Artificial ocean fertilization (AOF) aims to safely stimulate phytoplankton growth in the ocean and enhance carbon sequestration. AOF carbon sequestration efficiency appears lower than natural ocean fertilization processes due mainly to the low bioavailability of added nutrients, along with low export rates of AOF-produced biomass to the deep ocean. Here we explore the potential application of engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) to overcome these issues. Data from 123 studies show that some ENPs may enhance phytoplankton growth at concentrations below those likely to be toxic in marine ecosystems. ENPs may also increase bloom lifetime, boost phytoplankton aggregation and carbon export, and address secondary limiting factors in AOF. Life-cycle assessment and cost analyses suggest that net CO₂ capture is possible for iron, SiO₂ and Al₂O₃ ENPs with costs of 2–5 times that of conventional AOF, whereas boosting AOF efficiency by ENPs should substantially enhance net CO₂ capture and reduce these costs. Therefore, ENP-based AOF can be an important component of the mitigation strategy to limit global warming.

人工海洋施肥 (AOF) 旨在安全地刺激海洋中浮游植物的生长并增强碳封存。AOF 碳封存效率似乎低于天然海洋施肥过程，这主要是由于添加的营养素的生物利用度低，以及 AOF 产生的生物质向深海的出口率低。在这里，我们探讨了工程纳米粒子 (ENP) 在克服这些问题方面的潜在应用。来自 123 项研究的数据表明，某些 ENP 在浓度低于可能对海洋生态系统产生毒性的浓度时可能会促进浮游植物的生长。ENP 还可以延长水华寿命，促进浮游植物聚集和碳输出，并解决 AOF 中的次要限制因素。生命周期评估和成本分析表明净 CO _{2铁、SiO 2}和 Al ₂ O ₃ ENP 的捕获是可能的，成本是传统 AOF 的 2-5 倍，而通过 ENP 提高 AOF 效率应该会显着提高净 CO ₂捕获并降低这些成本。因此，基于 ENP 的 AOF 可以成为限制全球变暖的缓解策略的重要组成部分。