Owing to the high demand for fertilizer formulations that will exhaust the possibilities of nutrient use efficiency (NUE), regulate fertilizer consumption, and lessen agrophysicochemical properties and environmental adverse effects instigated by conventional nutrient supply to crops, this review recapitulates controlled release fertilizers (CRFs) as a cutting-edge and safe way to supply crops’ nutrients over the conventional ways. Essentially, CRFs entail fertilizer particles intercalated within excipients aiming at reducing the frequency of fertilizer application thereby abating potential adverse effects linked with conventional fertilizer use. Application of nanotechnology and materials engineering in agriculture particularly in the design of CRFs, the distinctions and classification of CRFs, and the economical, agronomical, and environmental aspects of CRFs has been revised putting into account the development and synthesis of CRFs, laboratory CRFs syntheses and testing, and both linear and sigmoid release features of CRF formulations. Methodical account on the mechanism of nutrient release centring on the empirical and mechanistic approaches of predicting nutrient release is given in view of selected mathematical models. Compositions and laboratory preparations of CRFs basing onin situand graft polymerization are provided alongside the physical methods used in CRFs encapsulation, with an emphasis on the natural polymers, modified clays, and superabsorbent nanocomposite excipients.

Urea controlled release fertilizer (CRF) was prepared via kaolinite intercalation followed by gum arabic encapsulation in an attempt to reduce its severe losses associated with dissolution, hydrolysis, and diffusion. Following the beneficiation, the nonkaolinite fraction decreased from 39.58% to 0.36% whereas the kaolinite fraction increased from 60.42% to 99.64%. The X‐ray diffractions showed that kaolinite was a major phase with FCC Bravais crystal lattice with particle sizes ranging between 14.6 nm and 92.5 nm. The particle size varied with intercalation ratios with methanol intercalated kaolinite > DMSO‐kaolinite > urea‐kaolinite (KPDMU). Following intercalation, SEM analysis revealed a change of order from thick compact overlapping euhedral pseudohexagonal platelets to irregular booklets which later transformed to vermiform morphology and dispersed euhedral pseudohexagonal platelets. Besides, dispersed euhedral pseudohexagonal platelets were seen to coexist with blocky‐vermicular booklets. In addition, a unique brain‐form agglomeration which transformed into roundish particles mart was observed after encapsulation. The nanocomposites decomposed between 48 and 600°C. Release profiles showed that 100% of urea was released in 97 hours from KPDMU while 87% was released in 150 hours from the encapsulated nanocomposite. The findings established that it is possible to use Pugu kaolinite and gum arabic biopolymer to prepare urea CRF formulations.