2019
Plasma-Activated Irrigation for Improving Soybean Development and Disease Tolerance
Contributor/Checkoff:
Category:
Sustainable Production
Keywords:
Crop protectionDiseaseField management
Parent Project:
This is the first year of this project.
Lead Principal Investigator:
Sungo Kim, Kansas State University
Co-Principal Investigators:
Project Code:
1991
Contributing Organization (Checkoff):
Institution Funded:
Brief Project Summary:

The first objective this project is to improve soybean growth and yield using plasma-activated water. Plasma is an ionized medium containing many active components including electrons, ions, free radicals, reactive molecules, photons, UV, as well as heat, electric and magnetic fields. Researchers have found that plasma-activated water can sterilize and refresh soil and soybean plants. Researchers will also test whether plasma-activated water can reduce soybean sudden death and charcoal rot. Plants will be inoculated with Fusarium virguiliforme, and M. phaseolina. Symptoms will be assessed to see if host colonization differs between treatments. For both tests, pots will be irrigated with regular water or plasma-activated water.

Key Benefactors:
farmers, plant pathologists, agronomists

Information And Results
Project Deliverables

Tangible Outcomes:
1. The PI’s group builds off prior successes – The PI’s group has built various sized plasma devices (15 µm to 3m size) and highly reactive plasma liquid.
2. Excellent flexibility for any geometry.
3. Easy fabrication/simple structure – low investment cost and low business risk.
4. No arc, and low temperature – safety.
5. High speed, direct, and precise treatments.
6. Handy and light – can fabricate compact sized plasma bundle devices to treat and carry in the field.
7. Robust in poor environmental conditions.
8. Low operating cost.
9. Low power (under 1 W) – safety and low maintenance cost.
10. Long life time.
11. Low manufacturing and maintenance cost.
12. Green technology (no chemical and radiation remains).
13. Fast to market.

Intangible Outcomes:
1. Training students to be next intelligent farmers.
2. Provide learning/research experience for graduate and undergraduate students through involvement in research group activities.
3. Introduce research context into existing courses and develop a novel course in the physics, characterization, and applications of advanced plasma agriculture.
4. Outreach to undergraduate and graduate student education in the United States.
5. Increasing the reputation of high quality soybean products in Kansas and the United States.
6. Increasing the multidisciplinary collaborative environment between the Kansas Soybean Commission and Kansas State University.

Final Project Results

The United Soybean Research Retention policy will display final reports with the project once completed but working files will be purged after three years. And financial information after seven years. All pertinent information is in the final report or if you want more information, please contact the project lead at your state soybean organization or principal investigator listed on the project.