Plant Productivity Research Articles

DEVELOPMENT OF BORON-MODIFIED AMINOPLAST RESIN COATINGS FOR ENHANCED UREASE INHIBITION IN SALINE-SODIC SOILS

The melamine-formaldehyde-boron (MFB) composite was synthesized with high efficiency, achieving a 95% yield. The incorporation of boric acid into the melamine-formaldehyde resin matrix resulted in a homogeneous, physically stable polymer composite. The synthesis was characterized by FT-IR spectroscopy, revealing key functional groups such as N-H stretching (~3350 cm⁻¹) for melamine residues, C=O stretching (~1650 cm⁻¹) for formaldehyde, B-O vibrations (~1350 cm⁻¹) for boric acid integration, and C-N bending (~1250 cm⁻¹) indicative of cross-linking between melamine, formaldehyde, and boric acid. Further investigations evaluated the impact of boric acid-coated urea granules on the productivity and physicochemical properties of saline-sodic soil. Boric acid incorporation (5% coating) significantly improved soil conditions by lowering pH, reducing electrical conductivity, and increasing organic matter content. Moreover, urease activity was reduced by 75%, leading to improved nitrogen retention. The effect of boric acid on plant productivity was most pronounced at a 5% coating, with radish plant productivity showing a 44% increase, along with improvements in shoot and root biomass. These findings highlight the potential of MFB-coated urea granules to enhance soil health and plant growth, demonstrating the effectiveness of boric acid in optimizing nitrogen release and mitigating soil salinity.

Description of the morphology, morphometric, and molecular of Aphelenchoides fragariae (Aphelenchida: Aphelenchoididae) causing crimp disease of strawberry in Indonesia

Aphelenchoides fragariae, commonly known as strawberry crimp nematodes, primarily target the aerial parts of plants, affecting both internal and external structures. In Indonesia, where strawberries are predominantly cultivated in highland regions, the presence of strawberry crimp disease has been confirmed. Infected plants exhibit symptoms such as stunted growth, reddened foliage, crimped or curled leaves, and malformed buds and blooms. Aboveground damage caused by the nematodes includes contorted shoots, undersized leaves, and reddish petioles, often accompanied by discolored patches on the foliage. These symptoms significantly impair the growth and productivity of strawberry plants, highlighting the nematode’s potential as a serious pest in these regions. The identification of A. fragariae was achieved through a combination of morphological and molecular characterization methods. Species confirmation relied on PCR amplification of the nematode’s cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) gene, using primers (COI F and COI R) designed in the laboratory. The amplification yielded a specific fragment of approximately 550 base pairs, which was sequenced for further analysis. Sequence alignment revealed identity levels ranging from 82.8% to 99.7%, confirming the presence of A. fragariae. The resulting sequences were deposited in GenBank under the accession numbers LC804455 (A. fragariae isolate RB) and LC804456 (A. fragariae isolate LB), providing a valuable resource for future studies on this nematode species.

Nitrogen enrichment and vascular plant richness loss reduce bryophyte richness

Grasslands’ high diversity is threatened by land-use changes, such as nitrogen fertilization, leading to productive but low-richness, fast-growing plant communities. Bryophytes are a key component of grassland diversity and react strongly to land use. However, it is unclear whether land-use effects are direct or mediated by changes in vascular plants. Increases in vascular plant cover are likely to decrease bryophyte abundance through light competition. Whether changes in vascular plant composition and richness also play a role remains unclear. We sampled bryophytes in a factorial grassland experiment manipulating nitrogen fertilization, fungicide, species richness, and functional composition of vascular plants crossed with moderate disturbances by weeding. Disturbance increased bryophyte richness and modulated treatment effects. In contrast to previous studies reporting indirect negative fertilization effects via increasing vascular plant productivity and reduced light levels, nitrogen fertilization directly reduced bryophyte cover and species richness, possibly because of toxic effects. Low vascular plant richness and dominance of fast-growing species reduced bryophyte richness. This might be because of decreased structural and resource niche heterogeneity in species-poor communities. Our results highlight novel mechanisms by which land-use intensification can affect bryophytes and suggest that a loss of vascular plant richness might have cascading effects on other taxonomic groups.

