Bionanomaterials for environmental and agricultural applications

Abstract

The title of this book captured my interest immediately and the summary of chapter headings looked very promising. Over the years I have lectured on the applications of nanotechnology and mostly with respect to the impacts on humans in terms of safety, diagnostics and therapy, and one of the surprises for me, has been the relative neglect for the impact on plants. This is compounded by the importance of plants for food and the environment and the fact that plants grow in soils which have a very high percentage ofmicro and nanoparticles, and they contribute to aerosol particles in the air. I have also emphasised to my students that looking for effects of nanoparticles on plant cells does not require the expensive and strict regulatory protocols that are required for animals and humans! Despite all of this, there is a shortage of textbooks to help the interested reader and I hoped that this volume would fill this gap. The book is very nicely produced, and it is readable, with very extensive references for each of the 14 chapters. A descriptive style has been adopted which requires hardly any detailed prior knowledge of physics, chemistry ormathematics. However, herein lies the biggest shortcoming: there is a lack of rigour and also a lack of critical analysis. Of the 14 chapters there is some considerable overlap between them which could have been avoided. There are two on biosensors and that topic is repeated in other chapters. However, the treatment is rather superficial and lacks good explanation of the main science behind the sensor function and measurement. There are three chapters on wastewater treatment using nanomaterials and another two on environmental remediation, all with strong overlaps. There is hardly any quantification as to the valence state of toxic metals and the concentrations that occur, apart from one table which does not employ comparable units. Although they refer to World Health Organisation and the US Environment Protection Agency guidelines, there are no actual references to where these are published. Bionanocomposites are in two main chapters and are referred to elsewhere in the book. The treatment is very descriptive, withmany references, but there is no underlying structure to the presentation.Other chapters cover antimicrobial aspects of metals and their oxides as well as pesticide control, fertilisers and growth enhancement. Opportunities have been missed for discussion as to why some of the nanoparticles show antimicrobial properties. There is a separate chapter on the impact of bionanomaterials on the food industry. This is rather brief and again there is inconsistency in the use of units. Concentrations of analytes vary between grams per litre and molar concentrations and there are no definitive references to the regulations by different agencies. To be fair, much of the book will stimulate interest to those who are very new to the field of nanotechnology. So, what is missing? There is nothing on the aspects of soil and the processes that occur in the root region and uptake of water and nutrients or unwanted nano-toxins by plants. There is nothing about the detailed photosynthesis, respiration and transpiration that occurs in leaves, along with the uptake and emission of gases and the effect of nanomaterials. These omissions detract from the value. The editors expressed the hope that this book will serve as a textbook for students and perform a reference function for professionals, scientists, researchers and academics. I fear that this is overoptimistic, but it has many useful attributes.