Non-thermal plasma treatment of flowing water: A solution to reduce water usage and soil treatment cost without compromising yield

Abstract

Water scarcity and drought have become increasingly larger problems because of the changing climate and exploding human population. According to the United Nations, by 2025, 2 million people will be affected by the lack of clean drinking water. Agriculture accounts for nearly 70% of the consumption of the Earth’s freshwater supply. Hence, there is an increased effort to improve plant irrigation without compromising plant yield. The goal of this research study is to determine the effects of using non-thermal plasma technology (NTPT) on Arabidopsis thaliana plants to tolerate drought and reduce water usage. Treatment of flowing water with non-thermal plasma (NTP) on A. thaliana plants showed that they could tolerate longer periods of dehydration and required less water. There was a significant decrease in the amount of NTP-treated water consumed, and the plants had more flowers and seeds compared to control plants. The study also monitored molecular changes in the NTP-treated plants that could have contributed to the increased tolerance to drought.