Optimising engineered nanomaterials for use as fertiliser in agriculture and improving nitrogen use efficiency

氮（N）是作物生长所必需的，也是农业肥料的主要成分之一。然而，单独使用氮肥是低效的，它会鼓励向土壤中添加过量的肥料，导致农民的高成本和废物的产生。这些废物改变了土壤中的氮循环，污染了水道和空气，对生物多样性造成了持久的破坏，并导致了气候变化。纳米技术将纳米材料应用于新的环境中，以利用其量子特性。工程纳米材料（ENM），无论是作为肥料本身还是作为肥料的载体，都能够缓慢地将营养物质释放到土壤中。这种缓慢释放的过程减少了营养物质进入水道的沥滤和转化为气体排放的损失。通过提高植物根系吸收养分的效率，肥料的负面影响应该最小化，提高农业的净可持续性。了解不同的ENM如何应对不同的土壤和水培环境，以及它们所利用的作用模式，对于确定纳米肥料商业化使用的最佳途径至关重要。另一种农业形式是水培，即使用营养液种植作物。水培是传统农业的一种更可持续的替代方法，使用更少的水和土地。与工业合作伙伴Saturn Bioponics一起将ENM应用于水培系统，将为纳米肥料的使用提供另一种潜在途径，并进一步了解不同环境如何影响其功效。 该项目的核心目标是优化水培系统中的纳米肥料，加深对ENM所经历的转变的理解，并为它们在不同农业环境中的使用开发最佳实践。纳米肥料是提高农业氮利用效率的一个令人兴奋的机会，有助于可持续集约化，同时最大限度地减少对土地，水和空气的环境影响。

Nitrogen (N) is essential for crop growth and is one of the main components of agricultural fertilisers. N fertilisers alone however are inefficient, encouraging an excess of fertiliser to be added to soils, leading to high costs for farmers and waste produced. This waste alters N cycling in the soil, polluting waterways and air, causing lasting damage to biodiversity and contributing to climate change. Nanotechnology applies nanoscale materials in novel contexts in order to utilise their quantum properties. Engineered nanomaterials (ENMs), whether a fertiliser themselves or as a carrier of a fertiliser, are able to slowly release nutrients into the soil. This process of slow release reduces leaching of nutrients into waterways and loss through transformation into gaseous emissions. By improving the efficiency of nutrient uptake by plant roots the negative effects of fertilisers should be minimised, improving the net sustainability of agriculture. Characterising how different ENMs respond to different soil and hydroponic environments and the modes of action they utilise is essential to identify the best routes for nanofertiliser usage commercially.Another form of agriculture is hydroponics, where crops are grown using nutrient solutions. Hydroponics is a more sustainable alternative to conventional agriculture, using less water and land. Applying ENMs to hydroponics systems with the industrial partner, Saturn Bioponics, will provide another potential avenue for nanofertiliser use and further understanding of how different environments affect their efficacy. The project's core aims are to optimise nanofertilisers in a hydroponics system, deepen understanding about the transformations ENMs undergo, and develop best practice for their use in different agricultural contexts. Nanofertilisers are an exciting opportunity to improve nitrogen use efficiency in agriculture, aiding in sustainable intensification whilst minimising environmental impacts to land, water and air.