds contains 35% by mass or more of CaO, it is considered that the hydraulic slag can be basically covered by the CaO contained in the blast furnace slag. However, the presence of MgO can be expected to better exhibit hydraulic limeness. In fertilizers and steelmaking slag, when the Mg content is expressed, the content is expressed in terms of the oxide MgO. Therefore, the MgO content is also expressed as MgO below for blast furnace slag. I will do it.

Here, blast furnace slag having an MgO content of less than 2% by mass and blast furnace slag having an MgO content of more than 15% by mass do not occur in a normal ironmaking process. In the present embodiment, the blast furnace slag used for coating various seeds is preferably able to be stably supplied in a large amount, and is preferably produced by a normal ironmaking process. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the MgO content of the blast furnace slag used for coating various seeds is preferably 2% by mass or more and 15% by mass or less. The MgO content of the blast furnace slag is more preferably 3% by mass or more and 10% by mass or less.

The MgO content can be measured by, for example, a fluorescent X-ray analysis method.

◇ Al ₂ O ₃ : 8% by mass to 20% by mass
Subsequently, Al will be described.
Al, along with Ca and Si, is an important element for the hydraulic limeness of blast furnace slag. In fertilizer and steelmaking slag, when the Al _{content is expressed, the content is expressed in terms of the oxide Al 2} O ₃ , so the same applies to blast furnace slag below as Al ₂ O _3. It shall represent the content of Al.

Blast furnace slag content of Al ₂ O ₃ is less than 8 wt%, and blast furnace slag content of Al ₂ O ₃ is 20 mass% excess is not generated in the normal ironmaking process, difficult to obtain Is. In the present embodiment, the blast furnace slag used for coating various seeds is preferably able to be stably supplied in a large amount, and is preferably produced by a normal ironmaking process. Further, when _{the content of Al 2} O _{3 in} the blast furnace slag is 8% by mass or more, Al can exhibit hydraulicity together with Ca and Si. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the Al ₂ O ₃ content of the steelmaking slag used for coating various seeds is preferably 1% by mass or more and 25% by mass or less. However, when it is desired to further increase the hydraulic hardness and promote the solidification _{, the content of Al 2} O ₃ of the steelmaking slag used for coating various seeds is set to 10% by mass or more and 25% by mass or less in the present embodiment. It is more preferable to do so.

The content of Al ₂ O ₃ can be measured by, for example, a fluorescent X-ray analysis method.

● Blast furnace slow cooling slag and blast furnace granulation slag In this embodiment, the blast furnace slag used for coating various seeds includes blast furnace slag containing the above-mentioned predetermined components, as well as by-products from the steel manufacturing process. It is also possible to use a blast furnace slow cooling slag or a blast furnace granulated slag, which is a kind of blast furnace slag. Blast furnace slag produced as a by-product from the steel manufacturing process includes blast furnace slow cooling slag and blast furnace granulated slag, which have the same composition but different chemical properties due to differences in manufacturing methods. These two types of slag are a type of blast furnace slag.

The above-mentioned blast furnace slow-cooling slag and blast furnace granulated slag also contain the same components as the blast furnace slag containing the above-mentioned predetermined amount of components, but the content is the same as that of the various components in the above-mentioned blast furnace slag. It may differ from the content. However, in the case of blast furnace slow cooling slag or blast furnace granulated slag, various seeds are coated in the present embodiment even if a component having a content different from that of the blast furnace slag containing the above-mentioned predetermined amount of component is present. It can be used as a blast furnace slag for.

Here, from the viewpoint of the consolidation property of each slag, the blast furnace granulated slag has higher consolidation property than the blast furnace slow cooling slag. Therefore, it is more preferable to use blast furnace granulated slag as the blast furnace slag for coating various seeds in the present embodiment.

Further, by mixing the steelmaking slag that functions as an alkali stimulant with the blast furnace granulated slag, it is possible to further increase the consolidation rate of the coating layer according to the present embodiment and to solidify the coating layer more stably. It becomes. At this time, the amount of steelmaking slag mixed with the blast furnace granulated slag is not particularly specified, but is preferably about 1% by mass to 20% by mass with respect to the total mass of the blast furnace granulated slag, for example. .. Further, the steelmaking slag to be mixed with the blast furnace granulated slag is not particularly specified, and known steelmaking slag produced by the converter steelmaking process, including derinsing slag and decarburized slag, can be used.

● Method for measuring the content of each component in the blast furnace slag As described above, in the present embodiment, the content of each component in the various blast furnace slags used for coating various seeds shall be measured by the fluorescent X-ray analysis method. Is possible. More specifically, a calibration curve is prepared by measuring in advance the peak intensity of fluorescent X-rays related to the component of interest using a standard sample whose content is known. For a sample whose content is unknown, the content of the component of interest can be specified by measuring the peak intensity of the fluorescent X-ray related to the component of interest and using a calibration curve prepared in advance. ..

The peak of the fluorescent X-ray of interest is not particularly limited, but for example, the peak of the fluorescent X-ray of Ca, Si, Mg, Al or the like may be focused on.

The method for measuring the content of each component in various blast furnace slags is not limited to the above-mentioned fluorescent X-ray analysis method, and other known analysis methods can be appropriately used.

● Particle size of blast furnace slag In the present embodiment, the above-mentioned blast furnace slag adjusted to a predetermined particle size by crushing or the like can be used as it is for coating various seeds. For crushing these blast furnace slags, known means such as a jaw crusher, a hammer crusher, a rod mill, a ball mill, a roll mill, and a roller mill can be used.

As for the particle size of the blast furnace slag used for coating various seeds, it is preferable to make the particle size as small as a predetermined value or less because the finer the particle size, the easier it is to solidify. As a result of studies by the present inventor, it has been clarified that the blast furnace slag having a particle size adjusted to less than 600 μm tends to have higher adhesion to various seeds and is highly effective. Therefore, the particle size of the blast furnace slag used as the main component of the coating layer according to the present embodiment is preferably less than 600 μm. For example, the blast furnace slag is sieved using a sieve having a pore size of 600 μm, and the particle size of the blast furnace slag that has passed through the mesh of the sieve is less than 600 μm. Blast furnace slag with a finer particle size is preferable in order to improve the adhesion to various seeds, but excessive fineness is not always necessary when crushing and classification require cost and time.

