Biological effects of PAS TiO2sol on disease control and photosynthesisin cucumber ('Cucumis sativus L.')

• Published in: Australian Journal of Crop Science Vol. 7; no. 1; pp. 99 - 103
• Main Authors: Haixin Cui, Guochen Yang, Jianfang Jiang, Ping Zhang, Wei Gu
• Format: Journal Article
• Published: Lismore, N.S.W Southern Cross Publishers 01.01.2013
• Subjects: Biological control; Diseases and pests; Environmental protection; Greenhouse plants; Pathogenic bacteria; Plant diseases
• ISSN: 1835-2693

This paper reports the biological effects of TiO2sol derived from peroxotitanic acid solution (PAS TiO2 sol) on the control of plant diseases and growth regulation. The PAS TiO2solis a neutral, viscous aqueous colloid of TiO2 containing 1.6% TiO2with a size of between 10-50 nm. Experiments were conducted under normal laboratory and greenhouse growing conditions. For the bactericidal effects of the PAS TiO2experiments, TiO2coated glass slides were inoculated with pathogenic bacteria in the laboratory. For the Greenhouse experiments on disease control and photosynthesis, all test plants (treatment block and control block) were inoculated with pathogenic bacteria. While plants in the treatment blocks were sprayed with PAS TiO2, plants in the control blocks were sprayed with water. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results demonstrated that the crystal form of TiO2nano-particles was anatase. Results from greenhouse experiments using cucumbers showed that PAS TiO2solformed a well-spread, transparent, and sticky layer of TiO2 photo-catalyst on the plants' surface. The PAS TiO2photo-catalyst layer prevented pathogenic infection and improved photosynthetic performance. These results suggest that.