Environmental pollution affects the quality of pedosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, lithosphere and biosphere. Great efforts have been made in the last two decades to reduce pollution sources and remedy the polluted soil and water resources. Phytoremediation, being more cost-effective and fewer side effects than physical and chemical approaches, has gained increasing popularity in both academic and practical circles. More than 400 plant species have been identified to have potential for soil and water remediation. Among them, Thlaspi, Brassica, Sedum alfredii H., and Arabidopsis species have been mostly studied. It is also expected that recent advances in biotechnology will play a promising role in the development of new hyperaccumulators by transferring metal hyperaccumulating genes from low biomass wild species to the higher biomass producing cultivated species in the times to come. This paper attempted to provide a brief review on recent progresses in research and practical applications of phytoremediation for soil and water resources.

The use of carbon nanoparticles (CNPs) as a fertilizer synergist to enhance crop growth has attracted increasing interest. However, current understanding about plant growth and soil response to CNPs is limited. In the present study, we investigated the effects of CNPs at different application rates on soil properties, the plant growth and nutrient use efficiency (NUE) of corn (Zea mays L.) in two agricultural soils (Spodosol and Alfisol). The results showed that CNPs affected corn growth in a dose-dependent manner, augmenting and retarding growth at low and at high concentrations, respectively. The amendment at the optimal rate of 200 mg CNPs kg⁻¹ significantly enhanced corn growth as indicated by improved plant height, biomass yield, nutrient uptake and nutrient use efficiency, which could be explained by the higher availability of phosphorus and nitrogen in the amended soils. The application of CNPs largely stimulated soil urease activity irrespectively of soil types. However, the responses of dehydrogenase and phosphatase to CNPs were dose dependent; their activity significantly increased with the increasing application rates of CNPs up to 200 mg kg⁻¹ but declined at higher rates (>400 mg kg⁻¹). These findings have important implications in the field application of CNPs for enhancing nutrient use efficiency and crop production in tropical/subtropical regions.

Environmental contextNano-enabled agriculture holds the promise of enhancing crop production while reducing the environmental impacts of agrochemicals. We review recent developments in the use of nano-fertilisers, nano-additives, nano-pesticides, nano-sensors, nano-cleansers and nano-delivery systems in agriculture. The review highlights the need for systematic studies on nanotoxicity and the development of cost-effective and eco-friendly nanomaterials for future applications. AbstractTo keep pace with the ever-increasing demand of world population (nearly 9.8 billion), worldwide food production will need to increase by 50% by 2050. Nanotechnology innovations show great promise for combating this challenge by delivering a more sustainable, efficient and resilient agricultural system, while promoting food security. Further exploration of nanotechnology applications in agriculture is necessary to realise its potential in manufacturing innovative agrochemicals and novel delivery platforms to enhance crop production and quality. Here, we review the fundamentals of nanotechnology and focus on its potential in agricultural applications. Progress has been made in the development of nano-fertilisers, nano-additives, nano-pesticides, nano-herbicides, nano-bactericides, nano-cleansers and nano-sensors to improve agrochemical efficiency, reduce runoff, enhance plant growth, and diagnose plant nutrition deficiencies and diseases. In addition, nano-delivery systems have been designed to deliver effective components to targeted sites within a plant to provide potential solutions to some devastating crop diseases which cannot be effectively managed with conventional methods. However, nano-enabled agriculture is still in its infancy and its applications are mostly theoretical. Therefore, more research is needed to develop biodegradable, cost-effective and safe nanomaterials for future application. Moreover, systematic studies are crucial to safeguard our food production system, while making efforts to raise public awareness of nanotechnology.