East Dubuque Merger - Additional Information (Details) - USD ($)		1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended			9 Months Ended
	Apr. 01, 2016	Mar. 31, 2016	Sep. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2016	Sep. 30, 2015	Mar. 14, 2016
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Net sales			$ 78,474,000		$ 49,325,000	$ 271,363,000	$ 223,190,000
Operating income (loss)			2,384,000		(11,806,000)	25,739,000	48,371,000
Contribution from affiliates				$ 500,000		507,000
Purchase of noncontrolling interest						$ 5,000,000
Senior Notes | 6.50% notes, due 2021
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Debt instrument face amount	$ 320,000,000.0
Debt instrument, percentage rate	6.50%
Line of Credit | Wells Fargo Credit Agreement
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Payment of revolving debt	$ 49,400,000
Term Loan | Line of Credit | Wells Fargo Credit Agreement
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Borrowing capacity	50,000,000
Letter of Credit | Line of Credit | Wells Fargo Credit Agreement
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Borrowing capacity	$ 10,000,000
CVR Nitrogen | CVR Energy, Inc
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Units purchased (in units)		400,000		400,000
Limited partner interest (as a percent)		1.00%
Purchase of noncontrolling interest				$ 5,000,000
Ownership interest						100.00%
Common Units
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Purchase of noncontrolling interest						$ (71,000)
East Dubuque Merger
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
CVR Partners common units eligible per CVR Nitrogen common unit (in units)	1.04
Expected issuance of common units (in units)	40,155,000
Cash payment to CVR Nitrogen common unitholders and certain phantom unitholders	$ 99,229,000
Fair value of consideration transferred	802,400,000
Fair value of common units issued in a business combination	335,700,000
Value of liabilities assumed	367,500,000
Net sales			32,300,000			92,000,000
Operating income (loss)			3,900,000			(4,300,000)
Fair value of noncontrolling interest for parent affiliate units	$ 4,600,000
Merger related costs excluded from pro forma net income			700,000		4,000,000	3,900,000	4,500,000
East Dubuque Merger | Selling, General and Administrative Expenses (Exclusive of Depreciation and Amortization)
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Merger related expenses			$ 700,000		$ 1,500,000	3,100,000	$ 1,500,000
East Dubuque Merger | Fair Value Adjustment to Inventory and Deferred Revenue
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Nonrecurring expenses excluded from pro forma net income (loss) related to fair value adjustment						$ 13,000,000
East Dubuque Merger | CVR Nitrogen
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
CVR Partners common units eligible per CVR Nitrogen common unit (in units)	1.04
Unit price (in dollars per unit)	$ 2.57
Disposal Group, Disposed of by Sale, Not Discontinued Operations | CVR Nitrogen
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Ownership interest sold								100.00%