Title of Invention	A PROCESS FOR PREPARING SYNERGISTICANTI-OXIDANT, GROWTH PROMOTING, NUTRIENT-CUM-IMMUNITY INDUCING COMPOSITION
Abstract	Conventional fertilizers are almost invariably chemical compounds which on prolonged application result in soil compaction and necessitate application of expensive pesticides, often in increasing amounts, thereby enhancing cost of production of vegetative products. The present invention attempts to solve these difficulties by providing a process for preparing synergistic anti-oxidant, growth promoting, mutrient-cum-immunity inducing composition which comprises -(i) extraction of lignin and pigments by delignification and depigmentation of cellulosic bodies by hydrolysis or action of surfactant thereon (ii) mixing the extracted lignin, cellulose and pigments with one or more materials like nutrients, trace materials, metals or metal compounds, oxo-compounds, stimulating agents, neem oil or neem extract and optionally pine oil and mustard seed waste in predetermined amounts; (iii) subjecting the composition of (ii) to anaerobic fermentation till attainment of maturity; (iv) separating the fermented mass from step (iii) into liquid and stillage using standard techniques and (v) processing the solid and liquid masses into useful end products, namely, subject composition.

Title of Invention

A PROCESS FOR PREPARING SYNERGISTICANTI-OXIDANT, GROWTH PROMOTING, NUTRIENT-CUM-IMMUNITY INDUCING COMPOSITION

Abstract

Conventional fertilizers are almost invariably chemical compounds which on prolonged application result in soil compaction and necessitate application of expensive pesticides, often in increasing amounts, thereby enhancing cost of production of vegetative products. The present invention attempts to solve these difficulties by providing a process for preparing synergistic anti-oxidant, growth promoting, mutrient-cum-immunity inducing composition which comprises -(i) extraction of lignin and pigments by delignification and depigmentation of cellulosic bodies by hydrolysis or action of surfactant thereon (ii) mixing the extracted lignin, cellulose and pigments with one or more materials like nutrients, trace materials, metals or metal compounds, oxo-compounds, stimulating agents, neem oil or neem extract and optionally pine oil and mustard seed waste in predetermined amounts; (iii) subjecting the composition of (ii) to anaerobic fermentation till attainment of maturity; (iv) separating the fermented mass from step (iii) into liquid and stillage using standard techniques and (v) processing the solid and liquid masses into useful end products, namely, subject composition.

