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20.11.2025 14:00
Physics can replace chemistry in agriculture – research project successfully completed
Neubrandenburg/Greifswald, 20 November 2025 — The WIR project Physics for Food, funded by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR), has been successfully completed after eight years. At the closing occasion on 19 November 2025 in Neubrandenburg, scientists and project managers introduced key findings and concrete switch approaches. The project was initiated by Neubrandenburg University of Applied Sciences and the Leibniz Institute for Plasma Science and Technology.
The purpose of the consortium was to develop bodily processes for sustainable meals worth creation — from seed remedy, cultivation methods, storage and processing to ideas for contemporary greenhouses and environmentally pleasant water cycles. The project was initiated by Neubrandenburg University of Applied Sciences and the Leibniz Institute for Plasma Science and Technology.
The outcomes introduced present how bodily processes guarantee high quality, save sources and open up new avenues for sustainable meals manufacturing:
Seed well being and yield assurance
Plasma remedies lowered disease-causing pathogens on seeds simply as successfully as chemical dressings. In subject trials, winter barley emergence elevated by 10–40% after remedy, and grain yield elevated by round 5 %. In addition, a decontamination course of developed on the INP was granted a European patent in October 2025.
Physics-based plant safety in the sphere
It was proven that plasma processes can be used as a part in built-in plant safety. They assist to advertise plant development and cut back stress. Field research demonstrated variations in leaf infestation and yield between particular person variants, offering proof of steady functions in apply.
Protection of saved grain and different strategies of pest management
Moulds and bug pests equivalent to grain beetles had been inactivated in the laboratory utilizing plasma. Based on this, a conveyor belt was developed on which the grain can be handled straight with plasma, in addition to a variant for using plasma-treated air in silos. The remedy parameters had been optimised in a real-world trial with a 30-tonne grain silo. Farmers are exhibiting nice curiosity in chemical-free alternate options for grain storage, which is mirrored in the excessive acceptance of the expertise.
Water remedy utilizing bodily strategies
Stationary and cellular demonstrators have been developed for the remedy of waste water and course of water — to be used in the meals trade and in agriculture, for instance. The mixture of filtration, ultrasound, ozone, UV and plasma has confirmed to be efficient in lowering pollution and microorganisms. Examples come from the collaboration with the Anklam sugar manufacturing unit and the Störtebeker brewery.
Innovation for contemporary greenhouses
A big-scale hydroponic system for greater than 3,000 vegetation was created in a so-called vertical farming facility. Plasma processes are investigated there beneath circumstances just like these discovered in manufacturing. Results present that plasma-treated water achieves hygiene requirements similar to these achieved with typical chemical brokers, can replace nitrogen fertilisers and promotes plant improvement.
Transfer to the actual financial system
Physically generated plasma is chemical- and residue-free, resource-efficient and due to this fact environmentally pleasant. According to our personal surveys, there’s a excessive stage of curiosity in new bodily strategies amongst farmers. From the outset, Physics for Food has centered on sensible functions and suitability for switch to trade. Research and improvement had been carried out in shut cooperation with corporations. With authorities funding from the EXIST programme, the outcomes for the sustainable remedy and storage of enormous volumes of grain in silos are being translated right into a marketable expertise, and an organization is being based in Brandenburg.
The project exhibits that interdisciplinary cooperation between science and trade allows focused innovation. At the identical time, sturdy experience in bodily processes in the agricultural and meals industries has been constructed up in the coastal hinterland. This is mirrored, amongst different issues, in twelve additional joint tasks and round 30 new regional and supraregional collaborations which have emerged from the alliance.
Weitere Informationen:
https://physicsforfood.org/english-summary/
Bilder
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