In the present embodiment, the particle size of the blast furnace slag used for the coating layer preferably passes through a sieve having a pore size of 180 μm, more preferably a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm.

In the case of blast furnace slag that cannot pass through a sieve having a pore size of 180 μm, it may be difficult to cover the seeds because the adhesion to small-sized seeds among various plant seeds is poor. Further, by using blast furnace slag (hereinafter, also referred to as “blast furnace slag fine powder”) that passes through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm, it is possible to increase the solidification speed of the coating layer according to the present embodiment. Even if the particle size of the blast furnace slag is small, the porosity between the blast furnace slag particles is sufficiently secured, so that the blast furnace slag is not as dense as the iron powder coating, and the permeation of oxygen and water is not suppressed. Therefore, the particle size of the blast furnace slag used for seed coating is preferably one that passes through a sieve having a pore size of 180 μm, and more preferably one that passes through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm.

When measuring the particle size of the blast furnace slag constituting the coating layer after the fact, the coating layer is peeled from the coated seeds having the coating layer, and the peeled coating layer is subjected to a scanning electron microscope or a transmission electron electron. It may be measured by a known measuring device such as a microscope.

[About other components contained in the coating layer]
◇ About quicklime and slaked lime In addition to the above-mentioned blast furnace slag, the coating layer according to the present embodiment further contains at least one of _{quicklime (CaO) or slaked lime (Ca (OH) 2).} May be good. Quicklime and slaked lime are compounds that function as consolidation promoters that promote consolidation of blast furnace slag. Therefore, by further containing at least one of quicklime and slaked lime in the coating layer, the coating layer can be more reliably consolidated.

Here, the content of at least one of quicklime and slaked lime in the coating layer according to the present embodiment is preferably 5% by mass or less on the outer side with respect to the total mass of the blast furnace slag. When the content of at least one of quicklime and slaked lime exceeds 5% by mass in the outer cover, the alkalinity becomes strong, which is not preferable. The content of at least either quicklime or slaked lime is more preferably 2% by mass or less in terms of the total mass of the blast furnace slag.

As for the form of quicklime or slaked lime to be contained in the coating layer is not particularly defined, may be used CaO or Ca _{(OH) 2} of the natural raw materials, using reagents CaO or Ca _{(OH) 2} You may. Further, steelmaking slag containing quicklime and slaked lime may be used in place of the above-mentioned quicklime or slaked lime.

◇ Electric furnace steelmaking slag and coal ash The coating layer according to the present embodiment may further contain at least one of electric furnace steelmaking slag or coal ash in addition to the above-mentioned blast furnace slag. .. Electric furnace steelmaking slag and coal ash do not exhibit excellent consolidation properties when used alone. However, by mixing the electric furnace steelmaking slag and coal ash with the blast furnace slag as described above, it becomes possible to more reliably consolidate the coating layer.

● Electric furnace steelmaking slag Electric furnace steelmaking slag is not a steelmaking process using a blast furnace and a converter, but a steelmaking slag produced by the ironmaking process using an electric furnace. General electric furnace steel slag contains CaO of 15% by mass or more and 60% by mass or less, SiO _{2 of} 10% by mass or more and 20% by mass or less, MgO of 2% by mass or more and 10% by mass or less, and 3% by mass or more. _{In many cases, at least one of Al 2} O ₃ of 20% by mass or less is contained so that the total is 100% by mass or less. By including the electric furnace steelmaking slag in the coating layer, the electric furnace steelmaking slag functions as a binder, and the coating layer can be more reliably consolidated.

The electric furnace steelmaking slag contained in the coating layer is preferably an electric furnace steelmaking slag that passes through a sieve having a pore size of 600 μm. In other words, the particle size of the electric furnace steelmaking slag contained in the coating layer is preferably less than 600 μm. By setting the particle size of the electric furnace steelmaking slag to less than 600 μm, the solidification rate of the coating layer can be increased, and the coating layer can be consolidated more easily. The smaller the particle size of the electric furnace steelmaking slag, the more preferable it is. However, since pulverization and classification require cost and time, excessive miniaturization is not necessary.

The particle size of the electric furnace steelmaking slag is preferably one that passes through a sieve having a pore size of 180 μm.

The content of the electric furnace steelmaking slag that can be contained in the coating layer is preferably more than 0% by mass and 30% by mass or less with respect to the total mass of the coating layer. If the ratio of electric furnace steelmaking slag to the total mass of the coating layer (more specifically, the mass of blast furnace slag) exceeds 30% by mass, the ratio of electric furnace steelmaking slag is too high and the seed germination rate can be reduced. Sex can occur.

● Coal ash Coal ash (fly ash) is a type of ash produced when coal is burned, and is a substance containing _{SiO 2} and Al ₂ O _{3 as main components.} Common coal ash contains 40% by mass to 75% by mass of SiO ₂ , 15% by mass to 35% by mass of Al ₂ O ₃ , 2% by mass to 20% by mass of Fe ₂ O ₃ , and 1% by mass. In many cases, at least one of 10% by mass of CaO is contained so that the total is 100% by mass or less, and further, other components such as MgO may be contained. As is clear from such constituents, coal ash contains a component similar to that of blast furnace slag and is a substance that assists consolidation. By incorporating such coal ash into the coating layer, the coal ash functions as a binder, and the coating layer can be more reliably consolidated.

The coal ash contained in the coating layer is preferably coal ash that passes through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm. In other words, the particle size of the coal ash contained in the coating layer is preferably less than 75 μm. By setting the particle size of the coal ash to less than 75 μm, the solidification rate of the coating layer can be increased, and the coating layer can be consolidated more easily. The smaller the particle size of coal ash, the more preferable it is, but it is not necessary to use excessively fine particles because classification requires cost and time.