Full Text	The present invention relates to a synergistic anti - oxidant, growth promoting nutrientcun- immunity inducing composition More particularly, this invention is concerned with a novel growth promoting bio -nutrient cum biocidal activity inducing composition and also with the process for its preparation. The composition of this invention is usually in a liquid form, but may also be in a powdery, granular or pellet - like form which may act as a slow release system without having any toxic or undesirable effect on plants and crops in general and also on the surrounding environment. The composition of the invention is not only a growth promoting agent by supplying nutrient to the soil, and conditioning the same, but also is a biocidal activity inducer which substantially reduces the consumption of chemical pesticide, or even eliminates it altogether. Development of such a novel synergistic composition has been made possible by incorporating lignin or lignocellulosic extract(s) from vegetative sources like straws, stalks, grass, weeds, leaves, barks, and the like objects which have little or no commercial importance. It has surprisingly been found that the novel composition apart from supplying cellulosic nitrogen and lignin to the soil, also provides other beneficial micro-nutrients to the soil and plant roots. The composition enhances porosity of soil and accelerates photosynthesis process in plants and crops by means of soil pigmentation. The composition is capable of reducing fatty acid content of soil area treated with it which effectively reduces the quantum of fertiliser consumption per unit area.. Induction of biocidal activity is a notable feature of this composition which enables the treated plant to withstand attack by pests and this virtually eliminates use of toxic pesticides. The novel composition incorporates as one of its important constituents one or more of the following objects from Neem tee [ Margosa tree, botanical name - Azadirachta Indica]: (i) Neem bark extract; 2 (ii) extract of Neem leaves or cellulosic parts thereof and (iii) Neem oil. Components / extracts from Neem tree have been found to impart biocidal immunity inducing properties effective against attack by pests and / or inimical micro - bodies. It has also been noted unexpectedly that addition or inclusion of pine oil. pine needle oil or pine tree extract, preferably in the process of emulsification, alongwih Neem oil, in an amount of, say, 1 - 10 gm of total weight of neem oil, improves the biocidal property. Addition of pine tree product (s) has been found to accentuate biocidal activity of neem tree products which rendered the effect almost instantaneous. Apart from enhancing the biocidal property, pine tree extracts help in rapid spreading of the subject composition after application to soil. It was also found that storage stability and shelf life of the said composition improved after incorporation of neem and pine tree extracts. Incorporation of seed wastes, e.g. groundnut, mustard, walnut, sunflower, sesame, rapeseed etc. has been observed to impart certain beneficial effects to the novel composition of this invention particularly in relation to enrichment of nutritive value of the soil and also the anaerobic fermentation to be effected in arriving at the composition. In my earlier Indian Patent No. 179309 ( 480/CAL/94) dated June 24, 1994. I had described a novel synergistic growth promoting nutrient - cum - soil - conditioning composition comprising; ( a ) ligntn, ( b ) cellulose and ( c ) a liquid medium containing requisite nutrients, stimulating agents, trace compounds, metal compounds and pigments, wherein the concentration of the essential ingredients in the said composition are as follows: i) total Nitrogen (including ligno - cellulosic nitrogen 30-60 ppm; ii) water soluble Nitrogen 15-30 ppm; iii) Phosphorus compounds (as P203) 10-20 ppm; iv) metal (both in free and compound form) .5-15 ppm; v) non-metals (other than phosphorus) 0.05- 5 ppm and 3 vi) pigments 0,001 - 25 ppm. This Patent No 179309/also described a process for preparing the above composition in liquid, powdery, granular or pelletised form. Till recent times farmers had to be content by using humus, organic matters and / or materials from vegetable sources, usually in decayed forms for enhancing / replenishing tost fertility of soil. These degradable Wo - fertilisers not only made the soil porous, ensuring passage of air and moisture to reach the plant roots, but also helped in generation and reproduction of eco - friendly lower life forms like nitrifying bacteria, earthworms etc. With the advent of chemical fertilisers, growers have been resorting to application of such fertiliser on a rather wide scale - often more than necessary - for achieving higher yield of crop. Introduction of high yielding variety of seeds, particularly rice, lured the farmer to go for these options thereby enabling them to raise multiple crops with minimum interval between two successive crops, in the wake of such modified seeds and chemical fertilisers, there came chemical pesticides which were thought to be the final answer to the attack by pests. But though the process of projected enhanced yield of crops was indeed quite impressive in the earlier stages, in due course such unnatural crop growth resulted in certain decadent effects like depletion of humus of soil and destruction of friendly microbial bodies beneficial to both plants and crops in general. Moreover, soil treated with chemical fertilisers tend to get compacted over the years, thereby losing porosity and preventing permeation of essential nutrients and water. In older to obtain ever increasing yield, chemical fertilisation is indulged in progressively increasing amount with consequent deterioration in fertility of soil. External appearance of plants grown by application of chemical fertilisers may be satisfactory, but they have been found to be susceptible to the attacks of pests and diseases. This, forces the farmer to use chemical pesticides in increasing amounts, which in turn destroy the vitally needed soil bacteria which ensures growth of healthy, disease free and pest resistant plants. It is to be understood that the term "pesticide" used in this 4 application includes within its scope insecticides, herbicides, germicides, fungicides and other pest control agents. Chemical fertilisers and pesticides have been found to enter the human food chain, resulting in ailments which have caused and are causing widespread concern. The difficulties envisaged above have been further aggravated in areas where sufficient water is not available in different stages of crop raising, and also in areas where adequate drainage facilities do not exist. Gradual accumulation of chemical fertilisers and pesticides results in change in soil characteristics which ultimately affect crop yield per unit area, It is the principal object of the present invention to provide a novel synergistic anti oxidant, growth promoting bio nutrient-cum- immunity inducing composition and process for preparing the same in order to remove the drawbacks mentioned above. A further object of the instant invention is to provide a novel composition which not only acts as a soil nutrient but also sets inter alia as an instant pores - opener, effective growth nutrient and enhancer of photo - synthetic process for plants and crops. Still a further object of the invention is to utilise easily accessible materials to obtain and / or to prepare the constituent ingredients. Another object of the invention is to use materials of little or no commercial importance or even to utilise hazardous industrial wastes in preparing the composition of the novel composition of this invention. Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a process for preparing this novel composition. One more object of this invention is to incorporate the composition into a water dispersible, open - cell, foam - like polymeric body which serves as a slow release system when applied to plants and crop areas in the form of powder, granules or pellets. 5 According to the present invention, there is provided a novel synergistic anti -oxidant, growth promoting bio nutrient-cum- immunity inducing composition comprising: ( a ) lignin or lignocellulosic materials, ( b ) a liquid medium containing requisite nutrients, stimulating agents, trace elements and compounds thereof, metal or compounds thereof and pigments, characterised in that the said composition incorporates the following additional ingredients in the amounts as indicated below: (i) at least one oxo compound in an amount from 1 to 30% by weight per charge, and (ii) extracts from bark, leaves, fruits and / or cellulosic matter of Neem or Margosa (Azadirachta Indica) in an amount of 10 to 250 gms per charge. Addition of mustard seed waste as an enhancer of activity in an amount of 0.5 to 10%has been found to impart certain desirable characteristics, which forms an additional feature of this invention. The present invention aims at providing a novel synergistic composition which, apart from supplying nutrients and growth - promoting factors to the plants, is capable of inducing biocidal activity to the plants treated therewith. As mentioned earlier, the composition imparts resistance to attack by pests, nematodes, bacteria, microbes and such other micro -bodies inimical to plants. Experimentally, it is also found that this lignin constituent compound after anaerobic reaction acts as an anti - oxidant to plants and soil. It improves the soil structure and prevents faster decaying due to aggressive weathering and chemical attack. Plants and crops reaffirm their freshness after treatment with this novel invention. It appears that large molecular structural constituents in the protein part of the lignocellulosic body induces formation of hormones in the plant and crop, thereby enriching the soil structure. In this context it may be mentioned that individual components when applied to plants or crop areas fail to achieve the effects shown by the compositions of this invention, both in solid and liquid forms, even when the latter is diluted with any suitable solvent like 6 water to 100 ( one hundred ) times the original volume. This establishes the synergism produced collectively by the different constituent ingredients acing in unison. As the first ingredient there is utilised lignin and cellulose from vegetative sources { usually present in lignocellulosic comptex as activator and carrier of nitrogen. These components, namely lignin and cellulose, effect better growth of plants and crops and ensure substantial germination of seeds in presence of various types of chelated minerals or metal complexes and friendly micro - organisms. A table is given below which shows soluble lignin content of different native lignocellulosic materials : Species % dry weight Annual Plants Soft wheat straw 0.190 Durum wheat straw 0.460 Oat straw 0.240 Barley straw 0.180 Species Com straw 0.080 Sunflower stalks 0.280 Soya stalks 0.340 Rice straw 0.480 Trees Pitch Pine 0.040 Fir 0.010 Chestnut 0,040 Douglas Fir 0.030 Cellulose is known to consist of long homogenous chains of ß - D - glucose units linked together by 1, 4 - glucosidic bonds. Such polysaccharide cellulose is rather widely distributed in nature. 7 Lignin happens to be the major non - carbohydrate constituent of plants, crops and trees, it functions as a natural plastic binder for the cellulose fibres. Quinone methides are the most reactive intermediates in the course of its formation. It has been observed that enhancement of bio - synthesis process of micro - bodies like nitrogenase, and creation of a base for an inoculum containing nitrogen - fixing rhizovial bacteria go a long way to achieve the objectives. As already mentioned, lignin and cellulose could not be had from vegetative sources. Inclusion of these components also result in simultaneous incorporation of various pigments from plants, e. g., from stalks, leaves, stems, straw, grass, and the like sources, preferred being those which are of title or no commercial importance. As examples one may cite ' porphyrin ' and ' cytochrome the former being a constituent of chlorophylls and the latter is an iron - porphyrin complex occurring in the cells of almost all plants. Inclusion of pigments and compounds associated therewith like metal chelates and sterols, the later -named two products being usually associated with the plant pigments, have been surprisingly found to produce unforeseen growth stimulating and soil - conditioning characteristics of the final composition, which establishes synergy. As illustrative examples of pigments, mention may be made of the following : chlorophyll, carotenoids, carotene, xanthophylls, flavonoids, catechins, flavones, flavanol, flavanones, anthocyanine, luconthocyanidines, etc. Suitable examples of metal chelates are iron - porphyrin in haemoglobin and magnesium porphyrin in chlorophyl Phyto - sterol is an important plant sterol which can be made use of. The ' friendly micro - organisms mentioned earlier are in fact soil bacteria which can engage in ( a ) production of nitrogen, ( b ) fixation of nitrogen and ( c ) cause mineral / metal chelation. In the invented process, it is an object to induce such bacteria to provide proteinaceous nutrient ( s ) to the plants freely in order to restore the cycle of natural 8 microbiotic activity. This is likely to create a healthy plant life and the invented composition would result in stabilising such prime soil factors as proper granulation, moisture content, water permeation and drainage, aeration and capillary capacity. Besides these, the novel growth - stimulating composition provides optimum soil tilth, ensures supply of balanced plant nutrients in the form of free protein(s), and trace minerals and provides a favourable environment for the nitrogen - fixing bacteria. In turn, this novel composition also cuts down the quantum of application of chemical fertiliser and to some extent reduces the volume of pesticide per unit area. From the foregoing disclosure it may be observed that the undernoted substances are used as the main ingredients in arriving at the novel synergistic composition of the invention. (a) cellulose, (b) lignin, (c) liquid medium containing requisite nutrients, stimulating agents and metal/metal compounds and (d) Neem oil or Neem extract. The composition may additionally contain pine oil and/or mustard seed waste (locally known as 'khol') for imparting certain desirable characteristics. This invention pertains to a process for preparing a synergistic anti-oxidant, growth promoting nutrient-cum-immunity inducing composition which comprises - (a) extracting in a known manner lignin and pigments from cellulosic bodies to effect delignification and depigmentation; (b) mixing the extract from step (a) with at least one additive including neem oil or neem extract, mustard seed waste or pine oil in proportions such as herein described; (c) subjecting the mixture from step (b) to anaerobic fermentation and separating the fermented mass into stillage and liquid and (d) converting the stillage and fermented liquid into forms applicable to soil or crop area, optimally in water-dispersible, slow-release form. 9 The ' oxo' compounds referred to above are in fact microbial fuels selected from the group of ethanol, isopropanol, butanol, acetone, and the like, C2H5OH being preferred. It has surprisingly been observed that these 'oxo' components act as a stimulant white in use, and thus play an important rote by providing an impetus to the plant growth, or even in germination of seeds. Beer wort may be used directly in lieu of 'oxo* compounds which not only supply microbial fuel but also contains nutrients. Microbial fuels may be obtained from fermented sugars such as those present as cellulosic material in black liquor obtained an industrial waste effluent from paper and pulp industry. Apart from black liquor, stillage from conventional sugar making, i. e. molasses; cellulose pulp; sugarcane; com and com cobs; pineapple; mango and jackfruit juice and wastes; peanut and oat hulls; potato; sweet potato and potato products including potato wastes; citrus wastes; cassava etc. may be used as the starting materia!. Even solid cellulosic matters, both 'soft' and 'hard' varieties, may be used as a source of fermentable sugars such as, for instance, wood chips, shavings or dust, wheat or rice straw, bagasse, bamboo and hardwood. Fermentation of the aforementioned cellulosic matters in the presence of suitable nutrients and micro - bodies, mostly yeasts of wild variety, lead to the formation of "oxo"compounds. It is to be noted that selective use of sugar source, micro - organism and microbiological reaction parameters will lead to the formation of predominant amount of ethanol. Production of microbial fuels has been described and claimed in my copending Indian Patent Application No. 176186 ( 891 / CAL / 91 ) dated 2nd December, 1991. 