Modern Agriculture and Nanosensors

Scientists and engineers have been inspired to develop innovative strategies to increase agricultural production due to the growing need for food due to the expansion in the world’s population. Growth in agriculture can only be achieved by improving productivity through strong agronomy and complementing it with the effective use of advanced technologies due to the limited supply of land and water resources. For example, more effective methods and sensors being found for precision agriculture, resource management, early pathogen and contaminant detection in food products, effective agrochemical delivery systems like fertilizers and pesticides, improved systems integration for food processing and packaging, and other areas like monitoring agricultural and food system security are growing exponentially. These sensors are precise, effective, and economical concerning a range of food, agricultural, and environmental challenges. For instance, atrazine, acetamiprid, and different types of organophosphorus pesticides; Fe3+, urea, and its available forms of nutrients; pH of the soil and different plant parts; humidity and various gas levels of plant’s atmosphere; various types of plant diseases and their severity; and Cd2+ and Pb2+ like numerous heavy metals in the environment can easily be identified and quantified using these. The advantages of those nanosensors over conventional sensors have been demonstrated by their smaller detection limits, rapid response times, high surface-to-volume ratios, and more reliable results. This review examines the role of nanosensors, their various forms, their use in agriculture, and future directions for developing intelligent agricultural systems under each of the abovementioned sections.