1. Nanotechnology in Agriculture
Group 1:
Amy Cornforth
Tony Grupp
Ana D’Almeida
March 26, 2010

2. Food and Agriculture Issues
Ability to track products, nutrient levels, and other information necessary to increase productivity
Decontamination of soils and water
Protection against pests and diseases

3. 3 Areas of Nanotechnology Development in Agriculture:
Topic Overview
3 Areas of Nanotechnology Development in Agriculture:
Nanobarcodes
Applications and Pesticide Remediation
Pesticide Delivery

4. Nanobarcodes – What are they?
Offers a way to “tag” any type of organic or non-organic like a UPC code
Typically uses gold and silver as the detecting strips, but platinum, palladium nickel, and cobalt have been used
Can easily be read with an electronic scanning device or microscope
Made through nanoscale electroplating of the metals into desired patterns
Image at PennSt. University website:

5. How are Nanobarcodes made?
Current technology uses metallized templates which can be dissolved away
Depending on the order of electroplating a very wide variety of combinations can be made. Some examples are shown here
Images from:

6. Slide taken from Oxonica presentation found at: http://www. oxonica

7. Two Types of Nanobarcodes
Metallic Stripes or Discs?
Sizes range from nm in length, nm in diameter
Uses electroplated bars
Viewed using a scanner producing blue light
Proven to be highly accurate
Can be grown to 12 μm in length
Uses up to 10 disc pairs of metals, resulting in up to 287 different nanodisc codes
Viewed using a special laser beam
No current data on accuracy
Image on left:
Image on right:

8. Applications of Nanobarcodes
DNA nanobarcoding for pathogen detection (such as Ebola and SARS)
Monitoring of bacterial systems
Can be used as a “nano-sensor” to detect water levels, soil nutrient information, and chemical levels
Tagging food packages
Temperature changes
Pathogens
Leaks
Biomolecular tracing
Maximizes productivity
Image at:

9. Dr. Dan Luo – Cornell University
One of the earliest researchers of nanobarcodes
First paper describing the use of nanobarcoding produced in early 2005
Runs LuoLabs, which works with various nanotechnologies geared towards DNA research
Works with 2 other professors, 6 post-docs, and nearly a dozen other PhD and Masters students
Has won numerous awards and research grants

10. Further Research
Currently no information about pricing or risk analysis
Most research is gearing towards the medical community, with applications that can be used in agriculture, especially packaging and husbandry
Current pathology detection systems can only detect up to 8 pathogens simultaneously. That range is attempting to be increased to over 20

11. Nanotechnology Applications Crop improvement
Image at:

12. Atomically modified seeds
Nanotechnology Applications
Atomically modified seeds
Experiment by ETC group that aimed to the characteristics of local rice varieties. Hole was drilled on the membrane of a rice cell and a N2 atom was introduced to stimulate rearrangement of rice’s DNA.

13. Atomically modified seeds
Nanotechnology Applications
Atomically modified seeds
Researchers have been able to alter the color of the rice from purple to green
Goal of the research is to develop a variety of rice that can be grown all year long
Rice variety with shorter stems and improved grain color

14. Nanotechnology Advantages
Possibility to fabricate sensors to monitor pathogens on crops and measure their productivity.
Disadvantages
Increase the ability of potentially toxic substances to penetrate deep layers of the soil and travel large distances.

15. Nanotechnology Current status Future Trends
Still in early stages of development
Some of the new developed tools may not be viable
Interdisciplinary study
Future Trends
Develop to produce validated technologies
Chances for job creation
Chances to become the next technological revolution

16. Image at:http://www.nanowerk.com/news/newsid=1806.php
Experiment
Domestic water filter that uses metal nanoparticles to remove dissolved pesticide residues is about to enter the Indian market.
Developed at at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Chennai
Tested for over six months
Resulted from research on chemistry of nanopartiles
Image at:

17. Stable pesticide and its frequently found on soils
Endosulfan
Stable pesticide and its frequently found on soils
Has the potential to cause health problems including, genetic disorders
Can be detected in ppm levels using gold nanoparticles
Is adsorbed on to the nanoparticles surface
After long interaction, nanoparticles precipitate from the solution.
can be detected and selectively extracted by nobel metal nanoparticles
Process can be used for field detection
Scaled up for environmental decontamination
Drinking water purification

18. Experiment Gold(silver) nanoparticles were prepared
Gold solution –wine red
Yellow solution-silver
Endolsulfan solution was prepared
Solution were mixed and stablized with citrate
Set of solution with different concentrations of endosulfan were prepared
UV spectra was taken
Nanoparticles did not participate after the reaction for a period of nine hours
A- pure citrate
B,C, D 2, 10 , 100 ppm
Image at:
Published in: J. Environ. Monit., 2003, 5, , DOI: /b300107e

19. Absorbances recorded after 9 h of addition of endosulfan
2,10,150, 200 ppm endosulfan
Absorbances recorded after 9 h of addition of endosulfan
Plasmon at 524 nm decreases in intensity after 3h addition,
Additional peaks occur at longer wave lengths
Dampening and shifting of the plasmon indicates binding on the nanoparticle surface.
Published in: J. Environ. Monit., 2003, 5, , DOI: /b300107e