10 The novel growth - promoting nutrient composition of this invention has been found to be an excellent carrier of carbohydrate source and metal - complex catalyst, the latter helping in the formation of trace metal containing proteins. The oxygenated microbial fuel acts as an excellent source for supply of oxygen at the plant root level and establishing a pathway between nutrients and crops, apart from being a stimulant, breaking down the soil ions and thereby enhancing enzyme activities. The metal - protein compounds such as iron, zinc, copper, magnesium, cobalt, cadmium and the like play a very important role in the formation of nitrogenous enzyme complex. Such enzyme system helps in the formation of both ammonia and amino acids, It has surprisingly been found that the subject composition is capable of creating a favourable condition in which conversion of atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia by the nitrogenous enzymes is facilitated, it is also observed that the present novel composition is an excellent nutrient source for the blue - green algae which are known to convert atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia with consequent restoration of facility into soil depleted by recurring crop raising. Plants containing polysaccharides with Iignin as a constituent, serve as a major feedstock in the preparation of the novel composition of the invention. Delignification results in lignin extract and cellulose, which are used as constituents of the subject composition. Various types of nutrients like ammonium sulphate, diammonium sulphate, potassium sulphate, etc. have been found to exhibit detergent like, i. e. surface-active effect on the membrane of the lignocellulosic vegetative matters. Furthermore, when it is added with water and various metal - chelating materials, not only the carbohydrate portion is leached out of the cellulose, but also the composition mass becomes enriched in chelated metal ( i. e. metal catalyst ). A few organic surface active agents, e. g., sodium or calcium stearate, sodium lauryl sulfonate, etc. may also be utilised. As already indicated, ligno -cellulosic extracts from vegetative sources, e. g. straws, stalks, grasses, weeds, leaves etc preferably those of little or no commercial importance are 11 used as a constituent for processing the present growth - stimulant - cum - soil -conditioning composition. Use has been made of rice straws after harvesting them in ripe condition. Compound ( s ) selected from the group of ammonium nitrate, calcium sulphate, magnesium sulphate, potassium sulphate, diammonium phosphate ( DAP ), sodium nitrate, potassium nitrate, wood and straw ash or ash of banana tree skin [ for supply of K2O, (i. e. potash )] and the like has been used as nutrient. As trace elements / compounds, one may employ manganous chloride, boric acid powder, iron oxide, (in the form of powdery rust formed on iron and steel bodies ), zinc oxide and copper sulphate have been used in this invention, it may be seen that use of iron compounds formed as rust amounts to utilisation of waste products. Delignification of cellulosic materials may be achieved by at (east three different techniques, as indicated earlier. These are, for example : (i) By action of surface active agents on cellulosic materials like rice straw, wherein the said agents play the role of detergents. In this process, desired quantity of water is first added to nutrients, followed by addition of trace metals or metal compounds and ethanol. After thoroughly mixing all the ingredients in water, rice straw, whether in chopped form or form intact, is mixed or dipped into the above mix and immersed in a closed container with arrangement for air or oxygen supply to maintain an aerobic condition. Rice straw is maintained in such immersed / aerobic condition for 1 to 7 days for attaining proper maturity and bio - degradation. Thereafter, the liquor was strained and collected, which served as the principal nutrient in the novel synergistic growth stimulating composition of the present invention. The solid portion of stillage may be dried and powdered to form solid nutrient cum growth stimulant. ( ii ) In hydrolytic process, delignification and release of cellulose is effected by hydrolysis in presence of acid ( s ) selected from the group of sulphuric acid nitric acid, phosphoric acid, boric acid and the like. In this process, rice straws were first chopped or 12 sized, and then mixed with water. Thereafter the mixture is boiled with 1% aqueous acid solution ( sulphuric, nitric, phosphoric or boric acid ), whereby complete delignification and hydrolysis takes place. Then the pH of the solution is adjusted to a desired level by ammonium hydroxide and ammonium sulphate. This is followed by addition of nutrient, trace metals / minerals and microbial fuel. The entire mixture is kept under aerobic conditions for 1-7 days to enable the mixture attain proper 'maturity. This liquor of the mass was separated by using standard procedures which acted as the nutrient - cum - stimulating -compound - cum - soil activator. The soluble carbohydrate portion of this nutrient composition is an excellent source of photosynthesis of plants and crops, and also serves as a protein source for soil activation. The liquid of the above hydrolysis procedure when diluted with water has surprisingly been found to be capable of openinig up the pores and lamella of plants and crops, thereby achieving better photosynthesis. (iii) Besides the foregoing two procedures using surface active agents and acids for effecting leaching out / hydrolysis of lignocelluloses, it has also been found that Iignocellulosic materials, preferably with little or no commercial importance, may be subjected to microbial degradation. Such degradation may be effected by one or more white rot or brown rot fungi, the former being preferred. A representative member is Panus conchatus. It has surprisingly been found that white rot fungi not only bring about the 'delignification', but also affect 'depigmentation' of various cellulosic bodies like straws, stalks, leaves, grasses, shrubs, foliages etc. These fungi, e. g. Panus conchatus, attack middle lamella selectively without disturbing the fibre pattern. Moreover, lignin removed from secondary wall exposes the macro - fibrillar structure of fibres. It has also been observed that cultivation of white rot fungi under aerobic conditions in presence of suitable nutrients and moderate amount of moisture in the substrate can stimulate and improve upon the ability of the micro - body to bring about delignification' and 'depigmentation. In this process water is used as a liquid medium in admixture with a 13 suitable microbial fuel, such as ethyt alcohol, or even beer wort. It has been observed that by use of ethanol, decomposition of cellulosic structure, particularly of middle lamella, has been enhanced. Bio- degradation of lignin or Rgnocellulosic materials may be carried out either by white rot or by brown rot fungi. A few illustrative examples of white rot fungi are given below: a) Phanerochaete Chrysoporium b) Phebia Radiata c) Coriolus Versicolor d) Agaricus Bisporus e) Dichomitus Squalens f) The mesophillic filaments of fungus Trichoderm Resei produces a range of both cellulolytic and xylanolyic enzymes which are capable of modifying lignocelluloses. g) Trichoderma Resei h) Pseudomonas Pancimobillis i) strains of alkalophile bacteria e.g.: (i) Comybacterium KK 203b,and (ii) Comybacterium CM 432 j) Pseudomonas pancimobis TMY 1009 k) Tramates versicolor I) Panus conchatus m) Phellinus pini N. B. : Lignin peroxidase has been shown to be produced in the culture of Phanerochaete Chrysoporium as a secondary metabolism phenomenon, during periods of nutrient limitation. A suitable example of a brown rot fungus is: Formitopsis Pinicda. 14 The present invention will now be further amplified by the following Examples, which are given by way of illustration and the invention should in no way be construed to be confined to such disclosures alone. Example 1 Step 1 a) 1 Litre of water is taken in a receptacle and mixed with 10 gms. of ammonium nitrate, 10 gms of calcium sulphate, 10 gms of magnesium sulphate, 10 gms of potassium sulphate, 5 gms of diammonium phosphate and 5 gms of urea. All the ingredients are stirred well tilt there results a clear / translucent solution, b) To this solution the following substances are added. Iron rust / filings - 2 gms; copper sulphate -1 gm; metallic zinc -1gm and boric acid- 1 gm. This was followed by addition of 2 gms of ethanol. All the components are thoroughly mixed and pH adjusted, if necessary, preferably at an alkaline value. c) 500 gms of shredded rice straw is immersed in the above liquid and mixed thoroughly. Thereafter the receptacle /tank is closed to cerate an anaerobic condition. The entire mass inside the tank is maintained in the above condition till the solution turns black / dark in colour and pH thereof attains a value ranging between 6 and 7.5, resulting in complete teaching of the pigments, lignin and other mineral matters. d) The concentrated solution obtained from the reaction vessel / tank is now ready for field application as nutrient - cum - growth - stimulating - compound - cum -soil activator composition. It is interesting to note that the composition resulting from the above sequence of procedures exhibits on analysis the following results: 1. pH: i) original sample - 7.45 15 ii) after ten - fold dilution with distilled water - 6.86 2. Total Nitrogen (including ligno - cellulosic Nitrogen ) - 46.7 ppm 3. Water soluble nitrogen -22. 8 ppm 4. Phosphorus compounds (as P2H5) -17. 58 ppm 5. Zinc (Zn) - 7. 08 ppm 6. Copper (Cu) - 0. 53 ppm 7. Iron(Fe) - 1.75 ppm 8. Boron -0. 20 ppm The liquid thus obtained is usually diluted with water, upto around 50 times its volume, before actual field application. The solid residue or 'stillage' obtained after separation of the liquid composition, which may weigh upto 300 gms, is dried and ground to a powdery mass. The powdery mass has been found to be quite efficacious as a solid conditioner - cum nutrient composition for plants and crops. The above preparation is to be considered as a liquid / component A. Step II (i) 10 to 1000 gms of bark of neem tree (Azadirachta Indica) is taken in the form of flake, powder or any other solid form and boiled in a quantity of (preferably 500 ml) of water. For initiating the mixing, dissolution and leaching process, 2 gms of sulphuric acid, or phosphoric acid is added to the mixing tank which contains the above solution. Mixing was continued for one hour until the liquid becomes dark in colour, and marked as component B. This may be further treated with 1 to 10 gms of pine oil under stirring. (ii) Then the components A and B are mixed together in presence of alkaline substance selected from the group of tri - methaholamine and ammonia water, followed by addition of 1 litre of water and thorough blending. The colour of the liquid becomes milky white or off- white in appearance. 16 The final solution / suspension is ready for being used as a bio - nutrient - cum -immunity inducing composition. This not only conditions soil, but also serves as a plant astringent - cum - biocidal agent. Example 2 1 Litre of water is taken in a cylindrical tank equipped with heating and agitating arrangements. 500 gms of rice straw and 50 gms of neem tree bark in chopped, shredded or dust form are blended under agitation at a temperature ranging between 35°C and 100 °C. The temperature is then brought down to ambient say at around 30 °C. 1 % phosphoric acid or nitric acid ( by weight) is added to the blended mass and held for around 1-6 hours, to permit hydrolysis and delignification to take place with consequent release of carbohydrates. After hydrolytic release of lignin and carbohydrates the temperature is again brought down to ambient value and pH of the medium is adjusted to a value ranging between 6.5 and 7.5, by addition of mild alkaline agent, e. g., extracts of burnt banana trees, waste lime sludge, liquor ammonia and / or ammonium sulphate. This is followed by addition of 2 gms of iron either as a metallic powder or in the form of rust, 1 gm of zinc, 1 gm of boric acid and 0.5 gm of copper sulphate are also to be added and the whole mass is thoroughly mixed. After mixing, the following substances are incorporated: Diammonium phosphate (DAP) -1 gm; Potassium sulphate -1 gm; Magnesium sulphate - 2 gms and Ethanol - 5 gms. The entire mass is thoroughly blended for sufficient time and then strained, leaving behind a stillage for larger masses. Mechanical stirring is continued maintaining an anaerobic condition for 1 - 7 days. After the mass attains 'maturity*, the liquor portion is strained or centrifuged. The liquid portion has been found to contain a high amount of 17 neem - lignoceltutosic nitrogen, carbohydrates, trace minerals, pigments and metal catalyst. The solution may be further fortified with pine oil (1 - 10 gms by weight) which has been found unexpectedly to enhance spreading and also biocidal effect of such solution. The product obtained by carrying out the above sequence of steps is an excellent bio - nutrient - cum - immunity builder in plants crops and vegetables; such immunity is manifested by ft ability to withstand attacks from pests and micro - bodies like fungus or bacteria. Example 3 1. Preparation of Component / Batch A : 1 Litre of water is taken in a cylindrical tank equipped with heating and agitating arrangements. 