The use of some novel and efficient crop nutrient-based superabsorbent hydrogel nanocomposites (SHNCs), is currently becoming increasingly important to improve the crop yield and productivity, due to their water retention properties. In the present study a poly(Acrylamide-co-acrylic acid)/AlZnFe₂O₄ superabsorbent hydrogel nanocomposite was synthesized and its physical properties characterized using Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX), FE-SEM and FTIR spectroscopic techniques. The effects of different levels of SHNC were studied to evaluate the moisture retention properties of sandy loam soil (sand 59%, silt 21%, clay 19%, pH 7.4, EC 1.92 dS/m). The soil amendment with 0.1, 0.2, 0.3 and 0.4 w/w% of SHNC enhanced the moisture retention significantly at field capacity compared to the untreated soil. Besides, in a separate experiment, seed germination and seedling growth of wheat was found to be notably improved with the application of SHNC. A delay in wilting of seedlings by 5–8 days was observed for SHNC-amended soil, thereby improving wheat plant growth and establishment.

A novel poly(acrylic acid-co-acrylamide)AlZnFe₂O₄/potassium humate superabsorbent hydrogel nanocomposite (PHNC) was synthesized and its physical properties characterized using SEM, Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) and FTIR spectroscopic techniques. Air dried sandy loam soil was amended with 0.1 to 0.4 w/w% of PHNC to evaluate its soil moisture retention attributes. Effect of PHNC amendment on pH, electrical conductivity (EC), porosity, bulk density and hydraulic conductivity of sandy loam soil was also studied. The soil amendment with 0.1 to 0.4 w/w% of PHNC remarkably enhanced the moisture retention at field capacity as compared to the un-amended soils. Seed germination and seedling growth of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) was considerably increased and a delay by 6–9 days in wilting of seedlings was observed in the soil amended with PHNC, resulting in improved wheat plant establishment and growth.

High functional ZrFe₂O₅ nanoparticles were synthesized using coprecipitation technique. The chemical composition of nanomaterials was studied by energy‐dispersive X‐ray (EDX). To observe the morphology, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE‐SEM) was used. X‐ray diffraction (XRD) technique was utilized to appraise the structure of the synthesized material. The photocatalytic behavior of ZrFe₂O₅ nano‐particles was investigated by measuring the degradation rate of toluidine blue O (TBO) dye in aqueous solution in the presence of ZrFe₂O₅ nano‐particles under visible light irradiation. A steady decrease in absorption peak under visible light irradiation was observed by increasing exposure time. The degradation efficiency was observed as 92% after 140 min of exposure to visible light. Besides, ZrFe₂O₅ nanophotocatalyst could be recovered and recycled easily. The rate of TBO and total organic carbon (TOC) removal under visible light irradiation decreased by only 5% and 10%, respectively, after seven cycles of use, demonstrating the high photostability of the synthesized nano‐photocatalyst material.