20. a) original naparticle solution b) 3h after addition of endosulfan
c to t) 20 min intervals after addition
As the concentration increases :
red shift becomes more pronounce
Intensity of color change is quantitave, can be detected by colorimetric methods
Peak at 524 nm decrease intensity and a new peak emerges at 624 nm
new peak intensity increases accompanied by further shift. The shift can be attributed to adsorption of on the surface of gold nanoparticles.
After 9 h, the solution becomes bluish and the material begins to settle down.
The residue is removed by centrifugation.
Image at:
Published in: J. Environ. Monit., 2003, 5, , DOI: /b300107e

21. Bluish material was analyzed by FT- IR
Silver nanoparticles
a) pure cluster
b) 2 ppm
c) 10 ppm
d) 100 ppm
e) 250 ppm
Bluish material was analyzed by FT- IR
a) Pure endosulfan
b)Endolsulfan after adsorption to gold particles (broad dands)
c) Endolsulfanafter reaction with silver( similar to A)
Image at:
Published in: J. Environ. Monit., 2003, 5, , DOI: /b300107e

22. Better approach to apply technology to the field is to use nanoparticle films.
Gold nanoparticle film by layer-layer assembly on SnO2 coated conducting glass plates.
Image at:
Published in: J. Environ. Monit., 2003, 5, , DOI: /b300107e

23. Adsorption occurs at 525nm.
Band at 609 nm due to electronic interaction of particles.(Occurs after formation of second layer)
Layer exposed to endosulfan for 10 h
Red shift observed ( 14 nm difference)
Film changes color. Intensity increases because due to intercalation of endosulfan into the bulk of the film leading to substituition of some of the components.
Image at:
Published in: J. Environ. Monit., 2003, 5, , DOI: /b300107e

24. Introduction to Pesticide Delivery
Found at:

25. Design of Pheromone Releasing Fibers for Plant Protection
Pests negatively affect harvests
Amount
Quality
Pesticides, insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides are traditionally used to aid in plant growth
Use is restricted due to possible environmental damages
Photo:
Published in: Christoph Hellmann, Andreas Greiner and Joachim H. Wendorff; Polym. Adv. Technol. 2009,
DOI: /pat.1532 Copyright John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.

26. Design of Pheromone Releasing Fibers for Plant Protection
Alternative: Use pheromones to counteract insect damage
Pheromones are used by insects to transmit messages
Mating pheromones are the most related to plant protection
Can use mating pheromones to trap insects or disrupt mating patterns
Advantages:
Can use pheromones selectively
Published in: Christoph Hellmann, Andreas Greiner and Joachim H. Wendorff; Polym. Adv. Technol. 2009,
DOI: /pat.1532 Copyright John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.

27. Design of Pheromone Releasing Fibers for Plant Protection
Current spread of pheromones is done by mechanical means
Spraying
Dispensers
Dispensers are used in vineyards
European grape berry moth
Photo:
Published in: Christoph Hellmann, Andreas Greiner and Joachim H. Wendorff; Polym. Adv. Technol. 2009,
DOI: /pat.1532 Copyright John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.

28. Design of Pheromone Releasing Fibers for Plant Protection
Problems with mechanical means of distribution
Strong concentration required
Sensitive to wind and rain
Uneven distribution (Dispensers)‏
Published in: Christoph Hellmann, Andreas Greiner and Joachim H. Wendorff; Polym. Adv. Technol. 2009,
DOI: /pat.1532 Copyright John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.

29. Design of Pheromone Releasing Fibers for Plant Protection
Use nanofiber webs to hold pheromones
Protection from wind and rain
Continued, controlled release
Very even distribution
Webs are produced by electrospinning
Photo:
Published in: Christoph Hellmann, Andreas Greiner and Joachim H. Wendorff; Polym. Adv. Technol. 2009,
DOI: /pat.1532 Copyright John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.

30. Electrospinning Related to electrostatic spraying
Use a charged liquid and electrode to make an electric field
Liquid surface tension competes with electric field
Taylor cone describes the behavior of liquid with different voltages
Polymers produce fibers rather than droplets due to chain entanglements
Photo:
Via:

31. Electrospinning device Typical electrospun fibers
Via:

32. Pheromone (Z)-9-dodecenyl acetate
Experiment
Pheromone (Z)-9-dodecenyl acetate
Disrupts the European grape berry moth
Added pheromone to spinning solution in varying concentrations
Polyamide 6 and Formic acid
Cellulose acetate
Published in: Christoph Hellmann, Andreas Greiner and Joachim H. Wendorff; Polym. Adv. Technol. 2009,
DOI: /pat.1532 Copyright John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.

33. Polyamide 6 fiber without pheromone Polyamide 6 fiber with pheromone
Experiment
Polyamide 6 fiber without pheromone
Polyamide 6 fiber with pheromone
Published in: Christoph Hellmann, Andreas Greiner and Joachim H. Wendorff; Polym. Adv. Technol. 2009,
DOI: /pat.1532 Copyright John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.

