Biochar Sources Research Articles

Advances and prospects of biochar in improving soil fertility, biochemical quality, and environmental applications

With the global food deficit increasing and rising climate change issues, there is a need to find green solutions to improve soil fertility and productivity while enhancing soil biochemical quality and reducing the ecological impact of agriculture. Biochar is a potentially cost-effective, carbonaceous resource with many agricultural and environmental applications. As a soil amendment, it improves soil physical and biochemical properties and increases soil fertility and productivity—particularly over the long-term—increasing soil aggregation, water retention, pH, and microbial activities, thus, improving overall soil quality, potentially helping to reduce chemical fertilizer needs over time. The extent of biochar’s impact on soil physiochemical properties varies depending on biochar source, type, size, inherent soil characteristics, cropping system, etc. Moreover, biochar has significant potential in soil and water remediation, especially through its unique adsorption and chemical properties capable to capture and immobilize pollutants such as metal(loid)s, organic pollutants, and hazardous emerging contaminants such as microplastics. Further, biochar has also emerged as a key strategic, cost-effective material to tackle global issues such as climate change mitigation, reducing the net greenhouse gas emission to minimize global warming potential. However, a knowledge gap remains as to understanding the long-term persistence of biochar on agroecosystem, optimal biochar application rate for the diversity of biochar-soil-crop-environmental conditions, interaction of biochar with inherent soil carbon stock, specific mechanisms of biochar’s effect on soil biotic properties, quantification of carbon sequestration, greenhouse gas emissions, synergy or potential antagonistic effects with other carbon sources such as compost, manure, residues, etc., its modification for environmental applications and associated environmental and human risks over long-term. Further research is needed to evaluate the long-term impacts of types and sizes of biochar on overall soil quality to recommend suitable application practices based on soil management and cropping system. Also, its environmental applications need to be finetuned for wider and target specific applications to tackle pressing environmental issues such as soil and water pollution.

Interaction between biochar-dissolved organic matter and chlorophenols during biochar adsorption.

Biochar (BC) has been widely applied in the remediation of chlorophenols (CPs) from contaminated sites in which the role and mechanisms of BC dissolved organic matter (BDOM), as a crucial component of BC, with CPs are largely unknown and thus need to be investigated. In this study, DOM was derived from peanut hulls (PDOM) and corn stalks (CDOM) as BC sources, and the interactions between PDOM/CDOM and 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (TCP) were analysed using excitation-emission matrix spectroscopy (EEM) in combination with multiple models. EEM combined with fluorescence region integration (EEM-FRI) indicated that humic-like materials were the major materials of both PDOM and CDOM (percentage fluorescence response Ri,n > 60%), and CDOM contained more protein- and fulvic-like materials than PDOM. Based on EEM in combination with parallel factor analysis (EEM-PARAFAC), 4 components were obtained, and the percentage decrease in maximum fluorescence intensities (Fmax) showed that the main components interacting with TCP in PDOM/CDOM were protein- and fulvic-like components (> 25%). Moreover, the modified Stern-Volmer model was used to calculate the stability constants (Log KTCP) of PDOM/CDOM and TCP for the first time, and the mechanism of static quenching was dominant for interacting with TCP in PDOM (Log KTCP: 4.36-4.65) and CDOM (Log KTCP: 3.53-4.73). Furthermore, the sequential TCP binding of fluorescent components in BDOM generally followed the order of protein-like → short-wavelength fulvic-like → long-wavelength fulvic-like → humic-like components. These findings will provide a basis for screening biochar as a functional material for CP remediation applications and for understanding the environmental chemical behaviour of leached DOM during biochar application.

