Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) contributes 18% of the global production of grain legume and serves as an important source of dietary protein. An important decrease in cropping area and production has been recorded during the last two decades. Several biotic and abiotic constraints underlie this decrease. Despite the efforts deployed in breeding and selection of several chickpea varieties with high yield potential that are tolerant to diseases, the situation has remained the same for the last decade. Fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceris (Foc) is the major soil-borne fungus affecting chickpeas globally. Fusarium wilt epidemics can devastate crops and cause up to 100% loss in highly infested fields and under favorable conditions. To date, eight pathogenic races of Foc (races 0, 1A, 1B/C, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6) have been reported worldwide. The development of resistant cultivars is the most effective method to manage this disease and to contribute to stabilizing chickpea yields. Development of resistant varieties to fusarium wilt in different breeding programs is mainly based on conventional selection. This method is time-consuming and depends on inoculum load and specific environmental factors that influence disease development. The use of molecular tools offers great potential for chickpea improvement, specifically by identifying molecular markers closely linked to genes/QTLs controlling fusarium wilt.

Tetrafluoroborate salts of diazotized Azure A (AA-N), Neutral Red (NR-N) and Congo Red (CR-N) dyes were prepared and reacted with multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) at room temperature, in water without any reducing agent. The as-modified MWCNTs were examined by IRATR, Raman spectroscopy, XPS, TGA, TEM, and cyclic voltammetry. The diazonium band located at ∼2350 cm in the diazotized dye IR spectra vanished after attachment to the nanotubes whereas the Raman D/G peak ratio slightly increased after dye covalent attachment at a high initial diazonium/CNT mass ratio. XPS measurements show the loss of F 1s from the BF anion together with a clear change in the high-resolution C 1s region from the modified nanotubes. Thermogravimetric analyses proved substantial mass loadings of the organic grafts leveling off at 40.5, 34.3, and 50.7 wt % for AA, NR, and CR, respectively. High-resolution TEM pictures confirmed the presence of 1.5-7-nm-thick continuous amorphous layers on the nanotubes assigned to the aryl layers from the dyes. Cyclic voltammetry studies in acetonitrile (ACN) confirmed the grafting of the dyes; the latter retain their electrochemical behavior in the grafted state. The experimental results correlate remarkably well with quantum chemical calculations that indicate high binding energies between the dyes and the CNTs accounting for true covalent bonding (140-185 kJ/mol with the CNT-aryl distance <1.6 nm), though attachment by π stacking also contributes to obtaining stable hybrids. Finally, the pH-responsive character of the robust hybrids was demonstrated by a higher degree of protonation of Neutral Red-grafted CNTs at pH 2 compared to that of the neutral aqueous medium. This work demonstrates that diazotized dyes can be employed for the surface modification of MWCNTs in a very simple and efficient manner in water and at room temperature. The hybrids could be employed for many purposes such as optically pH-responsive materials, biosensors, and optothermal composite actuators to name a few.

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