NCPBare cost-effective, self-contained, hydration and nutrient bead capable of supporting the growth of an individual plant targeted primarily for inarable climates

In an effort to address the need to cultivate inarable environments adapt tocontemporary climatic shifts and support agricultural productivity withoutexacerbating water insecurity PRatian (our team) designed and developed aprotoype for the NCPB bead a cost-effective self-contained hydration and nutrientbead capable of supporting the growth of an individual plant in inarable and harshclimates for which we have a provisional patent. The NCPB bead concentrates thenutrient and hydration requirements for a single plant into a biopolymeric hydrogelboth biodegradable and tempered for gradual dispensing. If granted the SBIR grantwould enable our team to further develop the NCPB bead prototype such that it isideal for supplementing inarable soil and harsh environmental conditions. We woulduse the investment to address key scientific points with experiments described in theproposal: (1) optimizing the formula for plant and soil needs; (2) optimizing theformula for non-toxic biodegradation; (3) improving the design of the NCPB beadsuch that the ingredients provide controlled nutrient and water release andhomogeneous degradation; (4) optimizing the formula to support plant growth anddevelopment in extreme environmental conditions such as that of a desert. Once theprototype is further developed and validated PRatian intends to provide NCPB beadto 37 acres of industrial farms in Puerto Rico. If granted the USDA SBIR grant wouldpropel the validation and development of NCPB bead enabling support of these andother farmers by providing affordable resource-management designed for harshenvironments and inarable soil while also serving as an eco-conscious solution.