Comparative Potential of Different Modified Biochar Sources on the Ionic Composition of Soil and Stress Mitigation in Maize under Saline-Sodic Conditions

Comparative Potential of Different Modified Biochar Sources on the Ionic Composition of Soil and Stress Mitigation in Maize under Saline-Sodic Conditions

Biochar application stabilized the heavy metals in coal mined soil

The waste of coal mining activities causes accumulation of hazardous elements in soil for plants. Biochar is considered an important soil remediation strategy to stabilize the heavy metals. The aim of this study was to quantify the effect of biochar sources and rate on the heavy metal stabilization in coal-contaminated soil. Biochars of three feedstocks (maize straw (MBC), rice straw (RBC), and sugarcane bagasse (SBC)) with four levels (0%, 0.5%, 1%, and 2%, i.e., 0, 10, 20, and 40 ton ha−1) were applied to two types of soils (naturally contaminated soil (NCS) versus artificially contaminated soil (ACS) spiked with Cd, Cu, Cr, and Pb). Plastic pots were incubated at 30% field capacity for 90 days at 25 °C, and soil pH, electrical conductivity (EC), and heavy metals concentration were measured after 1, 4, 8, and 12 weeks. Among the biochars, RBC showed maximum immobilization of Cd, Pb, Cu, and Cr as compared with MBC and SBC. Similarly, biochar application increased heavy immobilization, being maximum at 2% (40 ton ha−1) rate compared with control. The pH of both soils with biochar addition increased as compared with control. The remediation effect of biochar on heavy metal stabilization was positive over time. The higher rate (40 ton ha−1) of RBC for ACS and MBC for NCS could be used effectively for heavy metal stabilization.

Influence of Aged Wood Biochar on Mycorrhizal Colonisation, Growth and Leaf Gas Exchange of Wheat and Clover with Different Water Regimes

Water scarcity is one of the most limiting environmental factors for crop productivity globally, where biochar application can play a role. To test this, a glasshouse experiment was conducted with aged biochar application with water regimes on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi colonisation, plant growth, phosphorus nutrition and leaf gas exchange in wheat and subterranean clover. Six treatment combinations (two biochar levels of 0 and 6 t ha−1; and three water regimes of well-watered, water-stressed and watering intermittently) were arranged in factorial completely randomized block design with three replications. The wheat and subterranean clover were grown and harvested 14, 24, 34 and 44 days after sowing. In this study, aged biochar had no significant effect on plant growth for both wheat and clover, regardless of water regimes. Shoot and root dry weights increased in well-watered conditions compared to water-stressed conditions. Root length and colonised root length increased with biochar addition for wheat, mostly in well-watered treatment. Phosphorus uptake increased in biochar treatment, and the effect was higher in well-watered conditions. Leaf photosynthetic rate (PN), stomatal conductance (gs), intercellular CO2 concentration (Ci) and transpiration rate (E) increased with biochar addition. For clover, the effect was higher in water-stressed than well-watered conditions. These results suggest that biochar may enhance water availability to clover plants in water-stressed conditions. However, the positive effect of biochar on plant growth under water-stressed conditions, varied with plant species, needs to be explored further in a range of crop species and biochar sources in addition to the material used in the current investigation.

Biochar as a feed supplement for nutrient digestibility and growth performance of Catla catla fingerlings

The purpose of the current research was to determine the impact of various biochar supplements on nutrient digestibility and growth performance of Catla catla fingerlings fed on Moringa oleifera seed meal (MOSM) based diet. An experiment with 90 days of feeding was conducted to investigate the efficacy of biochar obtained from different sources such as parthenium, farmyard manure, poultry waste, vegetable waste, and corncob waste at 2 mg/kg. There were15 fingerlings in each tank in the triplicate set of tanks. Fingerlings were fed at the rate of 5 % of their live wet weight. From each tank, feces were collected twice daily and stored to determine nutrient digestibility. Results showed that poultry waste biochar (test diet-IV) at 2 mg/kg was the best source to significantly (P < 0.05) improve weight gain % (256.58 %) and feed conversion ratio (1.19) than the other biochar sources and control diet. Furthermore, in terms of nutrient digestibility, optimum fat (81.90 %), protein (75.92 %), and gross energy (74.84 kcalg−1) values were obtained by using the same type of biochar (poultry waste). Conclusively, among all the five biochar sources, poultry waste biochar proved to be the best one, improving fish body performance.