500 gms of rice straw in chopped, shredded or dust form are blended under agitation along with 60 gms of neem tree bark or fruit extract at a temperature ranging between 35°C and 100 °C The temperature is then brought down to around 40 °C and 1% nitric acid (by weight) is added to the blended mass. Temperature is again raised to 100 °C and held for around 1 - 6 hours to permit hydrolysis and delignification to take place with consequent release of carbohydrates. After hydrolytic release of lignin and carbohydrates the temperature is again brought down to ambient value and pH of the medium is adjusted to a value ranging between 6,5 and 7.5, by addition of mild alkaline agent, e. g., extracts of burnt banana trees, waste lime sludge, liquor ammonia and / or ammonium sulphate. This is followed by addition of iron (either as metallic powder or in the form of rust), 1 gm of zinc, 1 gm of boric acid and 0.5 gm of copper sulphate and the whole mass is thoroughly mixed. Such mixing is followed by further addition of the undemoted substances: Diammonium phosphate (DAP) -1 gm; calcium sulphate - 5 gms; potassium sulphate - 2 gms; magnesium sulphate - 2 gms and beer waste-5 gms. 18 and the entire mass is thoroughly blended for sufficient time. Blending over, the liquor is strained out, leaving behind a solid stillage. For larger masses mechanical straining or centrifugation is resorted to. The liquor is imbued with balanced nutritive values highly effaoious for plants and crops, and may be diluted twenty times its original volume prior to use in drip irrigation' operation. The composition resulting from the above procedure acts as an excellent soil conditioner, bio - nutrient with biocidal and plant immunity - inducing properties. 2) Preparation of Batch B : About 200 gms of neem oil is taken in a vessel to which is added 10 gms of ethanolamine and the entire mass is stirred well for around 1 hour. Thereafter, Batch B obtained after stirring is mixed with batch A in presence of 5 litres of water and 1-10 gms of pine oil to form a white emulsion. the mixture of A and B can be used after dilution with water, which can be applied to soil, root of the plant, crop areas and vegetables. The liquid composition serves as an excellent liquid medium for dryland farming utilising batch B. Example 4 It is well known that river water carries a substantial quantity of alluvial soil, minerals, metals and various other organic matters. These have been found to be excellent base material for preparing the composition of the present invention. 1,000 gms of water from river Hooghty near Kolkata is taken and poured into a cylindrical tank equipped with heating and agitating mechanism. Temperature of water is raised to around 40 °C and 600 gms of milled rice straw is mixed with hot water in the tank. 1% nitric acid by volume of rice straw and 200 gms of rice husk are added to the above mix. Temperature of this mixture is then raised to 98 °C under constant stirring and the reaction is continued for 1 to 4 hours, whereby deligniftcation and hydrolysis of cellulose takes place. The reaction mass is neutralised by adding about 10 gms of calcium sulphate or lime sludge 19 to adjust the pH within a range of 6.5 to 7.5. The temperature of the mix is brought down to ambient and the following ingredients are added thereafter: boric acid - 2 gms; zinc sulphide -1 gm; potassium sulphate - 5 gms; iron (metallic or rust) - 2 gms; zinc (metallic) - 2 gms; magnesium sulphate -10 gms; copper sulphate -1 gm and ethyl alcohol - 5 gms. Addition of 10 0 100 gms of neem oil in presence of amine compounds forms an emulsified mass of the above constituents. After blending thoroughly at room temperature, the entire mass is allowed to mature for 1 - 7 days under anaerobic condition. The liquor is strained / centrifuged after attaining maturity to separate the stillage or solid residue. The liquid thus separated is ready for use as nutrient - cum - growth promoting composition capable of inducing biocidal and immunological properties, particularly against pest attack. Examples Production of novel nutrient - cum - growth promoting formulation in granular, palletised or powdery form: 500 gms of solid stillage obtained by practising the invention in accordance with Examples 1 to 4 is collected and dried, the dried mass is mixed with 10 - 60 % by weight of neem cake followed by 3- 5 Kgs of fly ash, starch, phospho- gypsum and 10-15 gms of pine oil and the whole mass is thoroughly mixed. The mixture is extruded into pellet and / or granular form, which can be sprinkled on plants, crop areas or vegetables, resulting in slow release of lignocellulosic nitrogen with consequent induction of immunity to the plant to the attack by insects or pests. 20 Such immunity may be accentuated by incorporation of a further quantity ( say, 50 gms) of neem cake, this enriched mixture shows the following characteristics : a) it is effective in increasing the growth of plants and their foliage, resulting in rich blossoming, strengthening of roots and improving the general roots and vegetables grown in such plants; b) when applied in conjunction with lignocellulosic nitrogen or any nitrogenous fertiliser, it slows down the conversion into gaseous nitrogen, as result of which nitrogen is made available to plant for a longer duration, thus decreasing the quantity of fertiliser required; c) it prevents and treats ailments of plants on account of lack of and / or imbalance due to short supply of nutritional and trace elements; d) it accelerates development of roots and plant growth, and protects the plant from the attack of nematodes and white ants; e) it serves as a totally organic plant food which is capable of enhancing productivity and soil fertility, and f) it also exhibits anti -fungal property and is eminently suitable for application in greenhouses and drip irrigation. Example 6 Mother liquor given rise to as in Examples 1-4 may be utilised for treating / converting all types of straws in the following manner Straw can be milled" in small bits or powdered form, thereafter a predetermined quantity of straw may be immersed in the mother liquor obtained from examples 1-4 and maintained in anaerobic condition for 1 - 7 days. After attaining maturity the solid mass may be dried and extruded into pellet, granular or powdered form, the extruded composition may be conveniently extended with alluvial soil, phospho - gypsum, China day, fly ash etc. to form a low cost, biocidal soil material nutrient compound for plants, vegetables and crop areas. 21 Example 7 Preparation of a growth promoting -cum - nutrient composition with immunity inducing characteristics and biocidal properties.: 1 litre of water is taken in a tank and mixed with the undemoted compounds in amounts shown thereagainst: i) ammonium nitrate - 10 gms; v) zinc sulphate - 10 gms; ii) calcium sulphate - 10 gms vi) diammonium phosphate - 5 gms iii) magnesium sulphate-10 gms: and iv) potassium sulphate -10 gms; vii) urea - 5 gms. These compounds are thoroughly mixed till a clear solution results. To this solution the following ingredients are further added: a) iron rust - 2 gms; d) boric acid - 1 gm; b) copper sulphate -1 gm; e) mustard seed waste in cake form c) metallic zinc -1 gm ( khol) - 2 gms and f) ethanol - 2 gm (preferably grain alcohol) All the components are mixed under stirring and pH of the mixture is adjusted, if necessary, preferably to an alkaline value. 500 gms of shredded rice straw is immersed in the alkaline liquid produced above and mixed thoroughly. Then the tank is closed for creating an anaerobic condition and the entire mass inside is maintained till the same turns dark in colour and pH attains a value of between 6.5 and 7.5 resulting in complete leaching of lignin and other mineral matters. The concentrated solution obtained from the reaction tank is further modified with 10 gms of neem extract / neem oil. Then the entire mass is emulsified with 5 gms of ethanolamine whereby it is rendered ready for field application as a nutrient, growth promoting - cum biocidal and stimulating composition. 22 The solid residue or stillage obtained after separation of the liquid mass is mixed with either clay or fly ash. The whole mix is dried and processed into granular or pelletised form. This has also been found highly effacious as a solid soil conditioner and nutrient - cum -immunity inducing composition for plants and crop areas. The concentrated liquid from reaction tank may be diluted with water upto 100 times its volume before actual field application. This results in effective cost reduction and also convenience in transportation of the concentrate to site. The novel synergistic growth promoting bio nutrient-cum- immunity inducing composition of the present invention has the following advantages : i) the composition is easily formulated from indigenously available material; ii) it supplies bio - nutrients including nitrogen to the roots of the plants for direct assimilation; iii) it induces immunity to the plant body / crop against attack of pests, bacteria, microbes and other micro - bodies. While the invention has been described above by way of illustration, it includes within its scope alternatives and obvious equivalents without deviating from the spirit and scope of the invention. Having described the invention in detail, particularly with the help of the Examples, the invention will now be more specifically defined in the claims appended hereinafter. 23 I claim: - 1. A process for preparing a synergistic anti-oxidant, growth promoting nutrient-cum-immunity inducing composition which comprises - (a) extracting in a known manner lignin and pigments from cellulosic bodies to effect delignification and depigmentation; (b) mixing the extract from step (a) with at least one additive including neem oil or neem extract, mustard seed waste or pine oil in proportions such as herein described; (c) subjecting the mixture from step (b) to anaerobic fermentation and separating the fermented mass into stillage and liquid and (d) converting the stillage and fermented liquid into forms applicable to soil or crop area, optimally in water-dispersible, slow-release form. 2. A process as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the stillage is converted in known manner into powdery, granular, fibrous, button or pelletised form. 3. A process as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the liquid mass from step (c) is admixed with suitable inert excipeints, adjuvants, carriers, and/or fillers as described hereinbefore to produce open-cell pellets, granules or powders for application to soil or crop area. 4. A process as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the said additive is selected from the group nutrients, trace materials, metals, metal compounds, oxo-compounds and stimulating agents such as herein described. 5. A process as claimed in Claim 1, wherein extraction of lignocellulose from lignocellulosic material of vegetative origin is effected by hydrolysis in presence of acid selected from the group of nitric acid, phosphoric acid, sulphuric acid, boric acid and the like. 6. A process as claimed in Claim 1, wherein extraction of lignin, cellulose and pigment is effected by use of one or more surface active agents such as herein described. 7. A process as claimed in Claim 1, wherein delignification and depigmentation of cellulosic bodies are carried out by means of microbial degradation in presence of white or brown rot fungi. 8. A process as claimed in Claim 7, wherein the fungus used is Panus conchatas. 24 9.A process as claimed in any one of the Claims 1 - 9, wherein metals or metal compounds used in producing the composition are selected from the group of iron, zinc, copper, magnesium, calcium, cobalt and the like; 10. A process as claimed in any one of the Claims 1 - 9 wherein tat least one of the following substances is used as a trace material. zinc sulphate, copper sulphate, boric acid, manganous chloride, iron oxide ( preferably as rust), zinc oxide, and metallic zinc and /or iron; 11 . A process as claimed in any one of the Claims 1 - 10 wherein one or more of the following substances are employed as nutrients: ammonium nitrate, calcium sulphate, magnesium sulphate, potassium sulphate, diammonium phosphate, sodium nitrate, potassium nitrate, and potassium oxide from ashes of wood, straw, and / or banana tree skin; 12 . A process as claimed in any one of the Claims 1 - 11 wherein "oxo" compounds used as stimulating agents are obtained from microbial fuels and / or inorganic per - compounds, preferably ethanol, beer wort and sodium perborate; 13 A process as daimed in any one of the Claims 1 -12 wherein (i) rice straw, preferably in shredded condition, is immersed in water, blended thoroughly and allowed to stand as it is in the vessel; (ii) following substances are added to the vessel in amounts such as here in described under constant stirring: rusted iron dust, boric add, copper sulphate, urea, diammonium phosphate (DAP), potassium sulphate, magnesium sulphate, ethanol, ammonium nitrate, zinc sulphate and mustard seed waste; (iii) after addition of the aforesaid substances the vessel is dosed and fermentation is allowed to take place for 1 - 7 days under anaerobic conditions; 25 (iv ) after completion of fermentation, the mass is separated in a known manner into liquor and stillage; (v) to the liquor is added neem extract optionally with a trace of pine oil; (vi) then eathalomine is added to the mass obtained from step (v ) and the mixture blended thoroughly; ( vii) the biend obtained from step ( vi) is diluted with equal volume of water (i.e. blend : water =1 ; 1 ) to form an emulsified body serving both as a micro - nutrient as well as a biocidal property inducing agent; 14. A process for preparing a synergistic anti - oxidant, growth promoting nutrient-cum- immunity inducing composition, substantially as hereinbefore described with particular reference to the Examples given hereinbefore. Dr. A Basu Registered Patent Agent & Attorney for the Applicants Dated this 11th day of June, 2001 Conventional fertilizers are almost invariably chemical compounds which on prolonged application result in soil compaction and necessitate application of expensive pesticides, often in increasing amounts, thereby enhancing cost of production of vegetative products. The present invention attempts to solve these difficulties by providing a process for preparing synergistic anti-oxidant, growth promoting, mutrient-cum-immunity inducing composition which comprises -(i) extraction of lignin and pigments by delignification and depigmentation of cellulosic bodies by hydrolysis or action of surfactant thereon (ii) mixing the extracted lignin, cellulose and pigments with one or more materials like nutrients, trace materials, metals or metal compounds, oxo-compounds, stimulating agents, neem oil or neem extract and optionally pine oil and mustard seed waste in predetermined amounts; (iii) subjecting the composition of (ii) to anaerobic fermentation till attainment of maturity; (iv) separating the fermented mass from step (iii) into liquid and stillage using standard techniques and (v) processing the solid and liquid masses into useful end products, namely, subject composition.

