Exploring the Role of Carbon Nanotubes in Enhancing Soil Fertility and Crop Yield

Abstract

Over the next few decades, agriculture will be confronted with the pressing challenge of enhancing productivity to satisfy the growing demand for food and fiber, while concurrently addressing risk management, reducing production variability, and improving ecological efficiency. Nanotechnology plays a significant role in advancing agricultural management, largely due to its nanoscale dimensions. It offers numerous advantages, including improved food quality and safety, reduced reliance on agricultural inputs, and enhanced absorption of nutrients from the soil. These benefits highlight the strong potential of nanotechnology in agriculture. Among the various nanomaterials, carbon nanotube has gained significant attention for its tremendous impact in the agricultural sector. Due to its unique physicochemical properties and high surface area carbon nanotubes interact with soil constituents and influence soil and crop productivity. This review highlights major findings, including the ability of carbon nanotubes to improve soil physico-chemical properties, effect on soil microbial communities, enhance nutrient availability and promote plant growth, nutrient uptake and yield. Evidences suggests that carbon nanotubes can serve as efficient carriers for fertilizers and agrochemicals, enabling targeted nutrient delivery and controlled release, thereby reducing nutrient losses. However, high concentrations of carbon nanotubes have been reported to cause toxic effects in certain plant species, indicating the need for careful dose optimization. In conclusion, carbon nanotubes show significant promise as a nano enabled tool to enhance sustainable agricultural productivity. Future research should focus on determining safe application levels, elucidating the mechanisms of nanotube-soil-plant interactions and evaluating long term environmental impacts to fully harness their potential in agriculture.