The influence of biochar shape on cement-based materials

Biochar-containing cement composites have attracted increasing interest in recent years due to the possibility of reducing the environmental impact linked to cement. They can also improve the mechanical properties and the electrical conductivity of cement-based materials. One parameter that can affect the mechanical performance of biochar-containing cement composites is the morphology of the biochar. While it is reasonable to expect a different behaviour for different shapes (sheet-, sphere- or rod-shaped), a full understanding is yet to be achieved of the competing effects of aspect ratio, morphology and composition linked to the specific biochar source. This study shows that biochar can improve the mechanical properties of cement-based composites: 1 wt% of biochar improves compressive strength and flexural strength by 7% and 15%, respectively. The results presented in this study confirm that biochar has a positive effect on both the mechanical and environmental behaviour of cement-based materials.

Biochar application in biofiltration systems to remove nutrients, pathogens, and pharmaceutical and personal care products from wastewater.

Although conventional on-site wastewater treatment systems (OWTSs) provide only primary treatment of domestic wastewater, removal of a limited level of nutrients (N, P), pathogens, and pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) could be achieved by such a treatment process. Biochar has the capacity to remove various contaminants and has been widely used as an ideal soil amendment in agriculture due to its persistence, superior nutrient-retention properties, low cost, and ready availability. However, few applications on the use of biochar in onsite wastewater treatment have been explored. In this review, we systematically reviewed the applications of biochar in filtration-based OWTSs for nutrient (N, P) removal and recovery as well as pathogen and PPCP removal. Although adsorption was the main mechanism for P, pathogen, and PPCP removal, biochar can also serve as the growth media for enhanced biological degradation, improves available alkalinity, and increases water holding capacity in the OWTSs. The biochar source, surface modification methods, and preparation procedures (e.g., pyrolysis temperature change) have significant effects on contaminant removal performance in biochar-amended OWTSs. Specifically, contradictory results have been reported on the effect of pyrolysis temperature change on biochar removal performance (i.e., increased, decreased, or no change) of N, P, and PPCPs. Wastewater composition and environmental pH also play important roles in the removal of nutrients, pathogens, and PPCPs. Overall, biochar holds great potential to serve as an alternative filtration material or to be amended to the current OWTS to improve system performance in removing a variety of contaminants at low cost.

Differences in Biochar Sources for Controlled Nitrogen Loss in a Hybrid Maize Agroforestry System with Melaleuca cajuputi

Biochar is used to improve soil fertility and control nitrogen loss in soil. This study aimed to evaluate the difference between biochar sources, namely Melaleuca cajuputi waste and rice husk, for controlled nitrogen loss in hybrid maize planted between Melaleuca cajuputi stands. A split-plot design with three replications was used. The main plot was composed of biochar sources (BS), i.e., without biochar application (WB), Melaleuca cajuputi biochar (MCB), and rice husk biochar (RHB). The subplot was the urea fertilizer dosage, i.e., 0, 150, 300, and 450 kg/ha. The observation parameters were nitrate reductase activity (NRA), total chlorophyll (TC), leaf photosynthesis rate (LPR), nitrogen loss (NL), nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), and seed yield per hectare (SY). The data were analyzed with ANCOVA and LS-means. The results showed that there was no significant difference between mixing MCB or RHB in UF for all hybrid maize parameters, whereas significant differences were observed with WB. The NL values ​​of MCB and RHB were 13.85 and 13.08 kg/ha N, i.e., NL was significantly reduced by 70.90% and 72.51%, and the percentage of SY increased by 28.60% and 37.94% compared to WB, respectively.