Design and Construction of an Aquaponics System: A Sustainable Approach to Enhancing Local Food Security in Offa, Nigeria

The design of an aquaponics system is a major drive in achieving a sustainable agricultural practice, tackling environmental problems, and food security. Aquaponics provides a conservative technique that integrates both hydroponics and aquaculture in regions with minimal arable land. This current study aims to design and build an aquaponics system that is suitable and beneficial to its environment. The objectives of building the aquaponics system are to cultivate fish and plants in a closed system that can reduce the requirement for chemical-based nutrients and increase water-use efficiency. Preliminary assessment, design, and preparations of drawings were applied to obtain a suitable plan for the aquaponics system. Civil, construction, plumbing, welding, and planting works were conducted to physically implement the aquaponics system. A farm base of 8 m X 4 m (hydroponics) was built alongside a concrete tank base of (3 m x 2 m x 0.6 m) to hold the fish tank of 2000 L (aquaculture). A canopy material was then laid to hold water in the hydroponics section. Twelve pieces of polystyrene (2.1 m X 1.2 m) were laid to float inside the hydroponics system with each one carrying 9 lightweight disposable cups to serve as planting mediums. Rice husk and palm kernel shells were filled into the cups to grow the plants (cucumber and pepper). Plant and growing medium weights were considered in determining the number of growing mediums(cups) in the hydroponics system. Other works done included plumbing for water, welding for the aquaponics structure, and installation of a cover. This current study incorporates organic waste materials as systematically grown mediums to create additional nutrients, increase grow mediums for optimized plant production, and reduce cost. The result of the study showed a shorter growth cycle for the plants (pepper and cucumber) between germination and flowering indicating a higher infusion of nutrients created by the hydroponics system. The result of the study can be applied as a guide to designing and building an effective aquaponics system and a tool for developing systems that can reduce food insecurity and farming techniques.

Plants breathing under pressure: mechanistic insights into soil compaction-induced physiological, molecular and biochemical responses in plants.

This review highlights the molecular, biochemical and physiological responses of plants under soil compaction and presents suitable strategies for optimizing soil compaction for sustainable and intelligent plant production. Soil compaction (SC) increases the mechanical impedance of agricultural crops, which restricts plant growth, root elongation, and productivity. Therefore, exploring the impacts of SC-induced alterations in plants and developing optimization strategies are crucial for sustainable agricultural production and ensuring global food security. However, the regulation of molecular, biochemical and physiological responses to SC in plants has not yet been well explored. Here, we conducted a thorough analysis of the relevant literature regarding the primary factors behind SC in agricultural soils, mechanistic insights into SC-mediated molecular and physiological alterations in plants, the impact of SC on plant productivity, and SC-minimization strategies for eco-friendly and intelligent agricultural production. The existing information suggests that plant roots sense SC-induced changes in soil properties, including decreased soil water content, hypoxia, nutrient deficiency and mechanical stimuli, through altering the expression of membrane-located ion channel- or stimulus receptor-related genes, such as MSLs, MCA1, and AHK. After signal transduction, the synthesis and transport of several plant hormones, mainly ABA, ethylene and auxin, change and restrict root deepening but promote root thickening. In addition, the changes in plant hormones in combination with decreased water availability and decreased root hydraulic conductance induced by SC affect aboveground physiological responses, such as decreasing leaf hydraulic conductance, promoting stomatal closure and inhibiting plant photosynthesis. Comprehensive physiological insights into SC in plants and SC optimization strategies could be useful to soil biologists and plant eco-physiologists seeking to improve soil management and sustainable agricultural plant production to promote global food security.