Full Text

The present invention relates to a synergistic anti - oxidant, growth promoting nutrientcun- immunity inducing composition
More particularly, this invention is concerned with a novel growth promoting bio -nutrient cum biocidal activity inducing composition and also with the process for its preparation. The composition of this invention is usually in a liquid form, but may also be in a powdery, granular or pellet - like form which may act as a slow release system without having any toxic or undesirable effect on plants and crops in general and also on the surrounding environment. The composition of the invention is not only a growth promoting agent by supplying nutrient to the soil, and conditioning the same, but also is a biocidal activity inducer which substantially reduces the consumption of chemical pesticide, or even eliminates it altogether. Development of such a novel synergistic composition has been made possible by incorporating lignin or lignocellulosic extract(s) from vegetative sources like straws, stalks, grass, weeds, leaves, barks, and the like objects which have little or no commercial importance.
It has surprisingly been found that the novel composition apart from supplying cellulosic nitrogen and lignin to the soil, also provides other beneficial micro-nutrients to the soil and plant roots. The composition enhances porosity of soil and accelerates photosynthesis process in plants and crops by means of soil pigmentation. The composition is capable of reducing fatty acid content of soil area treated with it which effectively reduces the quantum of fertiliser consumption per unit area.. Induction of biocidal activity is a notable feature of this composition which enables the treated plant to withstand attack by pests and this virtually eliminates use of toxic pesticides.
The novel composition incorporates as one of its important constituents one or more
of the following objects from Neem tee [ Margosa tree, botanical name - Azadirachta
Indica]:
(i) Neem bark extract;
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(ii) extract of Neem leaves or cellulosic parts thereof and
(iii) Neem oil.
Components / extracts from Neem tree have been found to impart biocidal immunity inducing properties effective against attack by pests and / or inimical micro - bodies.
It has also been noted unexpectedly that addition or inclusion of pine oil. pine needle oil or pine tree extract, preferably in the process of emulsification, alongwih Neem oil, in an amount of, say, 1 - 10 gm of total weight of neem oil, improves the biocidal property. Addition of pine tree product (s) has been found to accentuate biocidal activity of neem tree products which rendered the effect almost instantaneous. Apart from enhancing the biocidal property, pine tree extracts help in rapid spreading of the subject composition after application to soil. It was also found that storage stability and shelf life of the said composition improved after incorporation of neem and pine tree extracts.
Incorporation of seed wastes, e.g. groundnut, mustard, walnut, sunflower, sesame, rapeseed etc. has been observed to impart certain beneficial effects to the novel composition of this invention particularly in relation to enrichment of nutritive value of the soil and also the anaerobic fermentation to be effected in arriving at the composition. In my earlier Indian Patent No. 179309 ( 480/CAL/94) dated June 24, 1994. I had described a novel synergistic growth promoting nutrient - cum - soil - conditioning composition comprising;
( a ) ligntn, ( b ) cellulose and ( c ) a liquid medium containing requisite nutrients, stimulating agents, trace compounds, metal compounds and pigments, wherein the concentration of the essential ingredients in the said composition are as follows:
i) total Nitrogen (including ligno - cellulosic nitrogen 30-60 ppm;
ii) water soluble Nitrogen 15-30 ppm;
iii) Phosphorus compounds (as P203) 10-20 ppm;
iv) metal (both in free and compound form) .5-15 ppm;
v) non-metals (other than phosphorus) 0.05- 5 ppm and
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vi) pigments 0,001 - 25 ppm.
This Patent No 179309/also described a process for preparing the above composition in liquid, powdery, granular or pelletised form.
Till recent times farmers had to be content by using humus, organic matters and / or materials from vegetable sources, usually in decayed forms for enhancing / replenishing tost fertility of soil. These degradable Wo - fertilisers not only made the soil porous, ensuring passage of air and moisture to reach the plant roots, but also helped in generation and reproduction of eco - friendly lower life forms like nitrifying bacteria, earthworms etc. With the advent of chemical fertilisers, growers have been resorting to application of such fertiliser on a rather wide scale - often more than necessary - for achieving higher yield of crop.
Introduction of high yielding variety of seeds, particularly rice, lured the farmer to go for these options thereby enabling them to raise multiple crops with minimum interval between two successive crops, in the wake of such modified seeds and chemical fertilisers, there came chemical pesticides which were thought to be the final answer to the attack by pests.
But though the process of projected enhanced yield of crops was indeed quite
impressive in the earlier stages, in due course such unnatural crop growth resulted in certain
decadent effects like depletion of humus of soil and destruction of friendly microbial bodies
beneficial to both plants and crops in general. Moreover, soil treated with chemical fertilisers
tend to get compacted over the years, thereby losing porosity and preventing permeation of
essential nutrients and water. In older to obtain ever increasing yield, chemical fertilisation is
indulged in progressively increasing amount with consequent deterioration in fertility of soil.
External appearance of plants grown by application of chemical fertilisers may be
satisfactory, but they have been found to be susceptible to the attacks of pests and
diseases. This, forces the farmer to use chemical pesticides in increasing amounts, which in
turn destroy the vitally needed soil bacteria which ensures growth of healthy, disease free
and pest resistant plants. It is to be understood that the term "pesticide" used in this
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application includes within its scope insecticides, herbicides, germicides, fungicides and other pest control agents. Chemical fertilisers and pesticides have been found to enter the human food chain, resulting in ailments which have caused and are causing widespread concern.
The difficulties envisaged above have been further aggravated in areas where sufficient water is not available in different stages of crop raising, and also in areas where adequate drainage facilities do not exist. Gradual accumulation of chemical fertilisers and pesticides results in change in soil characteristics which ultimately affect crop yield per unit area,
It is the principal object of the present invention to provide a novel synergistic anti oxidant, growth promoting bio nutrient-cum- immunity inducing composition and process for preparing the same in order to remove the drawbacks mentioned above.
A further object of the instant invention is to provide a novel composition which not only acts as a soil nutrient but also sets inter alia as an instant pores - opener, effective growth nutrient and enhancer of photo - synthetic process for plants and crops.
Still a further object of the invention is to utilise easily accessible materials to obtain and / or to prepare the constituent ingredients.
Another object of the invention is to use materials of little or no commercial importance or even to utilise hazardous industrial wastes in preparing the composition of the novel composition of this invention.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a process for preparing this novel composition.
One more object of this invention is to incorporate the composition into a water dispersible, open - cell, foam - like polymeric body which serves as a slow release system when applied to plants and crop areas in the form of powder, granules or pellets.
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According to the present invention, there is provided a novel synergistic anti -oxidant, growth promoting bio nutrient-cum- immunity inducing composition comprising:
( a ) lignin or lignocellulosic materials, ( b ) a liquid medium containing requisite nutrients, stimulating agents, trace elements and compounds thereof, metal or compounds thereof and pigments, characterised in that the said composition incorporates the following additional ingredients in the amounts as indicated below:
(i) at least one oxo compound in an amount from 1 to 30% by weight per charge, and
(ii) extracts from bark, leaves, fruits and / or cellulosic matter of Neem or
Margosa (Azadirachta Indica) in an amount of 10 to 250 gms per charge.
Addition of mustard seed waste as an enhancer of activity in an amount of 0.5 to 10%has been found to impart certain desirable characteristics, which forms an additional feature of this invention.
The present invention aims at providing a novel synergistic composition which, apart from supplying nutrients and growth - promoting factors to the plants, is capable of inducing biocidal activity to the plants treated therewith. As mentioned earlier, the composition imparts resistance to attack by pests, nematodes, bacteria, microbes and such other micro -bodies inimical to plants.
Experimentally, it is also found that this lignin constituent compound after anaerobic reaction acts as an anti - oxidant to plants and soil. It improves the soil structure and prevents faster decaying due to aggressive weathering and chemical attack. Plants and crops reaffirm their freshness after treatment with this novel invention. It appears that large molecular structural constituents in the protein part of the lignocellulosic body induces formation of hormones in the plant and crop, thereby enriching the soil structure.
In this context it may be mentioned that individual components when applied to
plants or crop areas fail to achieve the effects shown by the compositions of this invention,
both in solid and liquid forms, even when the latter is diluted with any suitable solvent like
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water to 100 ( one hundred ) times the original volume. This establishes the synergism produced collectively by the different constituent ingredients acing in unison.
As the first ingredient there is utilised lignin and cellulose from vegetative sources { usually present in lignocellulosic comptex as activator and carrier of nitrogen. These components, namely lignin and cellulose, effect better growth of plants and crops and ensure substantial germination of seeds in presence of various types of chelated minerals or metal complexes and friendly micro - organisms. A table is given below which shows soluble lignin content of different native lignocellulosic materials :
Species % dry weight
Annual Plants
Soft wheat straw 0.190
Durum wheat straw 0.460
Oat straw 0.240
Barley straw 0.180
Species
Com straw 0.080
Sunflower stalks 0.280
Soya stalks 0.340
Rice straw 0.480
Trees
Pitch Pine 0.040
Fir 0.010
Chestnut 0,040
Douglas Fir 0.030
Cellulose is known to consist of long homogenous chains of ß - D - glucose units linked together by 1, 4 - glucosidic bonds. Such polysaccharide cellulose is rather widely
distributed in nature.
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Lignin happens to be the major non - carbohydrate constituent of plants, crops and trees, it functions as a natural plastic binder for the cellulose fibres. Quinone methides are the most reactive intermediates in the course of its formation.
It has been observed that enhancement of bio - synthesis process of micro - bodies like nitrogenase, and creation of a base for an inoculum containing nitrogen - fixing rhizovial bacteria go a long way to achieve the objectives.
As already mentioned, lignin and cellulose could not be had from vegetative sources. Inclusion of these components also result in simultaneous incorporation of various pigments from plants, e. g., from stalks, leaves, stems, straw, grass, and the like sources, preferred being those which are of title or no commercial importance. As examples one may cite ' porphyrin ' and ' cytochrome the former being a constituent of chlorophylls and the latter is an iron - porphyrin complex occurring in the cells of almost all plants. Inclusion of pigments and compounds associated therewith like metal chelates and sterols, the later -named two products being usually associated with the plant pigments, have been surprisingly found to produce unforeseen growth stimulating and soil - conditioning characteristics of the final composition, which establishes synergy. As illustrative examples of pigments, mention may be made of the following :
chlorophyll, carotenoids, carotene, xanthophylls, flavonoids, catechins, flavones, flavanol, flavanones, anthocyanine, luconthocyanidines, etc.
Suitable examples of metal chelates are iron - porphyrin in haemoglobin and magnesium porphyrin in chlorophyl Phyto - sterol is an important plant sterol which can be made use of.
The ' friendly micro - organisms mentioned earlier are in fact soil bacteria which can engage in ( a ) production of nitrogen, ( b ) fixation of nitrogen and ( c ) cause mineral / metal chelation.
