Abstract
The food industry faces the problem of soil contamination and consequently the deterioration of the quality of plant products. Here, we present a study on evaluation of the effect of fertilization with sewage sludge (SL) with varying, rates of biochar (BC 2.5, 5 and 10% of DW) on yield quality and the accumulation of heavy metals in wheat grains. The greatest grain yield with the highest content of protein and gluten as well as the highest total content of phenols and flavonoids, was obtained when SL+5%BC fertilization was applied. The addition of 5%BC and 10%BC to SL resulted in the greatest increase in the antioxidant capacity of grain. Among phenolic acids, syringic acid was found in the largest amount in grain in the SL+2.5%BC treatment. A significant decrease in Pb accumulation in wheat grain after application of SL+5%BC and a successive decrease in Al content with increasing BC addition were observed. To increase the quality of wheat grains and to reduce the bioaccumulation of harmful elements after the application of biochar to the soil is important in the context of food safety and health of humans especially in food production on acidic and/or contaminated soils.
Highlights
There are plenty of studies about properties of biochar and its effect on soil parameters conducted already, but several processes are still understood poorly
SL+5%BC wheat grain showed significantly highest total protein and nitrogen content (17.4% compared to control and 13.7% compored to SL) and wet gluten content compared to control 31.5%, while the lowest was in treatment SL+10%BC
Despite the absence of statistically significant differences, it was observed that wheat grains harvested from the control plots contained the highest starch content
Summary
There are plenty of studies about properties of biochar and its effect on soil parameters conducted already, but several processes are still understood poorly. Due to its low susceptibility to biodegradation, porosity and large active surface, biochar added to soil changes its bulk density for several years and increases the net soil surface area and nutrient retention (Ding et al 2010, Spokas et al 2012, Clough et al 2013, Ahmed and Schoenau 2015). This can lead to increased yield potential (with yield increases of 10–12%) (Biederman and Harpole 2013). Increased bioavailability of soil nutrients is mainly the result of direct or indirect change in soil pH after biochar application is made (Hossain et al 2011, Lehmann et al.2011, Schimmelpfennig et al 2015)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