Biologically synthesized Tellurium/Zirconium bimetallic nanoparticles for antibacterial and electrochemical collagen detection

In the current exploration, photochemical stability and chemotherapeutic appraisal of Cinnamomum camphora (C.camphora) mediated bioactivity via Tellurium/Zirconium nanoparticles (TeZr BNPs) were conducted. The bioactive bimetallic nanoparticles (BNPs) exists a characterization by employing various studies such as UV, XRD, SEM-EDX, DLS, FTIR, HR-TEM, AFM, BET, and XPS analysis. Screening analysis of methanol soluble components in C. camphoraextract identified the components in the plant product by HPLC mass spectroscopy. Furthermore, inhibition activities of TeZr BNPs against monoderm (+) and diderm (−) pathogens were tested by the agar contact method. The results of these studies showed the maximum hindrance zone with TeZr BNPs against three different microorganisms:Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC6538), Escherichia coli (ATCC 8739), and Vibrio cholera(ATCC 14033) showing 28 %, 26 %, and 27 % inhibition, respectively, confirming the inhibitory potential of TeZr BNPs. The sequences of the inhibition zones were as follows: Staphylococcus aureus > Escherichia coli > Vibrio cholera. Further, the cytotoxic potential of C. camphora mediated TeZr BNPs was evaluated by anticancer, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory activities. The photolysis steadiness of bioactive TeZr BNPs towards photodynamic therapy was confirmed by collagen degradation. This is the first description of bimetallic nanoparticles for degrading collagen. Hence, TeZr BNPs can be effectively applied in photodynamic therapy.

Effects of plant functional group removal on caterpillars (Gynaephora alpherakii) performance and plant production in an alpine meadow

Effects of plant functional group removal on caterpillars (Gynaephora alpherakii) performance and plant production in an alpine meadow

Therapeutic Significance of Cornin in Medicine for Their Biological Importance and Pharmacological Activity: An Overview of Iridoid Glycosides of Verbena Officinalis L.

Background: Plant products have been used for the treatment of numerous kinds of human disorders since the very ancient age. Iridoid glycosides are secondary plant metabolites of medicinal importance that have been well investigated in the scientific field for their role in plants. Numerous iridoid class phytochemicals have cardiovascular, anti-viral, anti-hepatotoxic, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, immunomodulatory, anti-spasmodic, hypolipidemic, choleretic, purgative, and hypoglycaemic activity. Methods: Here in the present work, we have collected scientific information on cornin and presented it with respect to its medicinal importance and pharmacological activities with their analytical aspects. Scientific information on cornin has been collected from numerous scientific databases such as PubMed, Science Direct, Google, and Scopus to know the biological potential of cornin in medicine. Further, pharmacological activity scientific data of cornin has been presented in this work with proper citations. Results: The scientific data of the present paper described the biological significance of cornin in medicine. The further detailed pharmacological activity of cornin signified its therapeutic effectiveness on cerebral ischemia, angiogenesis, autophagy, myocardial injury, cerebral injury, oxidative injury, lipid peroxidation, proliferation, and cytochrome p450. Analytical data signified the separation, isolation, and identification techniques of cornin in medicine. Conclusion: The scientific information of the present work will be beneficial for all scientific people to explore the therapeutic effectiveness of cornin in medicine.

Changes in bacterial diversity of full-scale anaerobic digesters treating secondary sludge

Anaerobic digestion (AD) of secondary sludge (2S) presents challenges because of its high microbial content and complex cell wall structures. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of spatiotemporally-variable factors such as water temperature and dietary habits on the 2S bacterial community and its migration into digesters. Bacterial communities and functions were analyzed using high-throughput pyrosequencing. Spatiotemporal variations in bacterial populations were identified, with genera such as Zoogloea and Dechloromonas migrating into digesters and influencing organic degradation. Notably, Zoogloea was negatively correlated with VS removal, potentially due to cell floc formation, whereas Dechloromonas was positively correlated, suggesting its role in acetate metabolism anaerobically. This study emphasizes the importance of microbial migration from 2S to digesters, highlighting the need to monitor microbial communities along with conventional parameters to increase AD performance. These findings provide practical insights into optimizing sludge management and improving biogas production in AD plants.