In the invented process, it is an object to induce such bacteria to provide
proteinaceous nutrient ( s ) to the plants freely in order to restore the cycle of natural
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microbiotic activity. This is likely to create a healthy plant life and the invented composition would result in stabilising such prime soil factors as proper granulation, moisture content, water permeation and drainage, aeration and capillary capacity. Besides these, the novel growth - stimulating composition provides optimum soil tilth, ensures supply of balanced plant nutrients in the form of free protein(s), and trace minerals and provides a favourable environment for the nitrogen - fixing bacteria. In turn, this novel composition also cuts down the quantum of application of chemical fertiliser and to some extent reduces the volume of pesticide per unit area.
From the foregoing disclosure it may be observed that the undernoted substances are used as the main ingredients in arriving at the novel synergistic composition of the invention.
(a) cellulose, (b) lignin, (c) liquid medium containing requisite nutrients, stimulating agents
and metal/metal compounds and (d) Neem oil or Neem extract.
The composition may additionally contain pine oil and/or mustard seed waste (locally known as 'khol') for imparting certain desirable characteristics.
This invention pertains to a process for preparing a synergistic anti-oxidant, growth promoting nutrient-cum-immunity inducing composition which comprises -
(a) extracting in a known manner lignin and pigments from cellulosic bodies to effect delignification and depigmentation;
(b) mixing the extract from step (a) with at least one additive including neem oil or neem extract, mustard seed waste or pine oil in proportions such as herein described;
(c) subjecting the mixture from step (b) to anaerobic fermentation and separating the fermented mass into stillage and liquid and
(d) converting the stillage and fermented liquid into forms applicable to soil or crop area, optimally in water-dispersible, slow-release form.
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The ' oxo' compounds referred to above are in fact microbial fuels selected from the group of ethanol, isopropanol, butanol, acetone, and the like, C2H5OH being preferred. It has surprisingly been observed that these 'oxo' components act as a stimulant white in use, and thus play an important rote by providing an impetus to the plant growth, or even in germination of seeds. Beer wort may be used directly in lieu of 'oxo* compounds which not only supply microbial fuel but also contains nutrients.
Microbial fuels may be obtained from fermented sugars such as those present as cellulosic material in black liquor obtained an industrial waste effluent from paper and pulp industry. Apart from black liquor, stillage from conventional sugar making, i. e. molasses; cellulose pulp; sugarcane; com and com cobs; pineapple; mango and jackfruit juice and wastes; peanut and oat hulls; potato; sweet potato and potato products including potato wastes; citrus wastes; cassava etc. may be used as the starting materia!. Even solid cellulosic matters, both 'soft' and 'hard' varieties, may be used as a source of fermentable sugars such as, for instance, wood chips, shavings or dust, wheat or rice straw, bagasse, bamboo and hardwood. Fermentation of the aforementioned cellulosic matters in the presence of suitable nutrients and micro - bodies, mostly yeasts of wild variety, lead to the formation of "oxo"compounds. It is to be noted that selective use of sugar source, micro - organism and microbiological reaction parameters will lead to the formation of predominant amount of ethanol. Production of microbial fuels has been described and claimed in my copending Indian Patent Application No. 176186 ( 891 / CAL / 91 ) dated 2nd December, 1991.
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The novel growth - promoting nutrient composition of this invention has been found to be an excellent carrier of carbohydrate source and metal - complex catalyst, the latter helping in the formation of trace metal containing proteins. The oxygenated microbial fuel acts as an excellent source for supply of oxygen at the plant root level and establishing a pathway between nutrients and crops, apart from being a stimulant, breaking down the soil ions and thereby enhancing enzyme activities.
The metal - protein compounds such as iron, zinc, copper, magnesium, cobalt, cadmium and the like play a very important role in the formation of nitrogenous enzyme complex. Such enzyme system helps in the formation of both ammonia and amino acids, It has surprisingly been found that the subject composition is capable of creating a favourable condition in which conversion of atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia by the nitrogenous enzymes is facilitated, it is also observed that the present novel composition is an excellent nutrient source for the blue - green algae which are known to convert atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia with consequent restoration of facility into soil depleted by recurring crop raising.
Plants containing polysaccharides with Iignin as a constituent, serve as a major feedstock in the preparation of the novel composition of the invention. Delignification results in lignin extract and cellulose, which are used as constituents of the subject composition. Various types of nutrients like ammonium sulphate, diammonium sulphate, potassium sulphate, etc. have been found to exhibit detergent like, i. e. surface-active effect on the membrane of the lignocellulosic vegetative matters. Furthermore, when it is added with water and various metal - chelating materials, not only the carbohydrate portion is leached out of the cellulose, but also the composition mass becomes enriched in chelated metal ( i. e. metal catalyst ). A few organic surface active agents, e. g., sodium or calcium stearate, sodium lauryl sulfonate, etc. may also be utilised.
As already indicated, ligno -cellulosic extracts from vegetative sources, e. g. straws,
stalks, grasses, weeds, leaves etc preferably those of little or no commercial importance are
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used as a constituent for processing the present growth - stimulant - cum - soil -conditioning composition. Use has been made of rice straws after harvesting them in ripe condition.
Compound ( s ) selected from the group of ammonium nitrate, calcium sulphate, magnesium sulphate, potassium sulphate, diammonium phosphate ( DAP ), sodium nitrate, potassium nitrate, wood and straw ash or ash of banana tree skin [ for supply of K2O, (i. e. potash )] and the like has been used as nutrient. As trace elements / compounds, one may employ manganous chloride, boric acid powder, iron oxide, (in the form of powdery rust formed on iron and steel bodies ), zinc oxide and copper sulphate have been used in this invention, it may be seen that use of iron compounds formed as rust amounts to utilisation of waste products.
Delignification of cellulosic materials may be achieved by at (east three different techniques, as indicated earlier. These are, for example :
(i) By action of surface active agents on cellulosic materials like rice straw, wherein the said agents play the role of detergents. In this process, desired quantity of water is first added to nutrients, followed by addition of trace metals or metal compounds and ethanol. After thoroughly mixing all the ingredients in water, rice straw, whether in chopped form or form intact, is mixed or dipped into the above mix and immersed in a closed container with arrangement for air or oxygen supply to maintain an aerobic condition. Rice straw is maintained in such immersed / aerobic condition for 1 to 7 days for attaining proper maturity and bio - degradation. Thereafter, the liquor was strained and collected, which served as the principal nutrient in the novel synergistic growth stimulating composition of the present invention. The solid portion of stillage may be dried and powdered to form solid nutrient cum growth stimulant.
( ii ) In hydrolytic process, delignification and release of cellulose is effected by
hydrolysis in presence of acid ( s ) selected from the group of sulphuric acid nitric acid,
phosphoric acid, boric acid and the like. In this process, rice straws were first chopped or
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sized, and then mixed with water. Thereafter the mixture is boiled with 1% aqueous acid solution ( sulphuric, nitric, phosphoric or boric acid ), whereby complete delignification and hydrolysis takes place. Then the pH of the solution is adjusted to a desired level by ammonium hydroxide and ammonium sulphate. This is followed by addition of nutrient, trace metals / minerals and microbial fuel. The entire mixture is kept under aerobic conditions for 1-7 days to enable the mixture attain proper 'maturity*. This liquor of the mass was separated by using standard procedures which acted as the nutrient - cum - stimulating -compound - cum - soil activator. The soluble carbohydrate portion of this nutrient composition is an excellent source of photosynthesis of plants and crops, and also serves as a protein source for soil activation.
The liquid of the above hydrolysis procedure when diluted with water has surprisingly been found to be capable of openinig up the pores and lamella of plants and crops, thereby achieving better photosynthesis.
(iii) Besides the foregoing two procedures using surface active agents and acids for effecting leaching out / hydrolysis of lignocelluloses, it has also been found that Iignocellulosic materials, preferably with little or no commercial importance, may be subjected to microbial degradation. Such degradation may be effected by one or more white rot or brown rot fungi, the former being preferred. A representative member is Panus conchatus. It has surprisingly been found that white rot fungi not only bring about the 'delignification', but also affect 'depigmentation' of various cellulosic bodies like straws, stalks, leaves, grasses, shrubs, foliages etc. These fungi, e. g. Panus conchatus, attack middle lamella selectively without disturbing the fibre pattern. Moreover, lignin removed from secondary wall exposes the macro - fibrillar structure of fibres.
It has also been observed that cultivation of white rot fungi under aerobic conditions
in presence of suitable nutrients and moderate amount of moisture in the substrate can
stimulate and improve upon the ability of the micro - body to bring about delignification' and
'depigmentation*. In this process water is used as a liquid medium in admixture with a
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suitable microbial fuel, such as ethyt alcohol, or even beer wort. It has been observed that by use of ethanol, decomposition of cellulosic structure, particularly of middle lamella, has been enhanced.
Bio- degradation of lignin or Rgnocellulosic materials may be carried out either by white rot or by brown rot fungi. A few illustrative examples of white rot fungi are given below:
a) Phanerochaete Chrysoporium
b) Phebia Radiata
c) Coriolus Versicolor
d) Agaricus Bisporus
e) Dichomitus Squalens
f) The mesophillic filaments of fungus Trichoderm Resei produces a range of both cellulolytic and xylanolyic enzymes which are capable of modifying lignocelluloses.
g) Trichoderma Resei
h) Pseudomonas Pancimobillis
i) strains of alkalophile bacteria e.g.:
(i) Comybacterium KK 203b,and (ii) Comybacterium CM 432
j) Pseudomonas pancimobis TMY 1009
k) Tramates versicolor
I) Panus conchatus
m) Phellinus pini N. B. : Lignin peroxidase has been shown to be produced in the culture of Phanerochaete Chrysoporium as a secondary metabolism phenomenon, during periods of nutrient limitation.
A suitable example of a brown rot fungus is:
Formitopsis Pinicda.
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The present invention will now be further amplified by the following Examples, which are given by way of illustration and the invention should in no way be construed to be confined to such disclosures alone.
Example 1 Step 1
a) 1 Litre of water is taken in a receptacle and mixed with 10 gms. of ammonium nitrate, 10 gms of calcium sulphate, 10 gms of magnesium sulphate, 10 gms of potassium sulphate, 5 gms of diammonium phosphate and 5 gms of urea. All the ingredients are stirred well tilt there results a clear / translucent solution, b) To this solution the following substances are added.
Iron rust / filings - 2 gms; copper sulphate -1 gm; metallic zinc -1gm and boric acid- 1 gm. This was followed by addition of 2 gms of ethanol. All the components are thoroughly mixed and pH adjusted, if necessary, preferably at an alkaline value.
c) 500 gms of shredded rice straw is immersed in the above liquid and mixed thoroughly. Thereafter the receptacle /tank is closed to cerate an anaerobic condition. The entire mass inside the tank is maintained in the above condition till the solution turns black / dark in colour and pH thereof attains a value ranging between 6 and 7.5, resulting in complete teaching of the pigments, lignin and other mineral matters.
d) The concentrated solution obtained from the reaction vessel / tank is now ready for field application as nutrient - cum - growth - stimulating - compound - cum -soil activator composition.
It is interesting to note that the composition resulting from the above sequence of
procedures exhibits on analysis the following results:
1. pH:
i) original sample - 7.45 15