The content of coal ash that can be contained in the coating layer is preferably 0% by mass or more and 20% by mass or less with respect to the total mass of the coating layer. If the ratio of coal ash to the total mass of the coating layer (more specifically, the mass of blast furnace slag) exceeds 20% by mass, the ratio of coal ash is too high, resulting in a decrease in solidification or seed germination. There is a possibility that the rate will drop.

◇ Gypsum, cement, iron powder, waste sugar honey In addition to the above-mentioned blast furnace slag, the coating layer according to the present embodiment is selected from the group consisting of gypsum, cement, iron powder, and waste sugar honey. At least one of these may be further contained.

● About gypsum and cement Gypsum and cement are substances that have solidifying properties and function as binders. Therefore, by incorporating at least one of such gypsum or cement in the coating layer, the coating layer can be more reliably consolidated.

Here, general cement includes CaO of 62% by mass or more and 67% by mass or less, SiO _{2 of} 19% by mass or more and 24% by mass or less, MgO of 0.5% by mass or more and 3% by mass or less, and 2% by mass. _{At least one of Fe 2} O _{3 of} % or more and 6% by _{mass or less and Al 2} O _{3 of} 2% by mass or more and 7% by mass or less is contained so as to have a total of 100% by mass or less. There are many.

The content of gypsum or cement that can be contained in the coating layer is preferably 20% by mass or less with respect to the mass of the blast furnace slag. If the ratio of gypsum or cement to the blast furnace slag exceeds 20% by mass, respectively, the ratio of gypsum or cement is too high, which may reduce the germination rate of seeds.

The gypsum or cement as described above may be mixed with the coating layer, but it is also possible to coat the coating layer with gypsum or cement.

● About iron powder Iron powder is a substance with a large specific gravity. Therefore, by incorporating iron powder in the coating layer, it is possible to increase the weight of the coated seeds and make it difficult for the seeds to run off. The content of iron powder that can be contained in the coating layer is preferably 50% by mass or less with respect to the mass of the blast furnace slag. When the ratio of iron powder to blast furnace slag exceeds 50% by mass, there is a high possibility that the heat generated by the oxidation of metallic iron will increase the damage to the seeds, and the divalent iron ions eluted from the iron powder will be oxidized to trivalent iron. When it becomes an ion and precipitates as a hydroxide, it exhibits acidity, which may adversely affect sprouting and slag growth. Moreover, since iron powder is expensive, a high proportion of iron powder is disadvantageous in terms of cost.

● Molasses Molasses is a dark brown liquid that is produced as a by-product when sugar is refined from sugar cane juice, and contains about 70 to 80% sugar, as well as minerals and vitamins. In addition, molasses is a by-product and can be obtained at low cost. Molasses in particular contains about 2% of potassium necessary for plant cell growth. Potassium is absorbed from the roots of plants and is a necessary component for the growth of plant cells. Therefore, by including molasses in the coating layer, potassium derived from molasses can be supplied from the coating layer, and it can be expected that the growth of seedlings is further promoted. In addition, since molasses has adhesiveness, by incorporating molasses in the coating layer, it is possible to reinforce the solidification of the coating layer and the stability of adhesion to seeds, and the components contained in the molasses after germination. In addition to the fertilizer effect of blast furnace slag, it is possible to further promote the growth of radicles.

● Alginic acid compound The coating layer according to the present embodiment may contain a compound derived from alginic acid (alginic acid compound) such as sodium alginate, calcium alginate, magnesium alginate and the like.

Sodium alginate is a type of polysaccharide contained in algae such as brown algae. When Ca or Mg is added to an aqueous solution of sodium alginate, it has the property of gelling. Since blast furnace slag contains Ca and Mg, gelation occurs by adding an aqueous solution of sodium alginate to the surface of blast furnace slag, which can reinforce the stability of adhesion of the coating layer containing blast furnace slag to seeds. It will be possible. Further, when coated seeds prepared using sodium alginate are directly sown in soil, sodium alginate is decomposed by the action of soil microorganisms to become alginate oligosaccharides. Alginate oligosaccharides have the effect of assisting the absorption of minerals into plant roots by binding with minerals contained in the steelmaking slag of the coating layer, and can be expected to have the effect of promoting the growth of seedlings after germination.

The sodium alginate as described above may partially react with the calcium present in the steelmaking slag and may be present in the coating layer as calcium alginate. Similarly, if magnesium is present in the blast furnace slag, sodium alginate may partially react with magnesium in the blast furnace slag and be present in the coating layer as magnesium alginate. Therefore, when sodium alginate is contained in the coating layer according to the present embodiment, not only sodium alginate but also calcium alginate and magnesium alginate may be present in the coating layer. Similar to sodium alginate, these calcium alginate and magnesium alginate are also decomposed by the action of soil microorganisms to become alginate oligosaccharides. The alginate oligosaccharide has the effect of assisting the absorption of minerals into the plant roots by binding to the minerals contained in the blast furnace slag of the coating layer, and is expected to have the effect of promoting the growth of seedlings after germination.

The coating layer in the coated seed according to the present embodiment has been described in detail above.

<Regarding the components that can adhere to the surface of the coating layer>
At least one of a disinfectant, an insecticidal agent, and a herbicide may be attached to the surface of the coating layer according to the present embodiment. These chemicals adhering to the surface of the coating layer realize the medicinal effect of the corresponding chemicals on the soil in which the coated seeds are sown or the coated seeds themselves.

Here, the disinfectants that can adhere to the surface of the coating layer are thiuram, isothianyl, flametopyl, etaboxam, 2-[(2,5-dimethylphenoxy) methyl] -α-methoxy-N-methyl-benzeneacetamide, and benomil. , Oxolinic acid, probenazole, thiazinyl, pyroquilon and diclosimet may be one or more selected from the group.

The insecticidal agent that can adhere to the surface of the coating layer is one or more selected from the group consisting of clothianidin, nitenpyram, benzultap, thiamethoxam, dinotefuran, pimetrodin, sulfoxaflor, benfracarb, carbosulfane and cartap hydrochloride. You may.

