Abstract
This study aimed to explore a new way to address the burning of agricultural waste in China while achieving the sustainable use of it. Three agricultural wastes (Wheat straw, peanut shell, and rice husk) were slowly pyrolyzed into biochar, which was subsequently added to the soil to reduce CO2 emissions from the soil, and to improve soil fertility as well as microbial community structure. The biochar and raw materials were added to the soil and cultured under controlled conditions, and then the CO2 emissions produced from the mixing. At the same time, this study used pot experiments to determine the effects of biochar on tobacco soil physical and chemical properties and, therefore, the microbial communities of the soil. This study suggests that (1) biochar can effectively reduce soil CO2 emission rate. Compared with the control, peanut shell biochar could reduce the total CO2 emissions of soil by 33.41%, and the total CO2 emissions of wheat straw biochar treatment was 90.25% lower than that of wheat straw treatment. (2) The soil’s physical and chemical properties were improved. The soil bulk density of wheat straw biochar treatment kept 34.57% lower than that of the control as well as 21.15% lower than that of wheat straw treatment. The soil’s organic carbon of peanut shell biochar treatment was 87.62% more than that of peanut shell treatment. (3) Biochar changed soil microbial community structure. (4) Biochar is suitable for tobacco growth. Peanut husk biochar significantly increased the total biomass of tobacco, and wheat straw biochar significantly increased tobacco root vigor. This study concluded that processing Chinese agricultural waste into biochar and adding it to the soil instead of burning it directly would be an effective means to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, to improve soil, and to promote crop growth.
Highlights
Biochar is a material obtained by pyrolysis of crop straw, woody material, livestock manure, or other organic materials in a low-oxygen environment with the pyrolysis temperatures between 300 and 700 ◦C normally
The soil’s organic carbon of peanut shell biochar treatment was 87.62% more than that of peanut shell treatment
Peanut shell, and rice husk were successfully transformed into slow pyrolysis biochar (WB, peanut shell biochar (PB), RB), characterized and used in soil culture research
Summary
Biochar is a material obtained by pyrolysis of crop straw, woody material, livestock manure, or other organic materials in a low-oxygen environment with the pyrolysis temperatures between 300 and 700 ◦C normally This type of charcoal is a carbon-rich material with high surface area, porosity, adsorption, pH, and high stability [1]. As a new type of carbon material, biochar has attracted considerable attention, mainly due to its potential applications in improving soil, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and environmental, ecological restoration. It provides new ideas for alleviating global climate change as well as environmental pollution, and improving soil properties [2]. In the 21st century, the CO2 concentration could exceed 700 ppm, and the annual amount of CO2 emitted by the world’s agriculture worldwide can reach 5.1–6.1 × 109 metric tons [5]
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