Recent trends and perspectives in the application of metal and metal oxide nanomaterials for sustainable agriculture.

Sustainable ecosystem management leads to the use of eco-friendly agricultural techniques for crop production. One of them is the use of metal and metal oxide nanomaterials and nanoparticles, which have proven to be a valuable option for the improvement of agricultural food systems. Moreover, the biological synthesis of these nanoparticles, from plants, bacteria, and fungi, also contributes to their eco-friendly and sustainable characteristics. Nanoparticles, which vary in size from 1 to 100 nm have a variety of mechanisms that are safer and more efficient than conventional fertilizers. Their usage as fertilizers and insecticides in agriculture is gaining favor in the scientific community to maximize crop output. More studies in this field will increase our understanding of this new technology and its broad acceptance in terms of performance, affordability, and environmental protection, as certain nanoparticles may outperform conventional fertilizers and insecticides. Accordingly, to the information gathered in this review, nanoparticles show remarkable potential for enhancing crop production, improving soil quality, and protecting the environment, however, metal and metal oxide NPs are not widely employed in agriculture. Many features of nanoparticles are yet left over, and it is necessary to uncover them. In this sense, this review article provides an overview of various types of metal and metal oxide nanoparticles used in agriculture, their characterization and synthesis, the recent research on them, and their possible application for the improvement of crop productivity in a sustainable manner.

Catalytic degradation of carbamazepine by surface-modified zerovalent copper via the activation of peroxymonosulphate: mechanism, degradation pathways and ecotoxicity.

In this research work, surface-modified nano zerovalent copper (nZVC) was prepared using a simple borohydride reduction method. The spectroscopic and crystallographic results revealed the successful synthesis of surface-modified nano zerovalent copper (nZVC) using solvents such as ethanol (ETOH), ethylene glycol (EG) and tween80 (T80). The as-synthesized material was fully characterized for morphological surface and crystal structural properties. The results indicated that EG provides an excellent synthesis environment to nZVC compared to ETOH and T80 in terms of good dispersion, high surface area and excellent catalytic properties. The catalytic efficiency of nZVC/EG was investigated alone and with peroxymonosulphate (PMS) in the absence of light. The degradation results demonstrated that the involvement of PMS synergistically boosted the catalytic efficiency of synthesized nZVC/EG material. Furthermore, the degradation products (DPs) of CBZ were determined by GC-MS and subsequently, the degradation pathways were proposed. The ecotoxicity analysis of the DPs was also explored. The proposed (nZVC/EG/PMS) system is economical and efficient and thus could be applied for the degradation of CBZ from an aquatic system after altering the degradation pathways in such a way that results in harmless products.

Preparation and copper ions adsorption properties of thiosemicarbazide chitosan from squid pens.

Chitosan was prepared by alkaline N-deacetylation of ß-chitin from squid pens. Thiosemicarbazide group was introduced to chitosan via formaldehyde-derived linkages, and thiosemicarbazide chitosan (TSFCS) with different degrees of substitution (DS) was synthesized. The DS values of TSFCS calculated by elemental analysis were 0.19, 0.36 and 0.63. The structure of the TSFCS was confirmed by elemental analysis, FTIR, XRD, TGA and SEM. The adsorption capacity of Cu(II) ions by TSFCS showed good correlation with the DS and pH (pH range 2.2-5.8). The maximum Cu(II) ions adsorption capacity of all three TSFCS samples reached 134.0mgg-1 at pH 3.6, but chitosan showed no adsorption at this pH. The adsorption equilibrium process of Cu(II) ions onto TSFCS was better described by the Langmuir model than the Freundlich isotherm model. Cu(II) ions adsorbed by TSFCS could be released using 0.01M Na2EDTA and the adsorption capacity could retain above 80% after five adsorption-desorption cycles. TSFCS exhibited good potential for heavy metal removal because of its high adsorption capacity at the low pH.