34. Cellulose acetate fibers of varying pheromone concentrations
Experiment
Cellulose acetate fibers of varying pheromone concentrations
Published in: Christoph Hellmann, Andreas Greiner and Joachim H. Wendorff; Polym. Adv. Technol. 2009,
DOI: /pat.1532 Copyright John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.

35. PA fiber release faster than CA release
Pheromone release
Approximately linear
PA fiber release faster than CA release
CA release possibly as long as 100 days
Published in: Christoph Hellmann, Andreas Greiner and Joachim H. Wendorff; Polym. Adv. Technol. 2009,
DOI: /pat.1532 Copyright John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.

36. Published in: DOI: 10. 1002/pat
Published in: DOI: /pat.1532 Copyright John Wiley and Sons, Ltd. See previous slide for addt'l information.

37. Summary of Experiment Promising work
Needs careful consideration of carrier web material
Use fibers with long decomposition time
Use biodegradable fibers
Multiple developments to reduce cost of electrospinning

38. Group S1 Rebuttal Comments varied between positive and negative
Group 1 agrees that a more normalized slide formatting would have helped, although the use of technical terms for experimental analysis was necessary.
Due to a lack of data given by researching companies, and the present relevance of the information, it was logical to present the overall topic as three separate topics, and thus it was not required for one to be connected to the next.

39. Group S2’s Evaluation of S1 Second Presentation
Micheal Jones
Rachel Houk
Chris Heflin

40. Positive Aspects Oral presentation was up to par
Presenters were dressed professional
Most presenters were confident and concise
Slide quality well formatted
Animation was helpful in understanding
Introduction was informative
Set up the rest of the presentation nicely
Question and answer session solidified presentation

41. Room for Improvement
Use of filler words needs to be minimized. One of the presenters needed more preparation.
The presentation was shorter than it initially was planned to be.
A few slides contained too much information but overall the group performed well

42. Review of S1—Nanotechnology in Agriculture
By S3:
James Kancewick
Michael Koetting
Bradford Lamb

43. Review
The first and third sections of the presentation were easy to understand and the speakers did a good job of explaining the material.
The second section of the presentation (endosulfan experiment) was difficult to follow; the slides also contained numerous spelling and formatting errors, and the graphs were not labeled well.
Endosulfan experiment should have been explained in layman’s terms instead of with purely scientific numbers and no explanation of the implications of the findings.

44. Review Text and graphics were occasionally too small.
Applications of nanobarcodes in agriculture were not sufficiently detailed for this presentation’s topic.
Slide formatting was sometimes haphazard; more parallel slide design would have made the presentation much more professional.

45. S4 Review of S1(2nd presentation)
Joshua Moreno
Danielle Miller
Scott Marwil

46. Things Done Well Topic was very interesting
The video in the slides was entertaining
Everyone looked nice and professional
Ana did especially well presenting
The slide design looked professional and appealed to the audience since we are all Aggies

47. Things to Improve ON Slides were too cluttered
Too much text- this made the font size small in some places and it was also distracting
Layout of the slides- try to balance the space so as to please the eyes
Instead of covering the background of the slides when you have giant pictures, change the layout to a blank slide or title slide so it looks more professional

48. Things to Improve ON
Eliminate all spelling errors; these are unprofessional and easy to take care of
Speak clear and pronounce words
Would have been nice to see more vibrant colorful pictures
Some slides seem to have more than one title?
Indent bullets under there headings (advantages and disadvantages slide)

49. Group S5 REVIEW of Nanotechnology in Agriculture
Trevor Seidel
Laura Young
Pradip Rijal

50. Presentation Review
The presentation had a good balance between graphics and words
Some of the presenters were easy to understand while others were not as clear
The presentation seemed did not flow from one section to the next making it hard to pay attention
The introduction failed to tie the different topics together

51. Presentation Review
The topics were not well connected or well developed, with the second topic containing far to many graphs making the presentation hard to follow
Experiment detailed in slides should have come before its conclusions/summary in slides 14,15.

52. Nanotechnology in Agriculture (S1) Critique CHEN 481
Critique by S6:
John Baumhardt
Daniel Arnold
Michael Trevathan
Michael Tran

53. Review
The slide templates looked professional. The colors used made the slides easy to read.
The slides should be more uniform – the font, layout, text size all varied drastically from slide to slide.
Good use of pictures, however there should have been more pictures and less text – we are too lazy to read.
The text was too small on many of the slides to read from the back of the room.
Make research graphs fill an entire slide and explain them more thoroughly – this is our first time seeing the graph.

54. Review
Needed a better explanation of the benefits of red shift to the agriculture.
The barcode section was off topic comparatively to the other sections.
The crop improvement research needed a conclusion and application slide
Good job using multiple articles that were broadly discussed – you were able to encompass more of the agriculture industry.
Overall good technical presentation.

55. Review
All the speakers spoke clearly and confidently. It appeared as though they had practiced prior to the presentation.
Everyone dressed nicely and took the presentation seriously.
Limited amount of filler words used.
Great job orally.
If you read off the slides use the monitor instead of the projector so you don’t turn your body away from the audience