Effects of dark septate endophyte on root growth, physiology and transcriptome of Ammopiptanthus mongolicus seedlings under drought stress

As the only evergreen relict species in the desert environment of western China, Ammopiptanthus mongolicus (Leguminosae) roots is colonized with dark septate endophytes (DSE), but the potential of DSE to alleviate the adverse effects of drought on seedling roots remains uncertain. This study examined the effects of DSE on root growth, physiology and transcriptome of A. mongolicus under drought stress. Drought drastically reduced root biomass by 47.7%, while all DSE strains established positive symbiosis with A.mongolicus, with G.hyphopodioides having the most pronounced promoting effect. Inoculation with G. hyphopodioides alleviated drought stress injury by increasing CAT activity, AsA content and soluble sugar content in the roots, with a significant reduction in MDA accumulation by 97.7%. G. hyphopodioides also significantly increased zeatin and brassinosteroid contents, which in turn regulated the root structure and increased root activity, resulting in a 208.6% increase in root biomass. Transcriptome analysis screened 1246 differentially expressed genes (542 up-regulated and 704 down-regulated) between G. hyphopodioides inoculation under drought treatment, mainly associated with phenylpropanoid biosynthesis, ascorbic acid and aldehyde metabolism, hormone synthesis and signalling, sucrose and starch metabolism, and vitamin B6 metabolism, and further investigated and identified key potential genes and transcription factors (DREB, ERF, NAC, MYB, C2H2). These findings reveal the physiological and molecular mechanisms by which DSE symbiosis improves the drought resistance of A. mongolicus seedlings, providing valuable guidance on the use of DSE resources to promote ecological construction and production of desert plants.

Optimization and techno-economic-environmental assessments of a biomass-powered multi-generation plant for hydrogen and freshwater production

Optimization and techno-economic-environmental assessments of a biomass-powered multi-generation plant for hydrogen and freshwater production

Moderate grazing reduces while mowing increases greenhouse gas emissions from a steppe grassland: Key modulating function played by plant standing biomass.

Grassland represents one of the most expansive terrestrial ecosystems, exerting a profound influence on atmospheric greenhouse gas (GHG) levels within the broader context of global change. Both climate and land use changes play important roles in modulating grassland GHG emissions by directly or indirectly altering soil physical and chemical properties, especially soil temperature and inorganic nitrogen content. The optimal grassland management practices need to simultaneously meet the requirements of reducing GHG emissions, maintaining biological biodiversity, and ensuring productivity. However, the information on the management effects on GHG emissions from natural grasslands is still insufficient. Here we conducted a six-year grazing and mowing experiment in a semi-arid steppe grassland in central Inner Mongolia, and employed the static chamber method to investigate the effects of three major management measures, fencing, grazing and mowing, on ecosystem respiration (CO2 emission), methane uptake (CH4), and nitrous oxide emission (N2O) patterns in the experimental grassland. The results demonstrated that: (i) moderate grazing reduced plant aboveground standing biomass and CO2 emissions, but promoted belowground nutrient cycling and CH4 uptake; (ii) mowing enhanced plant biomass production, increased soil carbon and nitrogen content, and also increased CO2 emission; (iii) reducing grazing frequency reduced plant biomass loss and N2O emissions. We conclude that grazing at a moderate intensity and frequency is the best for mitigating GHG emissions while maintaining grassland production, and that mowing enhancement of plant production and GHG emissions should be considered in optimizing grassland management.