Effects of biochar source, level of inclusion, and particle size on in vitro dry matter disappearance, total gas, and methane production and ruminal fermentation parameters in a barley silage-based diet

This study evaluated the effects of biochar differing in source, inclusion level, and particle size on dry matter disappearance (DMD), total gas and methane (CH4) production, and ruminal fermentation in a barley silage-based diet. The seven biochar products used were coconut (CP001 and CP014) or pine (CP002, CP015, CP016, CP023, CP024)-based. Experiment 1 (Exp. 1) evaluated these biochars at 4.5%, 13.5%, and 22.5% level of diet inclusion, whereas Experiment 2 (Exp. 2) evaluated CP002, CP016, and CP023 at 2.25% and 4.50% of the diet at &lt;0.5, 0.5–2.0, &gt;2.0 mm particle size. Data were analyzed using PROC MIXED in SAS as a randomized complete block design, with biochar source, inclusion level, and particle size (Exp. 2 only) as fixed effects with run and replicate as random effects. Increasing level of biochar inclusion linearly (P &lt; 0.01) decreased DMD in Exp. 1 and did not influence DMD (P &gt; 0.05) in Exp. 2. Total gas, CH4 (mL·g−1 DMD), and ruminal fermentation parameters were not affected by product, inclusion level, or particle size (P &gt; 0.05). In conclusion, biochar of varying source and particle size did not mitigate CH4 production, but reduced DMD at higher inclusion levels in the barley silage-based diet.

Biochar type and application methods affected nitrogen and phosphorus leaching from a sandy soil amended with inorganic fertilizers and biosolids

AbstractLand application of biochar as a soil amendment can be an effective strategy for reducing nutrient leaching while providing simultaneous benefits to soil health. However, biochar effects on soil nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) dynamics in biochar‐amended soils are poorly understood, particularly in Florida sandy soils receiving fertilizers. This study evaluated the effects of different biochar materials (particle size of 0.1 mm produced from pine (Pinus spp.) wood vs. ∼0.5–2 mm produced from fescue (Festuca arundinaceaSchreb.) grass, herein referred as “powder” and “coarse” biochar, respectively) and their application methods (surface vs. incorporated) on N and P leaching from soils amended with inorganic fertilizer or biosolids. Biochar materials were either mixed throughout columns of soil or surface applied at a 1% (w/w) rate. Columns were periodically leached over 6 mo to attain 138 ml (equivalent to ∼1 pore volume) of drainage in each event (total of ∼16 pore volume of leachate). Biochar materials exhibited modest affinity to retain ammonium (NH4+) but showed no ability to sorb nitrate (NO3–). Powder biochar incorporated throughout the soil reduced cumulative NH4–N, NO3–N, and total N mass leached (average of 25% reduction) relative to control (no biochar) treatments. Biochar materials acted as P sources and were ineffective in reducing leachate P. Biosolids generally resulted in significant lower risk of N and P leaching than inorganic fertilizer. Results suggested biochar ability to retain N and P in soils varies with biochar source, application method, and nutrient source. Biochar type and application method affected N and P dynamics in biosolids or inorganic fertilizer‐amended soils, but understanding the mechanisms requires additional study.

Biochar Nanozyme from Silkworm Excrement for Scavenging Vapor-Phase Free Radicals in Cigarette Smoke.

Serious lung diseases and other health problems caused by tobacco consumption are becoming more and more prominent all over the world. Scavenging the excessive harmful free radicals in cigarette smoke is proven to be an effective method in reducing the above problems. Carbon-based nanozymes have been widely studied due to their ability of scavenging free radicals. Accordingly, the biochar derived from silkworm excrement was reported as a nanozyme with free radical scavenging ability. The biochar nanozyme calcination at 900 °C with better free radical scavenging abilities was loaded into commercial cigarette filters for the following free radical scavenging verification in tobacco smoke. Mouse model results reveal the lung tissue could be improved by the addition of biochar nanozyme. This work not only provides an effective approach to reduce the harm caused by tobacco but also provides potential applications to rationally realize low-cost, ease of production, and a wide variety of biochar sources.

