It was evident that the synthesised MCP was slightly better than Commercial MCP in improving plant growth
This could be due to the presence of micronutrients such as Magnesium (Awang-Hazmi et. al, 2017)
Magnesium is the central atom in the chlorophyll molecule.
Conclusion
50 ml of 2M phosphoric acid with 5gof blood cockle shell powder heated for 0.5 hourresults in greatest yield of MCP
Similar to commercial MCP as seen from crystal structure, phosphorus and calcium content
MCP synthesised is effective in enhancing plant growth
Limitations
Other than CaCO3 there may be potentially other substances such as Mg(OH)2 or MgO in blood cockle shells which react with HCl during the back titration
Therefore, the % calcium carbonate calculated will be slightly higher than actual value
However, the amount of CaCO3 determined was in agreement with other research papers, and to deal with this limitation, a range of volumes rather than one volume of acid was investigated based on the % of calcium carbonate determined.
Future Plans
Explore the synthesis of dicalcium phosphate from blood cockle shell
Research into nitrogen or potassium fertilizers that can complement MCP
The possibility of commercialising the process of synthesizing MCP from blood cockle shells