Influence of ozone treatment on wheat (Triticumaestivum) germination during bulk storage

Abstract

The currentexperiment was conductedto understandgaseous ozone exposure time and cycle effect on wheat seed germination during storage. The bulk storage of wheat grain hasa major issue of insects and pests which is controlled by gaseous ozone treatment in closed storage system. Ozone is the acceptable and economically viable technique for treating grains during storage for its residue-free and environment-friendly nature. In this research article, the ozone gas treatment givento the wheat grain during bulk storage and evaluated its influence on seed germination.A pilot-scale ozone disinfestation system for wheat grains was developed. The two-factorial experimental design on the influence of the parameters of the technological process of ozone treatment on the germination qualities of wheat seeds was carried out. Wheat grains were treated by gaseous ozone with various time durations (0 min, 30 min, 60 min, 90 min and 120 min) and at various frequency cycles (7 days, 14 days, 21 days). The experiment has recorded observation on the effect of ozone treatment time and the ozone frequency cycle on the germination percentage of wheat grain.The data demonstrated that ozone used in bulk storage enhances seed germination percentage. On the other hand, excess ozone can also cause some negative effects on germination. This study provided new insights into how stored wheat grain responds to ozone treatment and highlighted the impact of treatment time durations and frequency cycle for seed germination.