A new soil testing solution that can extract multiple nutrients simultaneously has been jointly developed by BARC Mumbai, GB Pant University of Agriculture, Pantnagar; and Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, under a research project supported by the Board of Research in Nuclear Sciences. The technology has been patented and is expected to be useful to farmers, soil testing labs and the fertilizer industry.

The extractant is based on the understanding that plants absorb nutrients not from the bulk soil as a whole, but from the immediate zone around their roots — called the rhizosphere. Nutrient availability depends more on the chemical conditions in this root zone than on overall soil chemistry.

For the first time, scientists have created a soil extractant that mimics this rhizospheric environment. It provides more accurate estimates of the nutrient available to plants — rather than just the nutrient in the soil.

The formulation uses organic acids with low molecular weight, along with a chelating agent (EDTA), and a buffering compound called MES, adjusted to a pH of about 6. A non-ionic, water-soluble polymer is added to help particles settle (flocculation). Care has been taken to ensure that none of these chemicals interfere with the measurement of nutrients.

Researchers also found that the method can be extended to estimate soil nitrogen, specifically ammonium and nitrate forms, when used alongside measurements of easily oxidisable organic carbon. The technique may further be adapted to assess pollutant elements such as nickel, cadmium, lead, chromium and arsenic.

Novel cathode material for aqueous zinc-ion batteries

Researchers have developed a novel cathode material that dramatically enhances the performance and stability of aqueous zinc-ion batteries.

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries, which use water-based electrolytes, are hailed as safe, cost-effective and environmentally benign contenders for storing energy from renewable sources like solar and wind. Zinc offers high theoretical capacity, abundant reserves and is used directly as the anode. However, the development of high-capacity, long-lasting cathode materials has been a key challenge.

Researchers at the Centre for Nano and Soft Matter Sciences (CeNS), Bengaluru, have “synthesised sulphur vacancy-induced 1T-phase molybdenum disulphide (1T-MoS₂), a material that promises to make zinc batteries more viable for largescale grid storage”, says a press release.

The team comprising Ganesh Mahendra, Dr Rahuldeb Roy and Dr Ashutosh Kumar Singh used a carefully controlled hydrothermal method to produce sulphur deficient 1T-MoS₂ nanoflakes.

This metallic-phase material possesses a high surface area and enhanced conductivity, which facilitates faster electrochemical reactions and greater charge storage.

The study aimed to optimise the electrochemical potential window, the voltage range within which the battery operates stably. They identified 0.2 to 1.3 volts as the ideal operational window.

The fabricated zinc-ion battery demonstrated cyclic stability, retaining 97.91 per cent of its initial capacity after 500 continuous charge-discharge cycles at a high current density. The device exhibited a coulombic efficiency of 99.7 per cent, indicating highly reversible zinc-ion insertion and extraction with minimal side reactions.

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Published on February 23, 2026