Book ChapterDOI
A review of biochar and its use and function in soil
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The potential to sequester carbon as thermally stabilized (charred) biomass using existing organic resource is estimated to be at least 1 Gt/yr − 1 and biochar, defined by its useful application to soil, is expected to provide a benefit from enduring physical and chemical properties.Abstract:
Agricultural activities and soils release greenhouse gases, and additional emissions occur in the conversion of land from other uses. Unlike natural lands, active management offers the possibility to increase terrestrial stores of carbon in various forms in soil. The potential to sequester carbon as thermally stabilized (charred) biomass using existing organic resource is estimated to be at least 1 Gt yr − 1 and “biochar,” defined by its useful application to soil, is expected to provide a benefit from enduring physical and chemical properties. Studies of charcoal tend to suggest stability in the order of 1000 years in the natural environment, and various analytical techniques inform quantification and an understanding of turnover processes. Other types of biochar, such as those produced under zero-oxygen conditions have been studied less, but costs associated with logistics and opportunity costs from diversion from energy or an active form in soil demand certainty and predictability of the agronomic return, especially until eligibility for carbon credits has been established. The mechanisms of biochar function in soil, which appear to be sensitive to the conditions prevailing during its formation or manufacture, are also affected by the material from which it is produced. Proposed mechanisms and some experimental evidence point to added environmental function in the mitigation of diffuse pollution and emissions of trace gases from soil; precluding the possibility of contaminants accumulating in soil from the incorporation of biochar is important to ensure safety and regulatory compliance.read more
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Journal ArticleDOI
Sorption of copper (II) and sulphate to different biochars before and after composting with farmyard manure
TL;DR: In this article, the effect of composting of charcoal and gasification coke on sorptive properties was investigated and the results showed that the effect was largely determined by complexation with organic matter.
Journal ArticleDOI
Conductive material engineered direct interspecies electron transfer (DIET) in anaerobic digestion: Mechanism and application
Pallavi Gahlot,Banafsha Ahmed,Satya Brat Tiwari,Nabin Aryal,Anwar Khursheed,Absar Ahmad Kazmi,Vinay Kumar Tyagi +6 more
TL;DR: This review summarizes the studies conducted to date on the effect of conductive materials mediated DIET on methanogenesis in the AD and discusses the different types and concentrations of conducting materials affecting DIET, major microbial communities required for carrying outDIET, and the rate of methanation.
Journal ArticleDOI
Remediation of an acidic mine spoil: Miscanthus biochar and lime amendment affects metal availability, plant growth, and soil enzyme activity.
Jeffrey M. Novak,James A. Ippolito,Thomas F. Ducey,Donald W. Watts,Kurt A. Spokas,Kristin M. Trippe,Gilbert C. Sigua,Mark Johnson +7 more
TL;DR: Surprisingly, miscanthus biochar, by itself, was limited at mitigation, but when combined with lime, the combination was capable of further reducing extractable metal concentrations and improving β-glucosidase enzyme activity.
Journal ArticleDOI
Modification of chemical and hydrophysical properties of two texturally differentiated soils due to varying magnitudes of added biochar
TL;DR: In this paper, the effect of different rates of biochar amendment on some chemical, physical and hydraulic properties of fine-sand and sandy loamy silt soils was investigated by adding 20, 50 and 100 g biochar kg(-1) (by dry weight).
Journal ArticleDOI
THE REDUCTION OF WHEAT Cd UPTAKE IN CONTAMINATED SOIL VIA BIOCHAR AMENDMENT: A TWO-YEAR FIELD EXPERIMENT
TL;DR: In this article, a field study involving wheat production was extended in order to study the effects of biochar (BC) amendment in paddy soil that had long-term contamination of Cd.
References
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Book
HUmus Chemistry Genesis, Composition, Reactions
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present an analysis of organic matter in soil using NMR Spectroscopy and analytical pyrolysis, showing that organic matter is composed of nitrogen and ammonium.
Journal ArticleDOI
Use of U.S. Croplands for Biofuels Increases Greenhouse Gases Through Emissions from Land-Use Change
Tim Searchinger,Ralph E. Heimlich,Richard A. Houghton,Fengxia Dong,Amani Elobeid,Jacinto F. Fabiosa,Simla Tokgoz,Dermot J. Hayes,Tun-Hsiang Yu +8 more
TL;DR: This article found that corn-based ethanol, instead of producing a 20% savings, nearly doubled greenhouse emissions over 30 years and increased greenhouse gases for 167 years, by using a worldwide agricultural model to estimate emissions from land-use change.
Journal ArticleDOI
Land Clearing and the Biofuel Carbon Debt
TL;DR: Converting rainforests, peatlands, savannas, or grasslands to produce food crop–based biofuels in Brazil, Southeast Asia, and the United States creates a “biofuel carbon debt” by releasing 17 to 420 times more CO2 than the annual greenhouse gas reductions that these biofuel reductions would provide by displacing fossil fuels.
Journal ArticleDOI
Global and regional climate changes due to black carbon
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Stabilization Wedges: Solving the Climate Problem for the Next 50 Years with Current Technologies
TL;DR: A portfolio of technologies now exists to meet the world's energy needs over the next 50 years and limit atmospheric CO 2 to a trajectory that avoids a doubling of the preindustrial concentration as mentioned in this paper.