Nanotechnology as an option for a more efficient agriculture
While waiting for the world population to exceed 9.000 million for the 2050 year, scientists are working to develop new ways to meet the growing global demand for food, energy and water, without increasing the demand on natural resources.
Nanotechnology - the design of ultra-small particles - is emerging to promote the growth and efficient development of crops. This idea is part of the evolving science called precision agriculture, in which farmers use technology to guide the use of water, fertilizers and other inputs.
The use of fertilizers around the world is increasing along with the growth of the world population. Currently, farmers are using almost 85% of the total phosphorus extracted from mines in the world as fertilizer, although plants can absorb an estimate of only 42% of the phosphorus that is applied to the soil. If these practices continue, the global supply of phosphorus could be exhausted within the next 80 years, which will worsen the problems of nutrient contamination in the process.
In contrast to the use of conventional fertilizers, which implies many tons of inputs, nanotechnology focuses on small quantities. Nanoscale particles measure between one and 100 nanometers in at least one of their dimensions.
Scientists are actively investigating a range of nanoparticles of metals and metal oxides, also known as nanofertilizers, for scientific use in plants and in agriculture. These materials can be applied to plants by watering the soil or spraying on their leaves. Studies suggest that the application of nanoparticles on the leaves of the plant is especially beneficial for the environment, since they do not come into contact with the soil. Since the particles are extremely small, plants can absorb them more efficiently through the soil.
In the study carried out by the application of nano zinc on the leaves of mung beans after 14 days of germination of their seeds, the activity of three important enzymes within plants increased: acid phosphatase, alkaline phosphatase and phytase. By activating these enzymes, the plants had almost 11% more phosphorus that was naturally present in the soil, without receiving any type of conventional phosphorus fertilization and increased their biomass by 27%. In addition, 6% of these produced more grains than the plants with which their growth was treated using typical agricultural practices and without fertilizer.
Nanofertilizers also have the potential to increase the nutritional value of plants. In another study it was found that the application of nanoparticles of titanium dioxide and zinc oxide in tomato plants increased the amount of lycopene in tomatoes between 80 and 113%, depending on the type of nanoparticles and the concentration of the doses. This is because the nanoparticles increase the photosynthesis rates of plants and allow them to take more nutrients.
Despite the good results that have been obtained with nanoparticles, it is still necessary to carry out impact evaluations on human health and the environment, develop methods to evaluate and manage the risks that may arise, as well as the forms sustainable for its manufacture.
In Chile, nanotechnology has been used mainly in copper, providing antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral properties to this metal. In this way, the chances of contagion from diseases are reduced by contact with different items that people use every day in their homes, places of work or transportation systems.
In agriculture, Eucalyptus globulus is being used as a raw material to make nanocellulose, proving to be 20 times more resistant to stress than steel and at the same time five times lighter than that metal. Researchers have already made progress in the characterization of nanoparticles from local species and estimate that in 2 to 3 years they will have scalable prototypes to reach the market and thus promote the first center in the Southern Hemisphere in the development of applications for nanocellulose.
Source: Agrimundo - FAO
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