The herbicides that can adhere to the surface of the coating layer include amino acid compounds such as glyphosate and gluhosinate, carbamate compounds such as esprocarb, pyribuchicarb, benchocarb, and molinate, etobenzanide, cafentrol, tenylchlor, butacrol, pretilachlor, bromobutide, mephenacet, etc. Acid amide compounds, dinitroaniline compounds such as triflularin, azim sulfuron, imazosulfuron, ethoxysulfuron, cyclosulfamron, halosulfuron methyl, pyrazosulfuron ethyl, flucetosulfuron, propyrsulfone, benzulfuron methyl, thio Sulfonylurea compounds such as fensulfuronmethyl, sulfonanilide compounds such as pyrimisulfan, diazine compounds such as bentazone, diazole compounds such as oxadiazone, oxadialgyl, pyracronyl, pyrazoxifene, pyrazolate, pyraflufenethyl, benzophenap, etc. Triazine compounds such as dimetamethrin, simethrin, promethrin, triketone compounds such as tefryltrione and mesotrione, urea compounds such as cumyllon and dimulon, bipyridium compounds such as diquat and paracoat, bispyribac sodium salt, pyriminobacmethyl , Pyrimidyloxybenzoic acid compounds such as penoxyslam, phenoxy compounds such as 2,4-D, MCPA, xarohop, clomeprop, cihalohop, cihalohopbutyl, haloxyhop, clodinahop, isoxazole compounds such as isoxaflutol, imazetapill Imidazolinone compounds such as, organic phosphorus compounds such as butamiphos, aromatic carboxylic acid compounds such as dicamba, indanophan, oxadichromephone, calfentrazone ethyl, quinoclamin, pyriphthalide, fentrazamide, benzobicyclon, pentoxazone, and benfresate. It may be one or more selected from the group consisting of.

The above-mentioned compounds of the disinfectant, the insecticide, and the herbicide are all known compounds, and commercially available preparations can be used, or they can be produced by a known production method.

In addition, in this embodiment, the above-mentioned agent is usually a mixture of an active ingredient and an inert carrier, and if necessary, a surfactant or other formulation auxiliary agent is added, and a powder, a flowable agent, or water is added. It is preferable to use those formulated in a Japanese agent, a granule wettable powder, a water solvent, a granule water solvent and the like. Further, a preparation in which the elution of the active ingredient is controlled may be used.

Examples of the inert carrier used in the formulation include a solid carrier and a liquid carrier.
Examples of solid carriers include clays (kaolinkley, diatomaceous earth, bentonite, fubasami clay, acidic white clay, etc.), synthetic silicon hydroxide-containing talc, ceramics, and other inorganic minerals (serisite, quartz, sulfur, activated charcoal, calcium carbonate, water). Fine powders and granules such as Japanese silica), chemical fertilizers (sulfur-an, phosphorus-an, glass-an, urea, salt-an, etc.), and polyester resins such as synthetic resins (polypropylene, polyacrylonitrile, polymethylmethacrylate, polyethylene terephthalate, etc.) , Nylon resin such as nylon-6, nylon-11, nylon-66, polyamide resin, polyvinyl chloride, polyvinylidene chloride, vinyl chloride-propylene copolymer, etc.).
Examples of the liquid carrier include water, alcohols (methanol, ethanol, isopropyl alcohol, butanol, hexanol, benzyl alcohol, ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, phenoxyethanol, etc.), ketones (acetone, methyl ethyl ketone, cyclohexanone, etc.), and aromatics. Hydrocarbons (toluene, xylene, ethylbenzene, dodecylbenzene, phenylxysilyl ethane, methylnaphthalene, etc.), aliphatic hydrocarbons (hexane, cyclohexane, kerosene, light oil, etc.), esters (ethyl acetate, butyl acetate, myristic acid, etc.) Isopropyl, ethyl oleate, diisopropyl adipate, diisobutyl adipate, propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate, etc.), nitriles (acetritale, isobutyronitrile, etc.), ethers (diisopropyl ether, 1,4-dioxane, ethylene glycol dimethyl ether, etc.) Diethylene glycol dimethyl ether, diethylene glycol monomethyl ether, propylene glycol monomethyl ether, dipropylene glycol monomethyl ether, 3-methoxy-3-methyl-1-butanol, etc.), acid amides (N, N-dimethylformamide, N, N-dimethylacetamide, etc.) ), Halogenized hydrocarbons (diethane, trichloroethane, carbon tetrachloride, etc.), sulfoxides (dimethylsulfoxide, etc.), propylene carbonate and vegetable oils (soybean oil, cottonseed oil, etc.).

Examples of the surfactant include nonionic surfactants such as polyoxyethylene alkyl ether, polyoxyethylene alkyl aryl ether and polyethylene glycol fatty acid ester, and anions such as alkyl sulfonate, alkyl benzene sulfonate and alkyl sulfate. Surfactants can be mentioned.

Other pharmaceutical auxiliary agents include fixing agents, dispersants, coloring agents, stabilizers, etc., specifically casein, gelatin, sugars (temple, arabic gum, cellulose derivatives, alginic acid, etc.), lignin derivatives, bentonite, synthetic. Water-soluble polymers (polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinylpyrrolidone, polyacrylic acids, etc.), PAP (isopropyl acid phosphate), BHT (2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-methylphenol), BHA (2-tert-butyl) A mixture of -4-methoxyphenol and 3-tert-butyl-4-methoxyphenol) and the like.

At least a part of these disinfectants, insecticides or herbicides may be present inside the coating layer. Further, at least one of these disinfectants, insecticides or herbicides may be contained in the coating layer.

The coated seeds according to the present embodiment have been described in detail above.
The coated seed according to the present embodiment as described above has a high porosity and is excellent in water permeability, water retention and air permeability as compared with the conventional seed coating using iron powder. It is extremely advantageous for the germination and growth of plants.

(About the manufacturing method of coated seeds)
Subsequently, a method for producing coated seeds according to the present embodiment will be described in detail using the blast furnace slag as described above.

In the method for producing coated seeds according to the present embodiment, a mixture obtained by mixing blast furnace slag as described above and water is prepared, and various plant seeds as described above are coated with such a mixture.