Microbial recruitment and microbial ecological roles in soil nutrient cycling of Populus cathayana males and females

Soil nitrogen (N) availability influences plant production and soil nutrient cycling. However, how it influences sex-specific microbial community composition and rhizosphere nutrient cycling in dioecious plant species is poorly understood. We examined the rhizospheric bacterial and fungal community assemble and their influences on soil nutrient cycling under different N backgrounds in 30-year-old experimental stands and a soil microbial reshaping-controlled experiment. In comparison to male trees, female trees increased fungal community diversity, and the relative abundance of taxa related to nutrient availability; elevated phosphorus (P) mobilization by increasing acidic phosphatase activity and carboxylic acid release; and decreased the counts of denitrification nirS, nirK, and nosZ genes at high N supply. Males increased the nifH gene counts related to microbial N fixation at high N supply. Low N supply increased N fixation nifH gene counts in the rhizosphere of females. Males decreased bacterial and fungal diversity, increased enzymatic activities related to organic N and P mineralization, and elevated soil nitrate-nitrogen levels at low N supply. Our results indicate that sex-specific responses to N availability are associated with rhizospheric bacterial and fungal community composition and diversity and their effects on rhizospheric nutrient cycling, which may explain sex-specific resource utilization and niche differentiation.

Complementary nitrogen use by legume and grass enhances plant productivity irrespective of earthworm species

Complementary nitrogen use by legume and grass enhances plant productivity irrespective of earthworm species

Energy-efficient process design and optimization of the absorption-based CO2 capture process with a low-pressure flash column for the SMR-based hydrogen production plant

Energy-efficient process design and optimization of the absorption-based CO2 capture process with a low-pressure flash column for the SMR-based hydrogen production plant

Assessment of the Applicability of Waste Concrete Fine Powder as a Raw Material for Cement Clinker

The cement industry is responsible for a significant portion of global CO2 emissions, primarily due to the decarbonatization of limestone during clinker production. To mitigate this environmental impact, this study investigated the feasibility of using waste concrete fine powder, produced during the recycling of waste concrete, as a decarbonized raw material in cement clinker production. As a decarbonized material, waste concrete fine powder presents a valuable opportunity to reduce CO2 emissions typically produced during the decarbonatization of limestone in clinker production. In addition, its use supports the recycling of construction waste, contributing to both emissions reduction and resource sustainability. In this study, samples were collected from 20 intermediate treatment plants in South Korea, where the chemical composition, particle size distribution, and carbonation rate of the fine powders were analyzed. The experimental results show that the properties of waste concrete fine powder vary significantly depending on the recycling process. Road construction aggregate production plants, which typically involve two to three crushing stages, produce fine powders with higher CaO content (28–31%) and consistent particle size distributions. In contrast, plants producing aggregates for concrete, which involve four to six crushing stages, produce powders with lower CaO content (around 20%) and greater variability in particle size. The average carbonation rate of 7.44% suggests that these fine powders can replace limestone in clinker production. It is estimated that substituting 5% of limestone with waste concrete fine powder could reduce CO2 emissions from limestone decarbonatization by approximately 952,560 tons in 2023, representing a 3.34% decrease in total emissions from clinker production. However, it is important to note that the CO2 emissions reduction calculation is not from a lifecycle perspective, without considering the energy-related emissions from recycling waste concrete fine powder. Nevertheless, this study highlights the potential for waste concrete fine powder to serve as a sustainable raw material for the cement industry, contributing to both CO2 reduction and efficient recycling of construction waste.

Methodology for quality risk prediction for milk powder production plants with domain-knowledge-involved serial neural networks.

In dairy enterprises, predicting product quality attributes that are influenced by operating parameters is a major task. To reduce quality loss in production, a prediction-based quality control method is proposed in this study. In particular, a serial neural network was designed, and an innovative quality risk prediction methodology based on the integration of SNN and domain knowledge was created. The methodology involves three steps: (1) the processing steps at each unit operation are mapped to a layer of a back propagation network, (2) the branch networks are connected by key quality attributes, and (3) the model is trained with preprocessed data. The experiment was conducted based on milk powder production, demonstrating that the proposed methodology has a higher accuracy and shorter response time compared with those of existing methods. In addition, the practical value of the prediction methodology in actual dairy companies was discussed.