ii) after ten - fold dilution with distilled water - 6.86
2. Total Nitrogen (including ligno - cellulosic Nitrogen ) - 46.7 ppm
3. Water soluble nitrogen -22. 8 ppm
4. Phosphorus compounds (as P2H5) -17. 58 ppm
5. Zinc (Zn) - 7. 08 ppm
6. Copper (Cu) - 0. 53 ppm
7. Iron(Fe) - 1.75 ppm
8. Boron -0. 20 ppm
The liquid thus obtained is usually diluted with water, upto around 50 times its
volume, before actual field application. The solid residue or 'stillage' obtained after separation of the liquid composition, which may weigh upto 300 gms, is dried and ground to a powdery mass. The powdery mass has been found to be quite efficacious as a solid conditioner - cum nutrient composition for plants and crops.
The above preparation is to be considered as a liquid / component A. Step II
(i) 10 to 1000 gms of bark of neem tree (Azadirachta Indica) is taken in the form of flake, powder or any other solid form and boiled in a quantity of (preferably 500 ml) of water. For initiating the mixing, dissolution and leaching process, 2 gms of sulphuric acid, or phosphoric acid is added to the mixing tank which contains the above solution. Mixing was continued for one hour until the liquid becomes dark in colour, and marked as component B. This may be further treated with 1 to 10 gms of pine oil under stirring.
(ii) Then the components A and B are mixed together in presence of alkaline substance selected from the group of tri - methaholamine and ammonia water, followed by addition of 1 litre of water and thorough blending. The colour of the liquid becomes milky white or off- white in appearance.
16

The final solution / suspension is ready for being used as a bio - nutrient - cum -immunity inducing composition. This not only conditions soil, but also serves as a plant astringent - cum - biocidal agent.
Example 2
1 Litre of water is taken in a cylindrical tank equipped with heating and agitating arrangements. 500 gms of rice straw and 50 gms of neem tree bark in chopped, shredded or dust form are blended under agitation at a temperature ranging between 35°C and 100 °C. The temperature is then brought down to ambient say at around 30 °C. 1 % phosphoric acid or nitric acid ( by weight) is added to the blended mass and held for around 1-6 hours, to permit hydrolysis and delignification to take place with consequent release of carbohydrates.
After hydrolytic release of lignin and carbohydrates the temperature is again brought down to ambient value and pH of the medium is adjusted to a value ranging between 6.5 and 7.5, by addition of mild alkaline agent, e. g., extracts of burnt banana trees, waste lime sludge, liquor ammonia and / or ammonium sulphate.
This is followed by addition of 2 gms of iron either as a metallic powder or in the form of rust, 1 gm of zinc, 1 gm of boric acid and 0.5 gm of copper sulphate are also to be added and the whole mass is thoroughly mixed. After mixing, the following substances are incorporated:
Diammonium phosphate (DAP) -1 gm;
Potassium sulphate -1 gm;
Magnesium sulphate - 2 gms and
Ethanol - 5 gms.
The entire mass is thoroughly blended for sufficient time and then strained, leaving
behind a stillage for larger masses. Mechanical stirring is continued maintaining an
anaerobic condition for 1 - 7 days. After the mass attains 'maturity*, the liquor portion is
strained or centrifuged. The liquid portion has been found to contain a high amount of
17

neem - lignoceltutosic nitrogen, carbohydrates, trace minerals, pigments and metal catalyst. The solution may be further fortified with pine oil (1 - 10 gms by weight) which has been found unexpectedly to enhance spreading and also biocidal effect of such solution. The product obtained by carrying out the above sequence of steps is an excellent bio - nutrient - cum - immunity builder in plants crops and vegetables; such immunity is manifested by ft ability to withstand attacks from pests and micro - bodies like fungus or bacteria.
Example 3 1. Preparation of Component / Batch A :
1 Litre of water is taken in a cylindrical tank equipped with heating and agitating arrangements. 500 gms of rice straw in chopped, shredded or dust form are blended under agitation along with 60 gms of neem tree bark or fruit extract at a temperature ranging between 35°C and 100 °C The temperature is then brought down to around 40 °C and 1% nitric acid (by weight) is added to the blended mass. Temperature is again raised to 100 °C and held for around 1 - 6 hours to permit hydrolysis and delignification to take place with consequent release of carbohydrates.
After hydrolytic release of lignin and carbohydrates the temperature is again brought down to ambient value and pH of the medium is adjusted to a value ranging between 6,5 and 7.5, by addition of mild alkaline agent, e. g., extracts of burnt banana trees, waste lime sludge, liquor ammonia and / or ammonium sulphate. This is followed by addition of iron
(either as metallic powder or in the form of rust), 1 gm of zinc, 1 gm of boric acid and 0.5 gm of copper sulphate and the whole mass is thoroughly mixed.
Such mixing is followed by further addition of the undemoted substances: Diammonium phosphate (DAP) -1 gm; calcium sulphate - 5 gms; potassium sulphate - 2 gms; magnesium sulphate - 2 gms and
beer waste-5 gms.
18

and the entire mass is thoroughly blended for sufficient time. Blending over, the liquor is strained out, leaving behind a solid stillage. For larger masses mechanical straining or centrifugation is resorted to. The liquor is imbued with balanced nutritive values highly effaoious for plants and crops, and may be diluted twenty times its original volume prior to use in drip irrigation' operation.
The composition resulting from the above procedure acts as an excellent soil conditioner, bio - nutrient with biocidal and plant immunity - inducing properties. 2) Preparation of Batch B :
About 200 gms of neem oil is taken in a vessel to which is added 10 gms of ethanolamine and the entire mass is stirred well for around 1 hour. Thereafter, Batch B obtained after stirring is mixed with batch A in presence of 5 litres of water and 1-10 gms of pine oil to form a white emulsion.
the mixture of A and B can be used after dilution with water, which can be applied to soil, root of the plant, crop areas and vegetables.
The liquid composition serves as an excellent liquid medium for dryland farming utilising batch B.
Example 4
It is well known that river water carries a substantial quantity of alluvial soil, minerals, metals and various other organic matters. These have been found to be excellent base material for preparing the composition of the present invention.
1,000 gms of water from river Hooghty near Kolkata is taken and poured into a
cylindrical tank equipped with heating and agitating mechanism. Temperature of water is
raised to around 40 °C and 600 gms of milled rice straw is mixed with hot water in the tank.
1% nitric acid by volume of rice straw and 200 gms of rice husk are added to the above mix.
Temperature of this mixture is then raised to 98 °C under constant stirring and the reaction
is continued for 1 to 4 hours, whereby deligniftcation and hydrolysis of cellulose takes place.
The reaction mass is neutralised by adding about 10 gms of calcium sulphate or lime sludge
19

to adjust the pH within a range of 6.5 to 7.5. The temperature of the mix is brought down to ambient and the following ingredients are added thereafter:
boric acid - 2 gms;
zinc sulphide -1 gm;
potassium sulphate - 5 gms;
iron (metallic or rust) - 2 gms;
zinc (metallic) - 2 gms;
magnesium sulphate -10 gms;
copper sulphate -1 gm and
ethyl alcohol - 5 gms.
Addition of 10 0 100 gms of neem oil in presence of amine compounds forms an
emulsified mass of the above constituents.
After blending thoroughly at room temperature, the entire mass is allowed to mature
for 1 - 7 days under anaerobic condition. The liquor is strained / centrifuged after attaining
maturity to separate the stillage or solid residue. The liquid thus separated is ready for use
as nutrient - cum - growth promoting composition capable of inducing biocidal and
immunological properties, particularly against pest attack.
Examples
Production of novel nutrient - cum - growth promoting formulation in granular, palletised or
powdery form:
500 gms of solid stillage obtained by practising the invention in accordance with
Examples 1 to 4 is collected and dried, the dried mass is mixed with 10 - 60 % by weight of
neem cake followed by 3- 5 Kgs of fly ash, starch, phospho- gypsum and 10-15 gms of
pine oil and the whole mass is thoroughly mixed. The mixture is extruded into pellet and / or
granular form, which can be sprinkled on plants, crop areas or vegetables, resulting in slow
release of lignocellulosic nitrogen with consequent induction of immunity to the plant to the
attack by insects or pests.
20