Ammonia volatilization from manure mixed with biochar

Ammonia (NH3) volatilization from NH3-based fertilizer and animal manure reduces their nitrogen (N) fertilizer value and is a source of environmental pollution. Mixing manure with biochar may lower NH3 volatilization from manure by adding H+, adsorbing mineral N, or increasing N immobilization in microbial biomass. The objective of this study was to determine whether wood-based biochar could lower NH3 volatilization from vented pails containing manure (liquid swine, dairy slurry, and solid poultry manure) or a urea ammonium nitrate solution (UAN). Two types of wood-based biochar (BlueLeaf and Dynamotive) were mixed with three types of manure and UAN fertilizer solution at 0, 2.5, 5, 10, and 25% biochar by volume in vented pails. After 21 d storage in an outdoor shaded area, the greatest NH3 volatilization was from poultry manure, which had pH 9.4 on average and low water content regardless of the biochar source and application rate. There was less NH3 volatilization from UAN fertilizer solution when mixed with 25% (v/v) of Dynamotive biochar compared with NH3 volatilization from UAN fertilizer solution mixed with 0%–10% (%) of Dynamotive biochar, probably because pH decreased from 7.0 to 6.4 after 21 d contact. Mixing wood-based biochar with manure had no impact on NH3 volatilization, suggesting that these biochar sources did not appreciably change the pH and N dynamics in stored manure after 21 d.

Differences in carbon and nitrogen retention and bacterial diversity in sandy soil in response to application methods of charred organic materials

The use of charred organic materials (biochar) as soil amendment can alter soil nutrient, microbial abundance, and their diversities. These alterations can be influenced by the biochar source, application method and amount, but the details are still unknown. Thus, this study aimed to compare two methods of biochar application (surface or mixed) on carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) losses with their related effect on microbial community under C-depleted sandy soil. Chicken manure (CM), rice husk (RH) and rice straw (RS), pyrolyzed at 350 °C to produce biochar, were tested in a pot trial. The biochar was applied singly, and in combined forms (CM + RH and CM + RS) under dent corn, as mixed (incorporated) or surface application, at different rates of 0, 15, and 30 g kg−1 soil (equivalent to 0, 7.5 and 15.0 Mg ha−1). The soil respiration (SR), leaching loss of organic-C and inorganic-N (as nitrate-N), microbial biomass C at top 10 cm soils, bacterial relative abundance and community structure were measured. The application methods' effect on SR was unclear but the surface application reduced the C leaching loss and increased nitrate-N loss compared to the mixed application, in general. The microbial biomass C was found to be significantly higher (P < 0.001) under the surface applied (459 ± 252 mg C kg−1 soil) compared to the mixed applied (76.1 ± 18.5 mg C kg−1 soil). Surface application of biochar also increased microbial diversity on soil surface. The increase in diversity was characterized by an increase in OTU numbers within the phylum Actinobacteria and Proteobacteria. We concluded that surface application of biochar increased the microbial diversities in the soil and thus, can retain C in low C soils through higher immobilization of C, but might be unsuitable when biochar is applied with the aim being to reduce nitrate-N loss in soils.

Specifically designed magnetic biochar from waste wood for arsenic removal

Arsenic is a carcinogenic substance, with many cases of poisoning related to arsenic pollution in groundwater. In Taiwan arsenic in groundwater caused the notorious Blackfoot disease. Methods for arsenic removal from water include precipitation, membrane processes, ion exchange, and adsorption, but these processing technologies suffer from high investment costs and complex operations. The traditional adsorption method cannot be used for arsenic removal due to its high operating costs, difficulties in recovery, and low adsorption capacity. To address these issues, this study designed an adsorption material based on biochar for arsenic removal with higher adsorption properties and easy recovery. Biochar sources are readily available from waste wood as a cheap and environmentally friendly material. The efficiency of As (III) removal is also promoted by FeCl3 and KMnO4. The objectives of this research are to obtain optimum operation conditions by assessing the effects of different iron and manganese contents, different doses, different pH and different initial concentration. The adsorption mechanism between As (III) and biochar was studied by adsorption isotherms and the kinetic model. X-ray diffraction, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and elemental analyzer analysis results show that modified biochar has major elements of Fe and Mn. There is greater magnetism, 40 emu g− 1, in the modified biochar. The maximum adsorption efficiency of 81% and 0.72 mg g− 1 capacity occurs when the ratio of Mn, Fe and C is 4:1:1. The adsorption capacity is high under higher pH with pristine biochar and 1FeC under lower pH with 1Fe2MnC. The reaction mechanism is divided into four pathways. The first pathway is the attachment of As (III) ions into the pore of biochar via physical adsorption. In the second pathway, biochar can connect with As (III) through hydrogen bonding from the function group -OH in the biochar and the As (III) itself. In the third pathway, they can contact each other by electron force when the biochar surface is filled with a positive charge. In the fourth pathway, the compounds of manganese have strong oxidizability to oxidize As (III) to As(V). The iron ions then act as a bridge connecting the biochar and the As (III), resulting in the formation of new complex compounds.