Here, regarding the mixing ratio of water added to the blast furnace slag, the mass ratio of water in the mixture of the blast furnace slag and water (that is, the mass ratio of water to the total mass of the mixture) is 10% by mass or more and 80% by mass. % Or less is preferable. When the mass ratio of water in the mixture of the blast furnace slag and water is less than 10% by mass, the adhesion of the blast furnace slag to the seed surface is deteriorated, and there is a high possibility that the coating becomes difficult. On the other hand, when the mass ratio of water in the mixture of the blast furnace slag and water exceeds 80% by mass, the proportion of water is too high, and there is a high possibility that the surface of the seed cannot be covered with the blast furnace slag. .. Therefore, the mass ratio of water in the mixture of the blast furnace slag and water is preferably 10% by mass or more and 80% by mass or less. In order to stably succeed in seed coating using blast furnace slag, it is more preferable that the mass ratio of water is 25% by mass or more and 50% by mass or less.

Further, at least one of quicklime, slaked lime, electric furnace steelmaking slag, coal ash, gypsum, iron powder, or cement may be mixed with the mixture of the blast furnace slag and water.

When at least any one of quicklime, slaked lime, electric furnace steelmaking slag, coal ash, gypsum or cement is added to the mixture, the mass ratio of each component preferably does not exceed the content as mentioned above. When iron powder is added to the blast furnace slag, the mass ratio of the iron powder to the blast furnace slag preferably does not exceed 50% by mass as mentioned above.

Here, when the seeds are coated with blast furnace slag or the like, as mentioned earlier, there is a possibility that the bristles existing on the seed surface weaken the adhesion of the coating layer to the seed surface. In order to solve this phenomenon, the seeds may be immersed in an aqueous starch solution in advance and then coated with blast furnace slag or the like. Here, the concentration of the starch aqueous solution (that is, the mass ratio of starch to the total mass of the aqueous solution) is preferably 40% by mass to 80% by mass. After immersing the seeds in an aqueous starch solution, the seeds are coated with blast furnace slag or the like to increase the ratio of the mass of one seed to the mass of the coating layer to about 1: 0.6 to 1: 2. Is possible.

Next, a method of coating the plant seeds as described above with the mixture as described above will be described. By preparing the above-mentioned mixture in advance and mixing the above-mentioned plant seeds with the above-mentioned plant seeds, the surface of the used seeds can be coated with blast furnace slag or the like to form a coating layer on the surface of the seeds. .. It is also possible to coat the seeds with the blast furnace slag or the like by mixing the blast furnace slag or the like with water and seeds together. The method of mixing the mixture and the seed is not particularly limited. In the case of processing a large amount, for example, it is possible to mix using a rotary granulator and coat the seeds with the above-mentioned blast furnace slag or the like.

It is also possible to further coat the seeds on which the coating layer is formed using blast furnace slag or the like with gypsum from the outside. By double-coating the seeds with blast furnace slag and gypsum, it is possible to improve the adhesion to the seeds by coating the blast furnace slag. As a method of coating the seeds on which the coating layer is formed with gypsum from the outside, for example, the coated seeds that have been coated with blast furnace slag or the like and dried are immersed in a water suspension of gypsum, taken out, and dried at room temperature. It can be done by using the method of letting. The concentration of the water suspension of gypsum is preferably, for example, 20% by mass to 60% by mass.

The amount of seeds covered with the above-mentioned blast furnace slag or the like is not particularly limited. More preferably, when the mass of the seed is 1, it is preferable to coat the seed with the above-mentioned blast furnace slag having a mass of about 0.1 to 2. Usually, the coating amount realized only by mixing seeds with a mixture of blast furnace slag or the like and water falls within the above range. However, when the surface of the seeds is not completely covered with the blast furnace slag or the like, it is preferable to mix the seeds with the mixture of the blast furnace slag and water again.

Further, in order to enhance the solidification of the above-mentioned blast furnace slag, calcium sulfate is added to either a blast furnace slag or the like, a mixture of blast furnace slag or the like and water, or a mixture of blast furnace slag or the like and water and seeds. Is also valid.

<About water used in the production of coated seeds>
Here, when the seeds are coated with a mixture of blast furnace slag and the like, the water is mixed with the blast furnace slag and the like, but in addition to pure water, tap water, groundwater, agricultural water and the like can also be used. Although possible, it is more preferable to use water containing waste sugar slag. By using water containing molasses, the stickiness of molasses can be used to reinforce the solidification of the coating layer and the stability of adhesion to seeds, and the components contained in molasses are the components of the slag after germination. Growth can be further promoted in addition to the fertilizer effect of blast furnace slag.

When the mass ratio of molasses contained in water containing molasses is less than 10% by mass with respect to the total mass, the effect of solidifying the coating layer made of blast furnace slag or the like and reinforcing the adhesion stability to seeds is effective. , It becomes difficult to express clearly. On the other hand, when the mass ratio of molasses contained in water containing molasses exceeds 50% by mass with respect to the total mass, blast furnace slag or the like and water containing this molasses are mixed to produce blast furnace slag. Etc. become lumps, and it becomes difficult to adhere to the seeds. Therefore, the mass ratio of molasses contained in water containing molasses is preferably 10% by mass or more and 50% by mass or less with respect to the total mass.

<Surface treatment of coated seeds using an aqueous solution of sodium alginate>
As mentioned earlier, by adding an aqueous solution of sodium alginate to the surface of the coating layer containing blast furnace slag, gelation occurs, and the stability of adhesion of the coating layer containing blast furnace slag, etc. to the seeds can be reinforced. It will be possible.

