What is a sustainable alternative to perlite and vermiculite?

The first answer: there is no substitute for perlite, the properties of perlite include good coverage, warm coverage, cold separator and softness, high porosity, retention of liquids, availability, reasonable price, and the possibility of replacing it with numerous materials that can be used in very different businesses.

One way to be unique is by using perlite instead of sand in construction. – When making light concrete and whitewashing, perlite can substitute other lightweight materials.

It can additionally function as a light stuffing for slanted roofs and surfaces within rooms and spaces. also for more information about What are the disadvantages of perlite as a growing media? click on the link

Dozens of other things can be used, so at a glance, it can be said that perlite has unique properties and that no material can completely replace it in Iran, because there are perlite mines and processing.

Perlite is used, but diatomaceous earth is not processed, and this material is imported, cellulose is expensive, so in our country, cellulose is not the last option to replace diatomaceous earth in some applications, such as filtration.

People often wonder why perlite is used in horticulture and if there are no other things that can be used instead.

The answer is that perlite is often used because it is inexpensive and has many advantages. Some people do not understand how to substitute products like vermiculite or diatomaceous earth. These products combine well with perlite, but they can not completely replace it.

Second answer: to find a substitute for perlite, we need to see in which case we want to use perlite so that we can find its substitute so that the following points can be mentioned in a limited way.

1. One of the materials that can replace perlite is vermiculite. This material has a lower melting point than perlite and is less common than perlite, and its color is not white like perlite, but cream. This substitute can be used in industry: Construction, fire protection, insulation, fillers, agriculture
2. Diatomaceous earth is another substance that can be used instead of perlite. Diatomaceous earth has a larger surface area and is denser than perlite. It also has the same white color as perlite. Diatomaceous earth is excellent for screening material, so it can replace perlite in channels and make them work better.
3. Another material that can replace perlite in the development industry is pumice, although these materials have the next special weight and don’t have the characteristics of coverage, fire resistance, and softness as perlite, they can replace perlite, the helping conditions they reduce coverage and fire resistance and sound separator within the building
4. In the filtration industry, perlite plays a role as a sifting aid. It can have a good and far better choice agent, namely cellulose, but since cellulose gutter aid isn’t supplied in our country and its alleged cost is high, replacing cellulose gutter aid with perlite gutter aid isn’t moderate.
5. If we want to find an alternative to the lightness of perlite, we can think of materials such as unolite and foam, but we must note that perlite is insulating and fireproof. Materials such as foam and unpolite are not only fireproof but also combustible.
6. The specific gravity of perlite plays a very important role in its purchase price. For example, if we bought a sample of perlite with a specific gravity of 100 kg and a second sample with a specific gravity of 150 kg and paid for each kilogram of both, 1400 tomans, it means that the latter is self-confident. We bought it for 2100 tomans per kilo

Perlite can be beneficial in cultivation and mechanical cultivation. Expanded perlite is exceptionally light and permeable, which, when used, increases permeability and promotes air circulation in the root structure. Perlite can be used as an autonomous development medium for seed germination, root cuttings, or in hydroponic systems; it can be combined with other particles to form a soil-free mixture and used as a soil conditioner.