Revolutionizing soil bioremediation: Nanobubble-driven enhancement of microbial dynamics and rhizosphere resilience

Soil pollution from urbanization, agriculture, and industry, compounded by climate change, poses severe threats to soil health and food security. Traditional physical, chemical, and biological remediation approaches are often resource-intensive and risk secondary contamination. This narrative review critically synthesizes mechanistic insights into nanobubble (NB) technology, its interactions with soil microbial communities, and their applications in enhancing bioremediation of contaminated and saline soils. Nanobubbles (<1 & micro;m) improve the gas transfer, generate reactive oxygen species (ROS), and facilitate interfacial interactions that promote microbial growth, metabolic activity, and community resilience. They enhance carbon dioxide fixation, soil porosity, nutrient availability (especially phosphorus), and contaminant bioavailability. When combined with microbial agents or phytoremediation, NBs have achieved up to 26% salinity reduction and 44% yield increases in cotton production under saline conditions. However, most evidence comes from lab/greenhouse studies; field-scale validation, energy costs, potential ROS toxicity at high doses, and long-term ecological impacts remain undetermined key uncertainties. Nanobubble technology shows significant promise for precision agriculture and environmentally sustainable soil restoration by optimizing rhizosphere microbiomes and nutrient cycling, although future interdisciplinary research and techno-economic analyses are warranted for large-scale implementation.