The use of plasma‐activated water (PAW) treatment is a promising technology that has many advantages, such as high efficiency, flexibility, environmental safety, and no residue. Thus, PAW has been applied in the agriculture industry to increase agricultural production. The application of PAW technology in agricultural production should emphasize its systematic nature, controllability, and operability, making it practical. This review systematically illustrates the production of PAW and the factors influencing it. The application of PAW in agriculture and its mechanism are discussed, including the effect on seed germination, the promotion of plant growth, and the control of plant diseases and pests. The implications of PAW for agriculture production and some of the related challenges are discussed. This review provides a deeper understanding of the viability of PAW technology in agriculture production. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

Plasma is a surface decontamination tool that is widely used in the food fields for pesticide degradation. In this study the effect of plasma on pesticide elimination from the surface of corn and the corn quality changes were tested as functions of power, air flow rate, treatment time, and frequency. Results indicated that plasma treatment for 60 s at 1000 mL·min−1 air flow rate, power of 20 W, and frequency of 1200 Hz, achieved the largest degradation efficiency up to 86.2% for chlorpyrifos and 66.6% for carbaryl, both of which were below the maximum residues limit of grains. Most importantly, after plasma treatment, there was a remarkable decrease (p < 0.05) in moisture content and starch content for treated corn compared with control. The acid value for treated corn showed a prominent increase (p < 0.05), but within the acceptable range of the standard. The vitamin B2 content of treated corn did not show a significant difference (p > 0.05). All results of this study demonstrated that plasma treatment is a promising technology with the ability to remove pesticide residues on corn while maintaining its quality within acceptable limits.

Methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) are widely acknowledged as the major greenhouse gases. Theoretically speaking, the mixture of methane and carbon dioxide would reform into gas fuels like hydrogen (H2) and carbon monoxide (CO) under certain treatment conditions. However, the traditional conversion of methane and carbon dioxide requires a high temperature, which can cause carbon deposition and deactivate the catalyst. Non-thermal plasma technology can alleviate this problem. In this research, a method of hydrogen production from greenhouse gases by non-thermal plasma was studied. We discussed the influence of plasma on the reforming of methane and carbon dioxide into hydrogen as functions of different parameters like power input, electrode gaps, total gas fluxes and methane/carbon dioxide ratios in customized single and double dielectric reactors. Meanwhile, the potential mechanism for the reforming has also been discussed. As a result, it was observed higher power input, smaller electrode gap and total gas flux would contribute to better performance of reforming. Based on the results of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and emission spectrum analysis, the mechanism of different reforming products such as carbon monoxide, hydrogen, other organic by-products and carbon deposition is discussed based on numerous free radicals including ·C, ·CHx, ·CO, ·H, and ·O in the discharge zone.

The use of nonthermal plasma (NTP) is a promising technology that has high efficiency, safe for the environment, and free from toxic residues. Therefore, NTP has been applied in the food industry to reduce the activity of microorganisms on foods. Even after NTP treatment, the foods exhibit satisfactory high quality in terms of physical (colour and texture) and chemical (pH, titration acidity, nutrients, and enzymes) characteristics. In the present review, the effects and mechanisms of microbial inactivation conducted using NTP on foods are reviewed. In addition, the effects on food quality attributes after plasma treatment are also discussed. Finally, the conclusions of NTP pertaining to food safety, food quality attributes, and some of the related challenges are proposed. The present review provides deeper understanding pertaining to the viability of plasma technology in food processing applications.