Fertiliser Technology Research Centre

Fertiliser Technology Research team

About the Fertiliser Technology Research Centre

The Fertiliser Technology Research Centre at Adelaide University is an acknowledged world leader in fertiliser research and has a research and collaboration agreement with The Mosaic Company beginning in 2007.

The Mosaic Company LLC is a Fortune 500 company and is the world's largest provider of potash and phosphate fertilisers serving farmers in more than 40 countries and employing more than 13,000 people in 6 countries.

The Centre acts as the key research partner for Mosaic in relation to the development of new fertiliser products and provides a range of other services including technical backup to sales and commercial staff, to production staff and to staff involved in co-product development from waste streams.

Since 2007 Mosaic has provided A$12.5 million to the University to support research in the Centre and contributed to the University more than $900,000 in IP/royalty payments.

Explore our research

The Centre’s unique suite of expertise in soil science, soil biology, crop nutrition, polymer chemistry, chemical engineering and manufacturing allows the Centre to create a very efficient invention/adoption pathway for new crop nutrition products. The Centre has published over 100 peer-reviewed scientific papers since 2007 on soil chemistry, soil fertility, crop nutrition, new fertiliser technologies and chemical engineering of new products.

Engage with us

Interested in working or studying with us? We collaborate with a wide range of national and international partners. We encourage students and academics globally to visit and work with us in our laboratories. Please contact us about opportunities to do an industry-based Masters or PhD qualification with us.

Contact us

Explore the Fertiliser Technology Research Centre

The Fertiliser Technology Research Centre explores the fundamental processes controlling fertiliser efficiency in a wide range of soils around the world, using a combination of spectroscopic, speciation and radio-isotopic techniques.

Our scientists manage and conduct experimental work under laboratory, glasshouse and field conditions to develop more effective fertiliser formulations to optimise their efficiency.

The Centre has state-of-the-art facilities for soil fertility and crop nutrition research and is unique in that it has small and medium-scale fertiliser manufacturing facilities (granulation, extrusion and compaction) and a laboratory dedicated to fertiliser physical quality testing.

The Centre collaborates and has access to pilot-plant fertiliser manufacturing facilities within Mosaic and in facilities contracted to Mosaic to assist with scale-up and testing of new technologies. There is close collaboration with fertiliser manufacturing teams in USA, Canada and Brazil.

The Centre actively collaborates with other research partners across the globe in plant physiology, soil microbiology, crop agronomy and chemical engineering – in Turkey, USA, Canada, Brazil and Argentina.

Key research themes include:

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Advanced fertiliser formulation, focused on new bio-based coating technologies and others, to control nutrient release kinetics and so better time the availability of the nutrient with the requirements of the plants to reduce environmental losses.

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Optimisation of macro and micronutrient nutrition, particularly phosphorus (P) and sulphur (S), alongside potash (K) by developing chemical methods to mobilise fixed nutrients in soils improving uptake of these nutrients in cropping systems.

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Elucidating mechanisms behind the benefits of new novel biomineral microbial fertilisers.

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Development of laboratory methods for the testing of fertiliser characteristics and behaviour during storage and handling globally.

Some of our notable achievements and impact include:

  • The publication of 8 international patents on new fertiliser technologies for which Mosaic is the licensee. Three additional patents are in preparation. Professor McLaughlin was also recognised by the National Academy of Inventors (USA) in 2025 for his and the teams prolific patented inventions in this area of new fertilisers.
  • FTRC's expertise is globally recognised, leading to the appointment of Professor Mike McLaughlin to the international scientific panel for responsible plant nutrition in 2021. A panel of experts influencing global scientific policy and best practices concerning phosphate and novel fertiliser technologies.
  • The Nutriform® technology behind Mosaic’s new potash fertiliser Aspire® containing two sources of boron was developed and patented by the Centre for Mosaic. This is now used across more than 2 million hectares annually.
  • Other new technologies in the pipeline are on target for release in 2026-2027 and are to be used across 10-15 million hectares annually.
  • The increases in crop productivity delivered by these technologies represents a notable impact to aggregated global food productivity and security with indirect effects such as improved profitability for farmers, increased use efficiency and is part of the centres core mission to develop fertiliser products which limit environmental pollution (such as nutrient run-off).
  • The collaborative efforts of the FTRC researchers and students have earned top accolades, such as the Brian Chambers award from the International Fertiliser Society, and the Young Scholar Award from the International Plant Nutrition Institute (IPNI) recognising excellence in collaborative research and advances in fertiliser technology and practices.

Roslyn Baird

Director Fertiliser Technology Research Centre
Email: roslyn.baird@adelaide.edu.au

Roslyn Baird photo

Researchers

  • Professor Mike McLaughlin: Emeritus Professorial Research Fellow
  • Fien Degryse: Senior Research Fellow
  • Ivan Andelkovic: Postdoctoral Research Fellow
  • Shervin Kabiri: Postdoctoral Research Fellow
  • Therese McBeath: Affiliate Lecturer
  • Sean Mason: Research Fellow

Technical Staff

  • Bogumila Tomczak: Technical Officer
  • Ashleigh Panagaris: Technical Officer
  • Andrea Paparella: Technical Officer

Research Students

  • Aasma Parveen: PhD Candidate
  • Jacinta Dockerill: PhD Candidate
  • Will Tucker: PhD Candidate

Key Industry and Research Funding Partners:

  • The Mosaic Company
  • Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC)
  • Australian Research Council (ARC)
  • South Australian Grain Industry Trust Fund
  • Fluid Fertilizer Foundation

International and Specific Research Partners:

  • International Zinc Association
  • Harvest Zinc
  • Sabancı University (Turkey)

 

The FTRC offers partnering capabilities including its globally recognised expertise in soil chemistry, fertiliser technology, and plant nutrition. Specifically, the team are experts in research and development of advanced fertiliser products, aiming to optimise plant uptake while limiting environmental impacts. The Centre offers the capability to conduct experimental work under controlled laboratory and glasshouse conditions, supported by extensive field-scale agronomy trials. They also specialise in the conception, formulation, and production of novel fertiliser products.

Contact us

Fertiliser Technology Research Centre

Location

Location
Fertiliser Technology Research Centre
Adelaide University
Level 3 Prescott Building, Waite Campus, Adelaide SA 5064

Email

Email: fertiliser@adelaide.edu.au