It is a method of adding an aqueous solution of sodium alginate to the surface of a coating layer. For example, there is a method of spraying or sprinkling an aqueous solution of sodium alginate on the surface of a coating layer containing blast furnace slag or the like. It is also possible to immerse the seeds having the coating layer containing blast furnace slag or the like in the sodium alginate aqueous solution for a short time while being careful not to peel off the coating layer. When the concentration of the sodium alginate aqueous solution is less than 0.5% by mass with respect to the total mass of the aqueous solution, the concentration of sodium alginate is too low, so that gelation does not occur firmly and the coating layer is applied to the seeds. The effect of reinforcing the stability of adhesion may not be exhibited. Further, when the concentration of the sodium alginate aqueous solution exceeds 5% by mass with respect to the total mass of the aqueous solution, the gel becomes too strong and germination may be suppressed. Therefore, the concentration of the sodium alginate aqueous solution added to the surface of the coating layer containing blast furnace slag or the like is preferably 0.5% by mass or more and 5% by mass or less with respect to the total mass of the aqueous solution. The amount of the sodium alginate aqueous solution when the sodium alginate aqueous solution is sprayed or sprinkled may be an amount that moistens the entire surface of the coating layer.

<Surface treatment of coated seeds using disinfectants, insecticides, and herbicides>
As mentioned earlier, it is possible to attach at least one of a disinfectant, an insecticide, or a herbicide to the surface of the coating layer containing blast furnace slag and the like.

As a method of adding the above-mentioned chemicals to the surface of the coating layer, for example, there is a method of spraying or sprinkling an aqueous solution containing the above-mentioned chemicals on the surface of the coating layer containing blast furnace slag or the like. Further, for example, the chemical may be sprayed as it is on the surface of the coating layer containing blast furnace slag or the like, and the chemical may be adhered to the surface of the coating layer. The amount of the above-mentioned drug used for coated seeds is not particularly specified, but is preferably about 0 to 100 grams with respect to 1000 grams of dry weight of seeds, for example.

In the above description, the composition of the blast furnace slag and the like is shown by the composition before mixing with water. In order to confirm the composition of the blast furnace slag after mixing with water, the blast furnace slag may be recovered in a state where the water is evaporated and dried, and the composition of the recovered blast furnace slag may be examined. As described above, the composition of the blast furnace slag before coating and the composition of the blast furnace slag after coating are almost the same.

Seeds coated with a coating layer containing blast furnace slag or the like can be used for direct sowing after being air-dried, for example, in a well-ventilated place. It is preferable to sow as soon as possible after the coating, because the coating deteriorates the air permeability and suppresses the respiration of the seeds. If possible, it is preferable to sow within 4 days after coating.

However, it is also possible to store the coated seeds and use them for direct sowing for up to about half a year after coating.

As described above, it is possible to easily and inexpensively produce coated seeds using blast furnace slag or the like.

(About sowing method of coated seeds)
Subsequently, the method of sowing the coated seeds as described above will be briefly described.
In the method of sowing coated seeds according to the present embodiment, the coated seeds as described above are directly sown in the cultivation area for cultivating the seeds.

Here, the sowing method of the coated seed is not particularly limited, and a known sowing method suitable for cultivation of the plant used for the coated seed may be adopted.

Hereinafter, the coated seeds, the method for producing the coated seeds, and the method for sowing the coated seeds according to the present invention will be specifically described with reference to Examples and Comparative Examples. The examples shown below are merely examples of the coated seeds, the method for producing the coated seeds, and the method for sowing the coated seeds according to the present invention, and the methods for producing the coated seeds, the coated seeds, and the coated seeds according to the present invention. The seeding method is not limited to the following examples. The rice seeds in each of the examples shown below are paddy rice seeds.

(Example 1)
The blast furnace slag having the composition shown in Table 1 below (more specifically, the blast furnace granulated slag) is crushed, and a sieve having a different pore size is used to obtain the blast furnace granulated slag after crushing, and (A) a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm. It was classified into two types: those that passed through and those that (B) passed through a sieve with a pore size of 600 μm and did not pass through a sieve with a pore size of 75 μm. Rice seeds, corn seeds, soybean seeds, and upland rice seeds were coated with each of the blast furnace granulated slags (A) or (B).

More specifically, a mixture of a blast furnace granulated slag having the composition shown in Table 1 below and an aqueous solution of waste sugar honey having a concentration of 20% by mass was prepared, and the obtained mixture was used as rice seeds, corn seeds, and soybeans. The seeds and the land rice seeds were mixed, and a mixture of the blast furnace granulated slag and the waste sugar honey aqueous solution was attached to the surfaces of the rice seeds, the corn seeds, the soybean seeds, and the land rice seeds. Then, the rice seeds, corn seeds, soybean seeds, and upland rice seeds to which the mixture is attached are dried to form a coating layer on the seed surface, and the coated rice seeds, coated corn seeds, coated soybean seeds, and upland rice seeds are formed. did.

Further, as a comparative example, steelmaking slag having the composition shown in Table 2 below was pulverized, and steelmaking slag passing through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm was also prepared, and the obtained steelmaking slag was used to coat upland rice seeds.

More specifically, a mixture of a steelmaking slag having the composition shown in Table 2 below and an aqueous solution of waste sugar honey having a concentration of 20% by mass was prepared, and the obtained mixture and land rice seeds were mixed to mix land rice seeds. A mixture of steelmaking slag and an aqueous solution of waste sugar honey was attached to the surface of the slag. Then, the upland rice seeds to which the mixture was attached were dried to form a coating layer on the seed surface to obtain coated upland rice seeds.

20 mm each of rice seeds, corn seeds, soybean seeds, and land rice seeds covered with blast furnace granulated slag, and land rice seeds covered with steelmaking slag, spread with filter paper on a 90 mm diameter plastic chalet. The seeds were placed, distilled water was added, and the mixture was allowed to stand at 28 ° C. for a germination test. At this time, the amount of distilled water added was adjusted so that the various children would not be flooded. As a control, the same germination test was conducted in parallel for uncoated rice seeds, corn seeds, soybean seeds, and upland rice seeds. Since the uncoated seeds were easy to dry, additional water was supplied, but the coated seeds were not additionally supplied with water. The results of the obtained germination test are shown in Table 3 below.

As is clear from Table 3 above, rice seeds, corn seeds, soybean seeds and upland rice seeds coated with blast furnace granulated slag that passed through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm had a high germination rate as in the case of no coating. Therefore, it was found that coating with blast furnace granulated slag passing through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm gives a good germination rate to any plant seed.

