Zeolite
Zeolite is a natural volcanic mineral. The formal name is Clinoptilolite. (From Wikipedia: "Use of clinoptilolite in industry and academia focuses on its ion exchange properties having a strong exchange affinity for ammonium (NH4+"). A typical example of this is in its use as an enzyme-based urea sensor.) It contains a wide array of basic minerals that were spewed back to the earth’s surface in a cataclysmic event - a volcanic eruption. Over millions of years, hot springs leached the calcium, sodium and other contaminants out leaving a unique material. Finely ground zeolite has an amazing capacity to grab things - odors in the air - all kinds of odor, and contaminants in the soil. It especially likes ammonia -raw nitrogen. So, if you've been using synthetic fertilizer, an application of Zeolite will grab that excess nitrogen and release it slowly so it is useful to plants — and isn't leached into our water systems. Its capacity to grab odors makes it a great material in cat litter. And, it's the crunchy material that comes in those little bags that are sold to absorb odors in refrigerators, closets and such. And it's reusable. I bought a chunk of it at an aquarium shop. I keep it in my aquarium with my albino frogs. Periodically, I put it out in the yard in the fresh air and sunshine where it releases the absorbed odors. Then I put it back with the frogs. This is a very useful product in the organic program.
Zeolite can also be used for air and water purification, cat litter material, shoe deodorizers, animal feed supplements, garage floor spill removers, cooler and refrigerator odor and moisture removers, animal stall odor and moisture removers, and soil amendments. Mix raw zeolite (powder or granular) into the soil for new bed preparation. Broadcast onto contaminated soil to detoxify. Rates can vary from 10- to 50 pounds per 1,000 square feet. More than 50 pounds won’t hurt anything but is probably a waste of money. Zeolite has a very high cation exchange capacity (CEC). It helps fertilizer to be more efficient. A natural ore used to absorb odors, gases, liquids and as an amendment to most soils. Zeolites are natural volcanic minerals with unique characteristics. Their chemical structure classifies them as hydrated aluminosilicates, comprised of hydrogen, oxygen, aluminum, and silicon arranged in an interconnecting lattice structure. Zeolites heave the ability to change and absorb certain harmful or unwanted elements from soil, water and air. An example is the removal of calcium from hard water. Zeolite has a strong affinity for certain heavy metals such as lead and chromium. Zeolite works as a soil amendment by absorbing nutrients, especially nitrogen, and then releasing them at a rate more beneficial to plant root development.
For more information, visit Zeolites' isotopes defy nature: New finding could help inform how Zeolites are used in carbon capture and storage from Northwestern University's Northwestern Now.
Ancient zeolites from Iceland, photo by Clair Nelson, Northwestern U.
For more information, visit Zeolites' isotopes defy nature: New finding could help inform how Zeolites are used in carbon capture and storage from Northwestern University's Northwestern Now.
The product called "Sweet PDZ Horse Stall Refresher" is
available at Tractor Supply and various feed and hardware stores
In recent news (2023), a new book reveals a life-saving aspect of Zeolite:
In the book released in 2023 by Charles Barber, In the Blood: How Two Outsiders Solved a Centuries-Old Medical Mystery and Took On the US Army, the "inexpensive and inert" mineral Zeolite became a lifesaver for military medics in the field of battle. Ground up and bagged and pitched as a product called "QuikClot," Zeolite outperformed an experimental product that was also being tested.
A full review of the book can be found at the Wall Street Journal. This is usually behind a paywall, so there is also a review on Amazon that covers much of the same information.
From Amazon:
At the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu, dramatized by the popular film Black Hawk Down, the majority of soldiers who died were killed instantly or bled to death before they could reach an operating table. This tragedy reinforced the need for a revolutionary treatment that could transform trauma medicine. So, when Frank Hursey and Bart Gullong—who had no medical or military experience—discovered that a cheap, crushed rock called zeolite had blood‑clotting properties, they brought it to the military's attention. The Marines and the Navy adopted the resulting product, QuikClot, immediately.
The Army, however, resisted. It had two products of its own being developed to prevent excessive bleeds, one of which had already cost tens of millions of dollars. The other, "Factor Seven," had a more dangerous complication: its side effects could be deadly. Unwilling to let its efforts end in failure—and led by the highly influential surgeon Colonel John Holcomb—the Army set out to smear QuikClot’s reputation. . . . By withholding QuikClot—which later became the medical miracle of the Iraq War—and in the use of Factor Seven with its known, life-threatening risks of heart attacks and strokes, the lives of countless soldiers were imperiled. Using deep reportage and riveting prose, In the Blood recounts this little‑known David‑and‑Goliath story of corruption, greed, and power within the military—and the devastating consequences of unchecked institutional arrogance.
Bart Gullong and Frank Hursey embarked in a six-year struggle, a lawsuit, culminating with evidence provided by a whistle-blower inside the Army. The competitor blood clot product company had financial ties with the Army doctor's research lab that compromised the adoption of QuikClot. The "innovative blood-coagulant, coming from an improbable source, met resistance from the Army medical establishment. Now it’s standard-issue."
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