Nano-Fertilizers for Sustainable Agriculture Under Limited Abiotic Conditions

Abstract

Nutrient fertilization is essential for sustaining soil fertility and improving crop productivity. Horticultural crops rely heavily on chemical fertilizers, and precise nutrient management is a significant concern worldwide. Traditional fertilizers cost significantly, not just for farmers, but they may also damage individuals and the environment. This has prompted a hunt for ecologically benign fertilizers, particularly ones that employ nutrients efficiently, with nanotechnology as a possible option. Nanofertilizers can help with nutrition management because of their potential to significantly increase nutritional utilization efficiency. Nutrients are attached to nano-dimensional adsorbents, in which nutrients are released more slowly than traditional fertilizers, whether applied alone or in combination. This method improves fertilizer utilization and reduces nutrient loss into groundwater. Combined with microorganisms (so-called nanobiofertilizers), they may provide even greater benefits. Although the advantages of nanofertilizers undoubtedly open up new opportunities for sustainable agriculture, their limitations should be thoroughly researched before they are put on the market. The widespread discharge of nanoparticles entering the environment and food chain, in particular, might endanger human health. To summa-rize, while nanomaterials in agriculture offer promising possibilities for enhancing plants’ nutritional status and stress resistance while increasing yields in the face of climate change, not all applications of nanomaterials will be as reliable as others. Before using nanofertilizers, the hazards should be thoroughly investigated, and more biotechnological breakthroughs are necessary for the proper use of nanoparticles in agriculture that are both safe and effective. The interaction between nanoparticles and abiotic stressors, as well as the properties and functions of nanofertilizers, are discussed in this chapter, along with the benefits and drawbacks of each.