On the other hand, upland rice seeds coated with steelmaking slag had a slightly lower germination rate than upland rice seeds coated with blast furnace granulated slag. This is because the alkalinity of steelmaking slag is relatively stronger than that of blast furnace granulated slag, and it is considered that seeds that germinate without flooding are difficult to germinate due to the high pH of steelmaking slag.

(Example 2)
Rice seeds, corn seeds and soybean seeds were coated with blast furnace slag fine powder (equivalent to JIS A6206) obtained from blast furnace granulated slag having the composition shown in Table 1 above.

More specifically, a mixture of the above-mentioned blast furnace granulated slag, quicklime powder, and water was prepared, and the obtained mixture was attached to the surfaces of rice seeds, corn seeds, and soybean seeds. Blast furnace granulated slag: water = 70% by mass: 30% by mass, and the content of quicklime is 1% by mass with respect to the blast furnace granulated slag. Then, the rice seeds, corn seeds and soybean seeds to which the mixture was attached were dried to form a coating layer on the seed surface to obtain coated rice seeds, coated corn seeds and coated soybean seeds.

50 seeds of each coated seed were dispersed and arranged on a plastic plate, and the plastic plate was placed in the field under the condition of being covered with an enclosure so as not to be affected by the wind. Two weeks later, the number of seeds left uneaten by birds was counted, and the seed survival rate was calculated. As a control, similar tests were performed in parallel for uncoated rice seeds, corn seeds and soybean seeds. The results of the obtained residual rate are shown in Table 4 below.

As is clear from Table 4 above, rice seeds, corn seeds and soybean seeds coated with a coating layer containing blast furnace granulated slag all have a higher survival rate than uncoated seeds and cannot be eaten by birds. all right.

(Example 3)
Using the blast furnace granulated slag having the composition shown in Table 1 above, (A) a sieve having a pore diameter of 75 μm, and (B) a sieve having a pore diameter of 600 μm and not passing through a sieve having a pore diameter of 75 μm. I prepared each one. Further, using the steelmaking slag having the composition shown in Table 2 above, in the same manner, (A) a sieve having a pore diameter of 75 μm, (B) a sieve having a pore diameter of 600 μm and passing through a sieve having a pore diameter of 75 μm. I prepared each of the things that I didn't do.

By adding water to each of the four types of slag obtained (that is, blast furnace granulated slag (A), blast furnace granulated slag (B), steelmaking slag (A), steelmaking slag (B)), slag: A mixture with water in a ratio of water = 70% by mass: 30% by mass was prepared, and further, the rice seeds were mixed to attach the mixture of each slag and water to the surface of the rice seeds. Regarding the blast furnace granulated slags (A) and (B), 2% by mass of quicklime powder was further added to the blast furnace granulated slag by external hook in the same manner as in Example 2. These coated seeds are cured for 24 hours so as not to dry, and then dried at room temperature for 24 hours to produce blast furnace granulated slag (A), blast furnace granulated slag (B), steelmaking slag (A), and steelmaking slag (B). Rice seeds coated with slag were prepared. For the four types of rice seeds obtained, the mass of rice seeds and the amount of covering substance per grain are summarized in Table 5 below.

As is clear from Table 5 above, the amount of the coating material adhered to the rice seeds coated with the blast furnace granulated slag (A) that had passed through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm could be increased most. Next, the rice seeds coated with the steelmaking slag (A) that had passed through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm had a large amount of the coating. On the other hand, the amount of adhesion of the rice seed coating coated with the blast furnace granulated slag (B) and the steelmaking slag (B) that passed through the sieve with a pore size of 600 μm and did not pass through the sieve with a pore size of 75 μm was both. It became a low value. Therefore, it was found that the coating can be adhered better when coated with blast furnace granulated slag or steelmaking slag having a smaller particle size.

Next, about 20 rice seeds coated with each of the blast furnace granulated slag (A), the blast furnace granulated slag (B), the steelmaking slag (A), and the steelmaking slag (B) were placed from a height of 20 cm. It was naturally dropped once on an iron plate. The seeds that had fallen on the iron plate were collected, and the mass was measured to examine the change in the amount of coating material before and after the fall. The ratio of the amount of the covering substance after the fall to the amount of the covering substance before the fall was calculated and shown in Table 6 below.

As is clear from Table 6 above, in the seeds coated with quicklime added with blast furnace granulated slag (A) that passed through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm, seeds coated with steelmaking slag (A) that passed through a sieve having a pore diameter of 75 μm. In the test by dropping seeds on the iron plate, it was found that more coating remained, the strength of the coating increased, and the coating adhered more stably.

(Example 4)
Each of the blast furnace granulated slag having the composition shown in Table 1 and the steelmaking slag having the composition shown in Table 2 above was prepared by passing through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm.

By adding water to each of the above-mentioned blast furnace granulated slag and steelmaking slag, a mixture with water having a ratio of slag: water = 70% by mass: 30% by mass is prepared, and further, corn seeds are mixed to prepare a mixture. A mixture of slag and water was attached to the surface of the corn seeds. In addition, 1% by mass of quicklime powder was added to the blast furnace granulated slag externally with respect to the blast furnace granulated slag. These coated seeds were cured for 24 hours so as not to dry, and then dried at room temperature for 24 hours to prepare corn seeds coated with blast furnace granulated slag and steelmaking slag, respectively.

The mass of corn seeds and the amount of covering material per corn seed are shown in Table 7 below. In addition, the pH of the coating was measured using pH test paper, and the obtained results are shown in Table 7 below.

As is clear from Table 7 above, the seed coating coated with steelmaking slag had a pH of 9.1, and the seed coating coated with blast furnace granulated slag had a pH of 7.5.

Since corn seeds are seeds that germinate under conditions that are not flooded, the germination test was carried out as follows in consideration of this. Spread filter paper on a 90 mm diameter plastic petri dish, place 20 blast furnace granulated slag and 20 corn seeds covered with steelmaking slag on each petri dish, add distilled water, and let stand at 28 ° C to germinate. The test was conducted. At this time, the amount of distilled water added was adjusted so that the various children would not be flooded. As a control, the same germination test was conducted in parallel for uncoated corn seeds. Since the uncoated seeds were easy to dry, additional water was supplied, but the coated seeds were not additionally supplied with water. The results of the germination test obtained are shown in Table 8 below.

