Nanthi’s research field deals with the management of soil fertility for sustainable agricultural production and environmental protection. Nanthi has also been involved in research into nutrient and contaminants interactions, and the remediation of heavy metal contaminated soil. Recently he has initiated a major research work on the functional characterisation of organic matter-clay mineral interactions in relation to carbon sequestration using advanced multiple state-of-the-science nanoscale techniques including: (i) small Angle Neutron and X-Ray Scattering to characterize the surface area and size distribution of the total porosity of soil microaggregates; (ii) synchrotron-radiation based microtomography (SR-µCT) in combination with quantitative 3d-image analysis to study pore network characteristics of soil microaggregates; (iii) scanning Transmission Electron Microscopy (STEM) and Nano Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (NanoSIMS) to visualize and characterise intact microaggregates; and (iv) radioactive and stable isotopic techniques to measure the priming effect and origin of soil organic matter decomposition in microaggregates.