Biochar interaction with chemical fertilizer regulates soil organic carbon mineralization and the abundance of key C-cycling-related bacteria in rhizosphere soil

Biochar amendment in soils has been proposed as an important strategy to improve soil C retention. However, while the exact roles of different biochar types on soil organic carbon (SOC) dynamics are not clear, the effect of their interactions with chemical fertilization on SOC, the dynamics of C-cycling enzyme activities and key C-cycling-related bacteria in rhizosphere soil remain unexplored. Therefore, biochars derived from rice straw, bamboo, cow, and pig manure were applied with/without chemical fertilizer to study soil C dynamics, the activities, diversity, and abundance of different C-cycling-related bacteria in the plant-soil system. Biochar + fertilizer (BF), irrespective of biochar source, induced an initial increase in dissolved organic and inorganic C (DOC and DIC) that were subsequently reduced compared to biochar over 15-weeks. Higher intensities of C-containing functional groups rather than the total C content of biochar induced the mineralization of SOC. Also, higher nutrient uptake, biomass, and CO2 concentration in plants under BF had an insignificant influence on SOC. Similarly, the reduction in mineral-associated organic C, DOC, DIC, and invertase activity in BF soils was associated with a decrease in the relative abundance of some key C-cycling related bacterial orders: Gemmmatimonadales, Myxococcales, Nitrosomonadales, and Acidimicrobiales, while the hydrocarbon-degrading taxa (Sphingmonadales and Xanthomonadales), and N-cycling bacteria were stimulated. Hence, BF amendment could exert varied influences on C-cycling-related bacteria and on global C-cycling. The use of BF limited C-cycling and its loss by providing more N-substrates for N-cycling organisms, which also competed with most C-cycling-related bacteria for organic C to regulate C mineralization and its associated loss.

Sulfur embedded on in-situ carbon nanodisc decorated on graphene sheets for efficient photocatalytic activity and capacitive deionization method for heavy metal removal

Abstract The present work describes a low cost yet versatile and efficient method for the fabrication of highly robust materials for photodegradation of dyes, removal of heavy metal ions, and capacitive method is reported to the newest. In brief, sulfur was incorporated on in-situ carbon nanodisc decorated on the surface of layered graphene sheets from natural bio-char source Musa balbisiana at low temperature by hydrothermal technique. An appropriate approach to synthesize mesoporous and high surface area of 1050 m2 g−1 in the presence of KOH at 400 °C is reported. The photo-degradation shows 4 folds higher performance better than compared to activated carbon and heavy metal removal efficiency is very superior compared to commercially available activated carbon (CAC) and in-depth kinetic, thermodynamic, and mechanism were reported. Additionally, the performance of the capacitive deionization technique very efficiently used for the rapid removal of heavy metals like Pd+2, Cd+2 is a novel study employed.

The effects of biochars produced in different pyrolsis temperatures from agricultural wastes on cadmium uptake of tobacco plant.

