Current Research in Agriculture and Farming (CRAF)
Year : 2021, Volume : 2, Issue : 1
First page : (21) Last page : (29)
Article doi: : http://dx.doi.org/10.18782/2582-7146.128
Nano-Technology Based Nano-Fertilizer: A Sustainable Approach for Enhancing Crop Productivity under Climate Changing Situations
B. Sri Sai Siddartha Naik1*, Neeta Mahawar2, Tirunagari Rupesh3, Swetha Dhegavath4 and Raghuvir Singh Meena5 1Ph.D. Research scholar, Department of Agronomy, RCA, MPUAT, Udaipur, Rajasthan 2Ph.D. Research scholar (Soil Science & Agricultural Chemistry), RVSKVV, Gwalior, MP 3Ph.D. Research scholar, Division of Soil Science & Agricultural Chemistry, ICAR-IARI, New Delhi 4M.Sc. Research scholar, Department of Soil Science & Agricultural Chemistry, PJTSAU, Hyderabad 5Ph.D. Research scholar, Department of Agronomy, RCA, MPUAT, Udaipur, Rajasthan
*Corresponding Author E-mail: siddunaik08@gmail.com
Received: 20.11.2020 | Revised: 29.12.2020 | Accepted: 11.01.2021
ABSTRACT
Since green revolution, chemical fertilizers are deemed an indispensable input of modern crop production systems, but these have associated environmental and ecological consequences. Loss of nutrients from agricultural fields in the form of leaching and gaseous emissions has been the leading cause of environmental pollution and climate change. Ensuring the sustainability of crop production necessitates exploring other sources of nutrients and modifying prevalent nutrient sources. Nanotechnology, which utilizes nanomaterials of less than 100 nm size, may offer an unprecedented opportunity to develop concentrated sources of plant nutrients having higher-absorption rate, utilization efficacy, and minimum losses. Nano-fertilizers are being prepared by encapsulating plant nutrients into nanomaterials, employing thin coating of nanomaterials on plant nutrients, and delivering in the form of nano-sized emulsions. Nanopores and stomatal openings in plant leaves facilitate nanomaterial uptake and their penetration deep inside leaves leading to higher nutrient use efficiency (NUE). Nano-fertilizers have higher transport and delivery of nutrients through plasmodesmata, which are nanosized (50–60 nm) channels between cells. The higher NUE and significantly lesser nutrient losses of nano-fertilizers lead to higher productivity (6–17%) and nutritional quality of field crops. However, production and availability, their sufficient effective legislation, and associated risk management are the prime limiting factors in their general adoption as plant nutrient sources.
