Abstract
The current study was designed to assess the effect of different concentrations of silica oxide nanoparticles (SiO(2)NPs) (0, 30, 60, and 90 ppm) as foliar applications under three irrigation regimes i.e., irrigation every 3 days (IR3, control), irrigation every 6 days (IR6), and irrigation every 9 days (IR9) on growth, yield and certain metabolites of rice (Oryza sativa L. cv. EHR1). To achieve such a goal, 2 field experiments were conducted during the 2018 and 2019 seasons at the Experimental Farm of Rice Research and Training Center (RRTC), Sakha Agricultural Station, Kafr El-sheik, Egypt. Firstly, the as-prepared nanoparticles of SiO2 were prepared from useless materials (RHs) which are considered as one of the bio burdens on the environment via treating with HCl and followed by drying and calcination. Consequently, the synthesis was examined by making use of advanced tools such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS) for illustrating the hydrodynamic particle size of SiO(2)NPs and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The nanoparticles were formed with nearly spherical shape and small size. The results indicated that leaf area index, dry matter production, the number of panicles/m(2), the number of filled grains/ panicles, 1000 grain weight, grain yield, and biological yield as well as chlorophyll content have witnessed a significant increase under irrigated application every 3 and 6 days. Whilst a prolonged irrigation regime up to 9 days recorded a remarkable decline in the aforementioned characteristics except for the number of unfilled grains/panicle which increased considerably in both seasons. On the other hand, proline concentration and the activity of the antioxidant enzymes were increased in both irrigated treatments every 6 and 9 days compared with control treatment (irrigation every 3 days). The foliar supplementations of (SiO(2)NPs) contributed to ameliorating all the aforementioned characteristics progressively up to the dosage of 90 ppm compared to control treatment (no Si/NPS application) in both seasons. Invariably, growth and yield parameters in water-stressed plants treated with SiO(2)NPs were higher than those in water-stressed plants without SiO(2)NPs addition. Based on that, it could be concluded that the foliar application of SiO(2)NPs can mitigate the adverse effect of water stress on rice plants.