A Production-Logistics prediction method integrating Spatial-Temporal features in flexible production workshop for buffer allocation problem

To meet the demands of personalized manufacturing, characterized by customized production with varying batch sizes, logistics equipment such as Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) play a critical role in the manufacturing process. However, the distribution of multiple batches is influenced by various factors, with buffer zone capacity allocation emerging as a key challenge. Optimizing buffer zone allocation necessitates a thorough consideration of both spatial characteristics (e.g., shop floor layout and workpiece pathways) and temporal characteristics (e.g., the sequence of material distribution) to enhance resource allocation, reduce bottlenecks, and improve efficiency. This research proposes a novel logistics prediction method for flexible production plants, utilizing a graph attention network that integrates spatial–temporal features. The method first applies a multi-head attention mechanism to capture significant temporal information. Then, a graph convolutional network is employed to model the workshop layout topology and workpiece processing paths, thereby extracting the spatial features of logistics. This spatial information is sequentially processed through a gated recurrent unit and the multi-head attention mechanism to capture the dynamic temporal features of logistics. The proposed model is ultimately employed to predict production logistics in a flexible manufacturing workshop. The experimental results of the MA-T-GCN (Multi-head Attention Temporal Graph Convolution Network) model on production logistics prediction demonstrate an improvement over the best-performing baseline methods on standard benchmark metrics under varying experimental conditions.

Crop-livestock integrated system and grass-legume intercropping on soil chemical composition and plant production in Brazilian savannah

ABSTRACT The study aimed to assess the impact of different investment strategies on agronomic parameters, specifically soil chemical composition and forage mass (FM), in a loamy-sandy Cambisol within the Brazilian Cerrado, following three cultivation cycles. High-investment (HI) included various crop-livestock integration strategies with soil management (harrowing/fertilisation) for intercrops: CG (corn with Paiaguas grass); GPP (Paiaguas grass with pigeon pea); CGPP (corn, Paiaguas grass, pigeon pea). After livestock farming, HI transitioned to soybean cultivation. Low-investment (LI) included other systems: CF (Decumbens grass monoculture with P2O5 fertilisation); PPCF (Decumbens grass with pigeon pea and P2O5); MC (Decumbens monoculture without fertilisation). In the third year (2016/2017), triple intercropping with Xaraes grass, corn, and pigeon pea was sown. In the HI, the highest base saturation (55.90%) values were obtained, which favoured increases in corn FM (2016/2017: 5181 kg/ha). In this investment model, high values of cation exchange capacity, calcium, and magnesium were observed. In the LI condition, the absence of mechanical soil management and the combination of legume and fertilisation promoted higher soil phosphorus (PPCF: 14.20 mg/dm3). When analysing corn FM and soil parameters, HI is the best option for sustainable production in agricultural areas (loamy-sandy) of the Brazilian Cerrado.

Energy and Economical Analysis of Drying Process of Domestic Wastewater Treatment Sludge with Heat Pump

In this study, a heat pump was designed to dry the sludge produced by a wastewater treatment plant. The purpose of drying the sludge is to convert it into raw material as fuel pellets, which can provide some or all of the energy needed by the treatment plant. The design of the heat pump considered the plant's production capacity and sludge generation rate. All thermal analyses were carried out according to the First Law of Thermodynamics. The heat pump system performances are investigated by using Danfoss Coolselector 2.0 program. The capacities of the heat pump components were calculated for different refrigerants and performance coefficients. The highest coefficient of performance (CoP) was found to be 5.99 for R1234zeE in summer, while the lowest was 2.33 for R134a. If the sludge is burned as biofuel, theoretically it was estimated that the energy production could range from 723,000 kWh/month to 744,000 kWh/month for the R407c and R1234zeE refrigerants respectively. The economic analysis showed that the system's payback period could range from 1.9 to 6.5 years.