Abiotic stresses caused by cadmium (Cd) contamination in soil retard plant growth and decline the quality of food. Amendment of biochar was reported effective in reduction of mobility, plant uptake and toxicity of Cd in plants. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of biochar applications produced from corn cob and rice husk at three different pyrolysis temperatures (400, 500 and 600 °C) on Cd uptake of tobacco plants. The results showed that the shoot Cd concentration and content of tobacco plants significantly increased with the application of Cd in increasing doses. The results showed that increasing Cd dosescaused significant increase (P < 0.01) in shoot Cd concentration and content of the tobacco plant at three different pyrolysis temperatures of both corn cob and rice husk biochars. The concentration of Cd was 0.48 mg kg−1 in Cd0 dose of corn cob biochar produced at 500 °C and increased to 61.6 mg kg−1 at Cd5, while Cd concentration increased to 72.3 mg kg−1 with rice husk biochar. Despite the increase in Cd concentrations and content, shoot Cd concentrations and contents were significantly (P < 0.01) reduced with the treatments of corn cob and rice husk biochars produced at different pyrolysis temperatures. The Cd concentration at Cd5 dose in the absence of biochar addition was 90.5 mg kg−1, while Cd concentration at Cd5 dose in 400, 500 and 600 °C treatments of corn cob biochar was reduced to 66.5, 61.6 and 67.3 mg kg−1 respectively, and to 77.0, 72.3 and 70.2 mg kg−1 in rice husk biochar. The results also revealed that corn cob biochar treatments were more effective in reducing Cd uptake of tobacco plants compared to rice husk biochar. Higher specific surface area of corncob biochar compared to rice husk biochar caused to the difference between two biochar sources on Cd uptake of tobacco plants.

Highly efficient As(III) removal in water using millimeter-sized porous granular MgO-biochar with high adsorption capacity

Biochar adsorbents for removing As(III) suffer from the problems of low adsorption capacity and ineffective removal. Herein, a granular MgO-embedded biochar (g-MgO-Bc) adsorbent is fabricated in the form of millimeter-sized particles through a simple gelation-calcination method using chitosan as biochar sources. High-density MgO nanoparticles are evenly dispersed throughout the biochar matrix and can be fully exposed to As(III) through the rich pores in g-MgO-Bc. These features endow the adsorbent with a high adsorption capacity of 249.1 mg/g for As(III). The g-MgO-Bc can efficiently remove As(III) over a wide pH of 3–10. The coexisting carbonate, nitrate, sulfate, silicate, and humic acid exert a negligible influence on As(III) removal. 300 μg/L of As(III) can be purified to far below 10 μg/L using only 0.3 g/L g-MgO-Bc. The spent g-MgO-Bc could be well regenerated by simple calcination. In fixed-bed column experiments, the effective treatment volume of As(III)-spiked groundwater achieves 1500 BV (30 L) (3 g of adsorbent, solution flow rate of 2.0 mL/min, C0 = 50 μg/L). The Mg(OH)2 generated in situ in g-MgO-Bc is responsible for the adsorption of As(III) through the inner-sphere complex mechanism. The work would extend the potential applicability of biochar adsorbent for As(III) removal to a great extent.

ASSESSMENT OF FARMERS ADAPTABILITY ON AKHA BIOCHAR FOR WHEAT PRODUCTION IN BANGLADESH

Akha biochar has the potential to exploit by farmer in Bangladesh. This study was undertaken to assess the perception of Akha biochar to utilize for wheat cultivation in the several farmer’s field of Bangladesh. This study aims to assess farmer’s adaptability on akha biochar for enhancing wheat production in Bangladesh. The utilization of Akha biochar as a source of nutrients supply for wheat production was investigated in this study. Akha Chula produced biochar was used as a Akha biochar source and the BARI Gom 28 was used as a testing plant. Five treatments like control (nothing was added), BARC (Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council) recommended fertilizer for wheat production, 5 kg/decimal biochar only, BARC recommended fertilizer plus 2.5 kg/decimal biochar and BARC recommended fertilizer plus 5 kg/decimal biochar. Same treatment was applied in three separate farmer’s field namely Mansur, Latif and Nayan. Among three farmers, Latif farmer field was highly fertile that resulted highest wheat productivity in several treatments. Result also showed that the BARC recommended dose with 2.5 kg biochar/ decimal produced highest wheat yield among the other treatments in all farmer’s field. These findings suggested that optimum level of Akha biochar amendments have potential benefits to improve soil fertility. The use of Akha biochar in addition to the chemical fertilizers in wheat production systems is an economically feasible and practical nutrient management practice. Our findings urged that reduction of chemical fertilizer application is possible with supplementation of Akha biochar. This study concluded that Akha biochar has the potential to improve soil fertility and productivity of wheat in Bangladesh.