Evolution of research on air emissions from agricultural activities: A comprehensive review

Abstract

Air pollutant emissions from the agricultural sector are among the most critical issues affecting human health and the environment. This sector releases a complex mixture of biological, microbial, and inorganic contaminants into the air from land preparation, crop production, fertilization, harvesting, biomass burning, machinery use, livestock production, manure management, waste management, and deforestation. This article aims to identify the evolution and global research trends related to air contaminant emissions, specifically from the agricultural sector. This study systematically analyzed the knowledge map derived from 4016 scientific publications from 1990 to 2023. From an evolutionary perspective, the bibliometric and networking analysis revealed a consistent increase in scientific publications over the past 34 years, with the contribution of 117 countries, more than 1600 authors, and 1300 journals. Additionally, it sheds light on the most studied pollutants, measurement techniques, and modeling employed to comprehend and mitigate the impact of these pollutants on yield, human health, biodiversity, and climate change. Furthermore, the research facilitates the identification of emerging air pollutants considering agricultural activities such as crop production, waste crop management, livestock production, manure management, deforestation, and land change use. These findings underscore the evolution of the research, identifying the main topics of interest, the emerging topics, and the future of research on air pollutant emissions.