Azucar Minerals Ltd T.AMZ

test shows 0.3% K loss in thermopotash

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Amazon leaching test shows 0.3% K loss in thermopotash
Ticker Symbol: C:AMZ

Amazon leaching test shows 0.3% K loss in thermopotash

Amazon Mining Holding PLC (C:AMZ)
Shares Issued 28,421,204
Last Close 12/15/2010 $4.74
Thursday December 16 2010 - News Release

Mr. Cristiano Veloso reports

STUDY SHOWS MINIMAL LEACHING FOR THERMOPOTASH COMPARED TO A LOSS OF 26% OF KCL

Amazon Mining Holding PLC has released the results of the potassium leaching test, which established that thermopotash suffers minimal nutrient loss as a result of leaching, whereas potassium chloride loses 26 per cent under the same conditions.

Nutrient leaching is a significant factor that decreases the efficiency of fertilizers for farmers. Potassium is a nutrient that is found in soil solution in ionic form, possessing high mobility and susceptibility to leaching, particularly in areas with high rainfall and sandy soils with low cation exchange capacity (CEC). This is particularly important in the Cerrado region of Brazil. The highly weathered ancient tropical soils of Cerrado are very well drained, not retaining water or nutrients, unlike the younger soils in the world's traditional farmlands located in temperate climates. To compound the problem, Brazil's Cerrado region receives substantially more rain than other growing areas.

The experiment was carried-out at the University of Uberlandia under the direction of Prof. Gaspar Korndorfer in a greenhouse for 18 days, using soil columns (lysimeters) with two different soil compositions (sandy texture at 15% clay and a clayey soil at 45% clay) and two sources of potassium (potassium chloride (KCl) granules and ThermoPotash granules and powder) at a dose equivalent to 300 kg/ha under irrigation of 300 mm of water.

The results presented in Table 1 show that the amount of potassium leached from the ThermoPotash was very low compared to that of potassium chloride (KCl) for both of the soil compositions tested. In each sample, 26% of the potassium chloride was leached, while only 0.3% of the ThermoPotash was leached. The superior behavior of ThermoPotash over KCl in the leaching test can be explained by its low solubility in water, which still effectively delivers nutrients to plants (see press release August 11, 2010).

Table 1: Amount of potassium in the soil solution (leached) collected in two         soil types (sandy and clay) for granular KCl and powdered and         granulated ThermoPotash applied to the surface at a dose equivalent         to 300 kg/ha K2O, after an irrigation of 300 mm, measured during a         period of 18 days.----------------------------------------------------------------------------Soil type                      Source of K - Doses of 300 kg/ha                 -----------------------------------------------------------                           KCl   ThermoPotash   ThermoPotash         Control                    (granular)     (powdered)     (granular)     (without K)----------------------------------------------------------------------------                 --------------------- K leached, grams per column ---------Sandy (15% loamy)   2.31 (26.2%)    0.28 (0.3%)    0.26 (0.0%)          0.26Clay (40% loamy)    2.09 (26.0%)    0.08 (0.3%)    0.07 (0.1%)          0.06----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Note: Figures in parentheses represent the percentage of K from the fertilizer applied that was lost through leaching and calculated using the following equation: % K lost by leaching = ((K leached from the source (g) - K leached from the control (g)) / total K applied in fertilizer (g)) x 100.

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