Such immunity may be accentuated by incorporation of a further quantity ( say, 50 gms) of neem cake, this enriched mixture shows the following characteristics :
a) it is effective in increasing the growth of plants and their foliage, resulting in rich blossoming, strengthening of roots and improving the general roots and vegetables grown in such plants;
b) when applied in conjunction with lignocellulosic nitrogen or any nitrogenous fertiliser, it slows down the conversion into gaseous nitrogen, as result of which nitrogen is made available to plant for a longer duration, thus decreasing the quantity of fertiliser required;
c) it prevents and treats ailments of plants on account of lack of and / or imbalance due to short supply of nutritional and trace elements;
d) it accelerates development of roots and plant growth, and protects the plant from the attack of nematodes and white ants;
e) it serves as a totally organic plant food which is capable of enhancing productivity and soil fertility, and
f) it also exhibits anti -fungal property and is eminently suitable for application in greenhouses and drip irrigation.
Example 6
Mother liquor given rise to as in Examples 1-4 may be utilised for treating / converting all types of straws in the following manner
Straw can be milled" in small bits or powdered form, thereafter a predetermined
quantity of straw may be immersed in the mother liquor obtained from examples 1-4 and
maintained in anaerobic condition for 1 - 7 days. After attaining maturity the solid mass may
be dried and extruded into pellet, granular or powdered form, the extruded composition may
be conveniently extended with alluvial soil, phospho - gypsum, China day, fly ash etc. to
form a low cost, biocidal soil material nutrient compound for plants, vegetables and crop
areas.
21

Example 7
Preparation of a growth promoting -cum - nutrient composition with immunity inducing characteristics and biocidal properties.:
1 litre of water is taken in a tank and mixed with the undemoted compounds in amounts shown thereagainst:
i) ammonium nitrate - 10 gms; v) zinc sulphate - 10 gms;
ii) calcium sulphate - 10 gms vi) diammonium phosphate - 5 gms
iii) magnesium sulphate-10 gms: and
iv) potassium sulphate -10 gms; vii) urea - 5 gms.
These compounds are thoroughly mixed till a clear solution results. To this solution the following ingredients are further added:
a) iron rust - 2 gms; d) boric acid - 1 gm;
b) copper sulphate -1 gm; e) mustard seed waste in cake form
c) metallic zinc -1 gm ( khol) - 2 gms and
f) ethanol - 2 gm
(preferably grain alcohol)
All the components are mixed under stirring and pH of the mixture is adjusted, if necessary, preferably to an alkaline value.
500 gms of shredded rice straw is immersed in the alkaline liquid produced above and mixed thoroughly. Then the tank is closed for creating an anaerobic condition and the entire mass inside is maintained till the same turns dark in colour and pH attains a value of between 6.5 and 7.5 resulting in complete leaching of lignin and other mineral matters.
The concentrated solution obtained from the reaction tank is further modified with 10 gms of neem extract / neem oil. Then the entire mass is emulsified with 5 gms of ethanolamine whereby it is rendered ready for field application as a nutrient, growth promoting - cum biocidal and stimulating composition.
22

The solid residue or stillage obtained after separation of the liquid mass is mixed with either clay or fly ash. The whole mix is dried and processed into granular or pelletised form. This has also been found highly effacious as a solid soil conditioner and nutrient - cum -immunity inducing composition for plants and crop areas.
The concentrated liquid from reaction tank may be diluted with water upto 100 times its volume before actual field application. This results in effective cost reduction and also convenience in transportation of the concentrate to site.
The novel synergistic growth promoting bio nutrient-cum- immunity inducing composition of the present invention has the following advantages :
i) the composition is easily formulated from indigenously available material;
ii) it supplies bio - nutrients including nitrogen to the roots of the plants for direct assimilation;
iii) it induces immunity to the plant body / crop against attack of pests, bacteria, microbes and other micro - bodies.
While the invention has been described above by way of illustration, it includes within its scope alternatives and obvious equivalents without deviating from the spirit and scope of the invention.
Having described the invention in detail, particularly with the help of the Examples, the invention will now be more specifically defined in the claims appended hereinafter.
23

I claim: -
1. A process for preparing a synergistic anti-oxidant, growth promoting nutrient-cum-immunity
inducing composition which comprises -
(a) extracting in a known manner lignin and pigments from cellulosic bodies to effect delignification and depigmentation;
(b) mixing the extract from step (a) with at least one additive including neem oil or neem extract, mustard seed waste or pine oil in proportions such as herein described;
(c) subjecting the mixture from step (b) to anaerobic fermentation and separating the fermented mass into stillage and liquid and
(d) converting the stillage and fermented liquid into forms applicable to soil or crop area, optimally in water-dispersible, slow-release form.

2. A process as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the stillage is converted in known manner into powdery, granular, fibrous, button or pelletised form.
3. A process as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the liquid mass from step (c) is admixed with suitable inert excipeints, adjuvants, carriers, and/or fillers as described hereinbefore to produce open-cell pellets, granules or powders for application to soil or crop area.
4. A process as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the said additive is selected from the group nutrients, trace materials, metals, metal compounds, oxo-compounds and stimulating agents such as herein described.
5. A process as claimed in Claim 1, wherein extraction of lignocellulose from lignocellulosic material of vegetative origin is effected by hydrolysis in presence of acid selected from the group of nitric acid, phosphoric acid, sulphuric acid, boric acid and the like.
6. A process as claimed in Claim 1, wherein extraction of lignin, cellulose and pigment is effected by use of one or more surface active agents such as herein described.
7. A process as claimed in Claim 1, wherein delignification and depigmentation of cellulosic bodies are carried out by means of microbial degradation in presence of white or brown rot fungi.
8. A process as claimed in Claim 7, wherein the fungus used is Panus conchatas.
24

9.A process as claimed in any one of the Claims 1 - 9, wherein metals or metal compounds used in producing the composition are selected from the group of iron, zinc, copper, magnesium, calcium, cobalt and the like;
10. A process as claimed in any one of the Claims 1 - 9 wherein tat least one of the following substances is used as a trace material.
zinc sulphate, copper sulphate, boric acid, manganous chloride, iron oxide ( preferably as rust), zinc oxide, and metallic zinc
and /or iron;
11 . A process as claimed in any one of the Claims 1 - 10 wherein one or more of
the following substances are employed as nutrients:
ammonium nitrate, calcium sulphate, magnesium sulphate,
potassium sulphate, diammonium phosphate, sodium nitrate,
potassium nitrate, and potassium oxide from ashes of wood,
straw, and / or banana tree skin;
12 . A process as claimed in any one of the Claims 1 - 11 wherein "oxo"
compounds used as stimulating agents are obtained from microbial fuels and / or inorganic
per - compounds, preferably ethanol, beer wort and sodium perborate;

13 A process as daimed in any one of the Claims 1 -12 wherein
(i) rice straw, preferably in shredded condition, is immersed in water, blended thoroughly and allowed to stand as it is in the vessel;
(ii) following substances are added to the vessel in amounts such as here in described under constant stirring: rusted iron dust, boric add, copper sulphate, urea, diammonium phosphate (DAP), potassium sulphate, magnesium sulphate, ethanol, ammonium nitrate, zinc sulphate and mustard seed waste;
(iii) after addition of the aforesaid substances the vessel is dosed and
fermentation is allowed to take place for 1 - 7 days under anaerobic
conditions; 25

(iv ) after completion of fermentation, the mass is separated in a known
manner into liquor and stillage;
(v) to the liquor is added neem extract optionally with a trace of pine oil;
(vi) then eathalomine is added to the mass obtained from step (v ) and
the mixture blended thoroughly;
( vii) the biend obtained from step ( vi) is diluted with equal volume of
water (i.e. blend : water =1 ; 1 ) to form an emulsified body serving both
as a micro - nutrient as well as a biocidal property inducing agent; 14. A process for preparing a synergistic anti - oxidant, growth promoting nutrient-cum- immunity inducing composition, substantially as hereinbefore described with particular reference to the Examples given hereinbefore.

Dr. A Basu Registered Patent Agent
& Attorney for the Applicants
Dated this 11th day of June, 2001
Conventional fertilizers are almost invariably chemical compounds which on prolonged application result in soil compaction and necessitate application of expensive pesticides, often in increasing amounts, thereby enhancing cost of production of vegetative products.
The present invention attempts to solve these difficulties by providing a process for preparing synergistic anti-oxidant, growth promoting, mutrient-cum-immunity inducing composition which comprises -(i) extraction of lignin and pigments by delignification and
depigmentation of cellulosic bodies by hydrolysis or action of surfactant
thereon (ii) mixing the extracted lignin, cellulose and pigments with one or more
materials like nutrients, trace materials, metals or metal compounds,
oxo-compounds, stimulating agents, neem oil or neem extract and
optionally pine oil and mustard seed waste in predetermined amounts; (iii) subjecting the composition of (ii) to anaerobic fermentation till
attainment of maturity; (iv) separating the fermented mass from step (iii) into liquid and stillage
using standard techniques and (v) processing the solid and liquid masses into useful end products,
namely, subject composition.

Documents:

00332-cal-2001-abstract.pdf

00332-cal-2001-claims.pdf

00332-cal-2001-correspondence.pdf

00332-cal-2001-description(complete).pdf

00332-cal-2001-form-1.pdf

00332-cal-2001-form-18.pdf

00332-cal-2001-form-2.pdf

00332-cal-2001-form-3.pdf

00332-cal-2001-gpa.pdf

332-cal-2001-granted-abstract.pdf

332-cal-2001-granted-claims.pdf

332-cal-2001-granted-correspondence.pdf

332-cal-2001-granted-description (complete).pdf

332-cal-2001-granted-form 1.pdf

332-cal-2001-granted-form 18.pdf

332-cal-2001-granted-form 2.pdf

332-cal-2001-granted-form 3.pdf

332-cal-2001-granted-gpa.pdf

332-cal-2001-granted-letter patent.pdf

332-cal-2001-granted-reply to examination report.pdf

332-cal-2001-granted-specification.pdf

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Patent Number

195537

Indian Patent Application Number

332/CAL/2001

PG Journal Number

30/2009

Publication Date

24-Jul-2009

Grant Date

25-Nov-2005

Date of Filing

11-Jun-2001

Name of Patentee

SANTANU ROY

Applicant Address

13, NANDAKUMAR CHOWDHURY LANE, KOLKATA

Inventors:

#	Inventor's Name	Inventor's Address
1	SANTANU ROY	13, NANDAKUMAR CHOWDHURY LANE, KOLKATA - 700006

PCT International Classification Number

A01N 63/02

PCT International Application Number

N/A

PCT International Filing date

PCT Conventions:

#	PCT Application Number	Date of Convention	Priority Country
1			NA