Nanotechnology in agriculture: prospects and constraints.

IF 4.9 Q2 NANOSCIENCE & NANOTECHNOLOGY
Nanotechnology, Science and Applications Pub Date : 2014-08-04 eCollection Date: 2014-01-01 DOI:10.2147/NSA.S39409
Siddhartha S Mukhopadhyay
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引用次数: 288

Abstract

Attempts to apply nanotechnology in agriculture began with the growing realization that conventional farming technologies would neither be able to increase productivity any further nor restore ecosystems damaged by existing technologies back to their pristine state; in particular because the long-term effects of farming with "miracle seeds", in conjunction with irrigation, fertilizers, and pesticides, have been questioned both at the scientific and policy levels, and must be gradually phased out. Nanotechnology in agriculture has gained momentum in the last decade with an abundance of public funding, but the pace of development is modest, even though many disciplines come under the umbrella of agriculture. This could be attributed to: a unique nature of farm production, which functions as an open system whereby energy and matter are exchanged freely; the scale of demand of input materials always being gigantic in contrast with industrial nanoproducts; an absence of control over the input nanomaterials in contrast with industrial nanoproducts (eg, the cell phone) and because their fate has to be conceived on the geosphere (pedosphere)-biosphere-hydrosphere-atmosphere continuum; the time lag of emerging technologies reaching the farmers' field, especially given that many emerging economies are unwilling to spend on innovation; and the lack of foresight resulting from agricultural education not having attracted a sufficient number of brilliant minds the world over, while personnel from kindred disciplines might lack an understanding of agricultural production systems. If these issues are taken care of, nanotechnologic intervention in farming has bright prospects for improving the efficiency of nutrient use through nanoformulations of fertilizers, breaking yield barriers through bionanotechnology, surveillance and control of pests and diseases, understanding mechanisms of host-parasite interactions at the molecular level, development of new-generation pesticides and their carriers, preservation and packaging of food and food additives, strengthening of natural fibers, removal of contaminants from soil and water, improving the shelf-life of vegetables and flowers, clay-based nanoresources for precision water management, reclamation of salt-affected soils, and stabilization of erosion-prone surfaces, to name a few.

纳米技术在农业中的应用:前景和限制。
将纳米技术应用于农业的尝试始于人们日益认识到,传统农业技术既不能进一步提高生产力,也不能将被现有技术破坏的生态系统恢复到原始状态;特别是因为用“神奇种子”耕作,加上灌溉、化肥和杀虫剂的长期影响,在科学和政策层面都受到了质疑,必须逐步淘汰。在过去的十年里,由于大量的公共资金,农业领域的纳米技术已经获得了发展的势头,但是发展的速度是缓慢的,尽管许多学科都在农业的保护伞下。这可以归因于:农业生产的独特性质,它是一个开放的系统,能量和物质可以自由交换;与工业纳米产品相比,输入材料的需求规模总是巨大的;与工业纳米产品(如手机)相比,缺乏对输入纳米材料的控制,并且由于它们的命运必须在地圈(土壤圈)-生物圈-水圈-大气连续体上构思;新兴技术进入农民领域的时间滞后,特别是考虑到许多新兴经济体不愿在创新上投入资金;缺乏远见是由于农业教育没有吸引到足够数量的世界各地的优秀人才,而来自同类学科的人员可能缺乏对农业生产系统的了解。如果这些问题得到解决,纳米技术对农业的干预在以下方面具有光明的前景:通过纳米肥料配方提高养分利用效率、通过生物纳米技术打破产量壁垒、监测和控制病虫害、在分子水平上了解宿主-寄生虫相互作用的机制、开发新一代农药及其载体、食品和食品添加剂的保存和包装。增强天然纤维、去除土壤和水中的污染物、提高蔬菜和花卉的保质期、用于精确水管理的粘土基纳米资源、盐渍土壤的复垦以及易侵蚀表面的稳定,等等。
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来源期刊
Nanotechnology, Science and Applications
Nanotechnology, Science and Applications NANOSCIENCE & NANOTECHNOLOGY-
CiteScore
11.70
自引率
0.00%
发文量
3
审稿时长
16 weeks
期刊介绍: Nanotechnology, Science and Applications is an international, peer-reviewed, Open Access journal that focuses on the science of nanotechnology in a wide range of industrial and academic applications. The journal is characterized by the rapid reporting of reviews, original research, and application studies across all sectors, including engineering, optics, bio-medicine, cosmetics, textiles, resource sustainability and science. Applied research into nano-materials, particles, nano-structures and fabrication, diagnostics and analytics, drug delivery and toxicology constitute the primary direction of the journal.
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