Ultrasound-assisted Germination of Lens culinaris: Thermoacoustic simulation and resource-efficient enhancement of seedling development

Ultrasound-assisted seed priming has gained increasing attention as a sustainable strategy to enhance germination performance and early plant development. A combined multiphysics modeling and experimental framework is presented to evaluate the effects of ultrasonic treatment on the germination dynamics and early growth of Lens culinaris seeds. A thermo--acoustic numerical model was developed to estimate the spatial and temporal dynamics of acoustic pressure and temperature fields within the ultrasonic bath, enabling the identification of regions with enhanced cavitation potential and energy transfer. This modeling approach provides insight into the physical mechanisms governing ultrasound–seed interactions during the priming process. Experimental germination assays were performed using ultrasound exposure times ranging from 5 to 30 minutes. Germination performance was evaluated through germination percentage, germination rate, seedling length, and vigor index. Ultrasound treatments maintained consistently high germination levels (96–99%) while significantly enhancing early seedling development compared with untreated seeds. Average seedling length increased from 16 mm in the control to 34–46 mm in treated samples, while the vigor index increased from 1568 to values between 2254 and 4416, indicating substantial improvement in seed physiological performance. Longer sonication times (20–30 min) promoted greater seedling elongation and higher vigor indices, whereas shorter treatments (5–15 min) maintained optimal germination efficiency. Importantly, these biological improvements were achieved without increasing water or energy consumption, as all treatments operated under identical resource inputs. The results demonstrate that ultrasound-assisted priming improves the biological efficiency of the germination process by producing more vigorous seedlings per unit of resource input. This integrated modeling–experimental framework highlights the potential of ultrasound technology as a resource-efficient method to enhance lentil germination and support sustainable functional food production systems.