Smart Fertilizers: The Prospect of Slow Release Nanofertilizers in Modern Agricultural Practices

Currently, the nutritional demands of this rapidly expanding population are approaching their peak, and all the available conventional farming approaches have failed to tackle such concerns in an efficient way. The application of traditional fertilizers not only interferes with soil fertility by hampering important soil properties and crop yield but is also responsible for the hazards caused to humans and the environment. In this connection, nanotechnology has appeared as an emerging field that has shown promising results. The introduction of nanomaterials as nano-based fertilizers in agricultural practices has been revolutionary in resolving plant productivity and nutrient loss issues. Though nano-based fertilizers have been more effective than conventional fertilizers in resolving plant productivity and developmental issues, their mass application in agricultural fields may result in the loss of nutrients due to failure in reaching the targeted sites and therefore get fixed into the soil or contribute to water pollution through leaching. Moreover, this leads to a significant decline in soil fertility and thereby hampering crucial soil parameters and crop productivity. A novel edition to these nanofertilizers, namely slow-release fertilizers, is currently evolving as an efficient solution. Here, nanocarriers are being utilized to accomplish targeted delivery of active nutrient molecules, that too in a controlled manner. The highly resilient and diffusion-based controlled release properties allow them to deliver agrochemicals to plants in field conditions. Different nano-based carriers like mesoporous silica, carbon-based nanomaterials, nanoclays, nanohydroxyapatite, and polymer-based nanomaterials can be used as the delivery systems of various agrochemicals like micronutrients, macronutrients, or even biofertilizers. Hence, the manufacture of slow-release nanofertilizers can be looked up as an important development from the perspective of sustainable agriculture.