GB/T 15063-2020
Compound fertilizer (English Version)

Standard No.

GB/T 15063-2020

Language

Chinese, Available in English version

Release Date

2020

Published By

General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of the People‘s Republic of China

Latest

GB/T 15063-2020

Replace

GB/T 15063-2009

Introduction

Standard Evolution and Major Technical Changes

Change Dimensions	2009 Edition	2020 Edition
Standard Name	Compound Fertilizer (Compound Fertilizer)	Compound Fertilizer
New Indicators	-	Limits of Nitrate Nitrogen, Medium and Trace Elements, and Toxic and Hazardous Substances
Detection Methods	4 Basic Methods	6 new methods including Dumas Combustion Method and Plasma Atomic Emission Spectrometry

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Analysis of key technical indicators

Core quality requirements

The product must meet the indicators of total nutrients ≥40.0% (high concentration), water-soluble phosphorus ≥60%, etc. At the same time:

• Nitrate nitrogen content ≤2.0% (need to be clearly marked)
• Chloride ion classification labeling (low chlorine <3.0%, medium chlorine <15.0%, high chlorine ≥30.0%)
• Trace elements (Cu/Fe/Mn/Zn/B/Mo) single substance content ≥0.02% can be marked

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Comparison of detection method upgrades

Test items	Traditional methods	New methods
Total nitrogen	Titration after distillation	Dumas combustion method (NY/T 1977)
Potassium content	Potassium tetraphenylborate gravimetric method	ICP-ESI method (NY/T 2540)
Chloride ion	Volumetric method	Automatic potentiometric titration (Appendix B)

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Implementation recommendations

Key points for compliance of manufacturers

1. Packaging labels must clearly indicate the nitrate nitrogen content and chloride ion classification
2. Products containing biuret must add a warning statement (content ≤ 0.8%)
3. Newly added toxic and hazardous substances must be tested at least once every two years (GB 38400)
4. Particle size testing adopts the new method of GB/T 24891

Notes for testing agencies

Priority selection for arbitration testing:
Total nitrogen → titration after distillation (GB/T 8572)
Available phosphorus → Quinoline phosphomolybdic acid gravimetric method (Appendix A)
Chloride ion → Automatic potentiometric titration (Appendix B)

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Background of standard formulation

This standard was jointly revised by the National Technical Committee on Standardization of Fertilizers and Soil Conditioners and 16 other units including Shanghai Research Institute of Chemical Industry and Sino-Arab Fertilizer, mainly in response to:

• New requirements for fertilizer safety in the green development of agriculture
• Development trend of automation and precision of detection technology
• The need to balance nutrient supply and soil environmental protection

GB/T 15063-2020 Referenced Document

• GB 18382 Fertilizer marking—Presentation and declaration*， 2021-04-30 Update
• GB 38400 Limitation requirements of toxic and harmful substance in fertilizers
• GB/T 14540 Determination of copper,iron,manganese,zinc,boron and molybdenum content for compound fertilizers
• GB/T 19203 Determination of calcium,magnesium and sulphur content for compound fertilizer
• GB/T 22923 Determination of nitrogen,phosphorus and potassium for fertilizers by auto analyzer
• GB/T 24891 Determination of particle size for compound fertilizers
• GB/T 34764 Determination of copper,iron,zinc,manganese,boron and molybdenum content in fertilizers—Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy
• GB/T 3597 Fertilizer--Determination of nitrate nitrogen content--Nitron gravimetric method
• GB/T 6274 Fertilizers and soil conditioners.Vocabulary
• GB/T 6679 General rules for sampling solid chemical products
• GB/T 8170 Rules of rounding off for numerical values & expression and judgement of limiting values
• GB/T 8569 Packing of solid chemical fertilizers
• GB/T 8571 Preparation of laboratory samples for compound fertilizers
• GB/T 8572 Determination of total nitrogen content for compound fertilizers titrimetric method after distillation
• GB/T 8573 Determination of available phosphorus content for compound fertilizers
• GB/T 8574 Determination of Potassium Content in Compound Fertilizers*， 2024-09-29 Update
• GB/T 8576 Determination of free water for compound fertilizers.Vacuum oven method
• GB/T 8577 Determination of free water for compound fertilizers.Karl Fischer method
• HG/T 2843 Chemical fertilezer products-standard volumetrie,standard,reagent and indicator solutions for chemical analysis
• NY/T 1977 Water-suluble fertilizers-Determination of total nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium content
• NY/T 2540 Fertilizers.Determination of potassium content

GB/T 15063-2020 history

• 2020 GB/T 15063-2020 Compound fertilizer
• 2009 GB 15063-2009 Compound fertilizer(Complex fertilizer)
• 1994 GB 15063-1994 compound fertilizer

Topics on standards and specifications

Standard and Specification