Green chemistry routed sugar press mud for (2D) ZnO nanostructure fabrication, mineral fortification, and climate-resilient wheat crop productivity

Abstract

Nanotechnology appears to be a promising tool to redefine crop nutrition in the coming decades. However, the crucial interactions of nanomaterials with abiotic components of the environment like soil organic matter (SOM) and carbon‒sequestration may hold the key to sustainable crop nutrition, fortification, and climate change. Here, we investigated the use of sugar press mud (PM) mediated ZnO nanosynthesis for soil amendment and nutrient mobilisation under moderately alkaline conditions. The positively charged (+ 7.61 mv) ZnO sheet-like nanoparticles (~ 17 nm) from zinc sulphate at the optimum dose of (75 mg/kg blended with PM (1.4% w/w) were used in reinforcing the soil matrix for wheat growth. The results demonstrated improved agronomic parameters with (~ 24%) and (~ 19%) relative increases in yield and plant Zn content. Also, the soil solution phase interactions of the ZnO nanoparticles with the PM-induced soil colloidal carbon (− 27.9 mv and diameter 0.4864 μm) along with its other components have influenced the soil nutrient dynamics and mineral ecology at large. Interestingly, one such interaction seems to have reversed the known Zn-P interaction from negative to positive. Thus, the study offers a fresh insight into the possible correlations between nutrient interactions and soil carbon sequestration for climate-resilient crop productivity.