As is clear from Table 8 above, the germination rate of corn seeds coated with blast furnace granulated slag that passed through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm was higher than that of uncoated seeds and seeds coated with steelmaking slag.

In addition, upland rice seeds coated with steelmaking slag had a slightly lower germination rate than upland rice seeds coated with blast furnace granulated slag. This is because, as shown in Table 7, the alkalinity of steelmaking slag is relatively stronger than that of blast furnace granulated slag, so seeds that germinate without flooding are difficult to germinate due to the high pH of steelmaking slag. It is thought that the cause was that.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to such examples. It is clear that a person having ordinary knowledge in the field of technology to which the present invention belongs can come up with various modifications or modifications within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims. , These are also naturally understood to belong to the technical scope of the present invention.

Claims (30)

A coated seed comprising a blast furnace slag and at least one of quicklime or slaked lime and having a coating layer covering the surface of a given seed. The coated seed according to claim 1, wherein the coating layer does not contain iron powder. The coated seed according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the content of at least one of the quicklime or slaked lime in the coating layer is 5% by mass or less on the outside with respect to the mass of the blast furnace slag. The blast furnace slag contains CaO of 35% by mass or more and 45% by mass or less, SiO _{2 of} 25% by mass or more and 40% by mass or less, MgO of 2% by mass or more and 15% by mass or less, and 8% by mass or more and 20% by mass or less. The coated seed according to any one of claims 1 to 3, which contains at least one of Al ₂ O _{3 of the above so as to have a total of 100% by mass or less.} The coated seed according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the blast furnace slag is a blast furnace slag that passes through a sieve having a pore size of 600 μm. The coated seed according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the blast furnace slag is a blast furnace slag that passes through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm. The coated seed according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the blast furnace slag is a blast furnace granulated slag. The coated seed according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the coating layer further contains at least one of electric furnace steelmaking slag or coal ash. The electric furnace steel slag contains CaO of 15% by mass or more and 60% by mass or less, SiO ₂ of 10% by mass or more and 20% by mass or less, MgO of 2% by mass or more and 10% by mass or less, and 3% by mass or more and 20% by mass. The coated seed according to claim 8, which contains at least one of Al ₂ O _{3 of} % or less so as to have a total of 100% by mass or less. The coal ash contains CaO of 1% by mass or more and 10% by mass or less, SiO _{2 of} 40% by mass or more and 75% by mass or less, Fe 2O _{3 of 2} % by mass or more and 20% by mass or less, and 15% by mass or more and 35. The coated seed according to claim 8 or 9, which contains at least one of Al ₂ O _{3 of} mass% or less so as to have a total of 100 mass% or less. The coated seed according to any one of claims 8 to 10, wherein the electric furnace steelmaking slag is an electric furnace steelmaking slag that permeates a sieve having a pore size of 600 μm. The coated seed according to any one of claims 8 to 11, wherein the coal ash is a coal ash that passes through a sieve having a pore size of 75 μm. The coating according to any one of claims 8 to 12, wherein the content of the electric furnace steelmaking slag in the coating layer is more than 0% by mass and 30% by mass or less with respect to the total mass of the coating layer. seed. The coated seed according to any one of claims 8 to 13, wherein the content of the coal ash in the coating layer is 0% by mass or more and 20% by mass or less with respect to the total mass of the coating layer. The coating layer may, gypsum, cement, and, further at least one member selected from the group consisting of molasses containing, coated seeds according to any one of claims 1 to 14. The coated seed according to any one of claims 1 to 15, wherein the seed is a seed of a plant cultivated in a flooded state or a seed of a plant cultivated in a non-watered state. The coated seed according to claim 16, wherein the seed of the plant cultivated in the flooded state is a seed of a gramineous plant. The coated seed according to claim 17, wherein the seed of the Gramineae plant is a paddy rice seed. The coated seed according to claim 16, wherein the seed of the plant cultivated in a non-flooded state is a seed of a gramineous plant, a legume family plant, a Polygonaceae plant, an edible herbaceous plant, or a useful plant. The seeds of the grass family are upland rice seeds, corn seeds, or wheat seeds.
The seeds of the legumes are soybean seeds or adzuki bean seeds.
The seeds of the Polygonaceae plant are buckwheat seeds,
The seeds of the edible herbaceous plant are carrot seeds, tomato seeds, or sugar beet seeds.
The coated seed according to claim 19, wherein the seed of the useful plant is a turf seed, a grass seed, a plant seed for green manure, or a flowering tree seed. The coated seed according to any one of claims 1 to 20, wherein at least one of a disinfectant, an insecticide or a herbicide is attached to the surface of the coating layer. The coated seed according to any one of claims 1 to 21, wherein the coating layer further contains an alginic acid compound. The coated seed according to any one of claims 1 to 22, wherein the seed is a seed coated with starch. A method for producing coated seeds, wherein a predetermined seed is coated with a mixture obtained by mixing blast furnace slag , at least one of quicklime or slaked lime, and water. The method for producing coated seeds according to claim 24, wherein the mixture does not contain iron powder. The method for producing coated seeds according to claim 24 or 25, wherein the mixture further comprises at least one of electric furnace steelmaking slag or coal ash. The method for producing coated seeds according to any one of claims 24 to 26, wherein the ratio of the water in the mixture is 10% by mass or more and 80% by mass or less with respect to the total mass of the mixture. The mixture plaster,及Beauty, further at least one member selected from the group consisting of cement, including a process for producing coated seed according to any one of claims 24 to 27. The method for producing coated seeds according to any one of claims 24 to 28, wherein the water is water containing 10% by mass or more and 50% by mass or less of molasses. A method for sowing coated seeds, wherein the coated seed according to any one of claims 1 to 23 is directly sown in a cultivation area for cultivating the seed.