Characteristics of biochar and its application in remediation of contaminated soil.

Biochar is produced by thermal decomposition of biomass under oxygen-limited conditions (pyrolysis), and it has received attention in soil remediation and waste disposal in recent years. The characteristics of biochar are influenced mainly by the preparation temperature and biomass. Higher pyrolysis temperature often results in the increased surface area and carbonized fraction of biochar leading to high sorption capability for pollutants. Biochars derived from various source materials show different properties of surface area, porosity and the amount of functional groups which are important concerning on the effect of biochar. Biochar has been proved to be effective in improving soil properties and increasing crop biomass. It has also been suggested that it can even enhance crop resistance to disease. Biochar has recently been used to remediate soil with both heavy metal and organic pollutants. The mechanism is electrostatic interaction and precipitation in the case of heavy metal, and the surface adsorption, partition and sequestration in the case of organic contaminants. However, application of biochar in soil has been shown to result in decreased efficacy of pesticides, which indicates a trade-off between the potentially promising effect of biochar on pesticide remediation and its negative effect on pesticide efficacy. While arguments on the effectiveness of biochar appear sound, further research is needed prior to widespread application of biochar in soil remediation.

[1]  Y. Inoue,et al.  Biochar amendment techniques for upland rice production in Northern Laos 1. Soil physical properties, leaf SPAD and grain yield , 2009 .

[2]  M. Antal,et al.  Charcoal Volatile Matter Content Influences Plant Growth and Soil Nitrogen Transformations , 2010 .

[3]  A. Dmitriev.  Induction of systemic resistance in plants. , 2004, TSitologiia i genetika.

[4]  Y. Elad,et al.  The Biochar Effect: plant resistance to biotic stresses , 2011 .

[5]  M. Barnett,et al.  An Assessment of U(VI) removal from groundwater using biochar produced from hydrothermal carbonization. , 2011, Journal of environmental management.

[6]  Dandan Zhou,et al.  Transitional adsorption and partition of nonpolar and polar aromatic contaminants by biochars of pine needles with different pyrolytic temperatures. , 2008, Environmental science & technology.

[7]  B. Richardson,et al.  Sorption of the herbicide terbuthylazine in two New Zealand forest soils amended with biosolids and biochars , 2010 .

[8]  D. Rav-David,et al.  Biochar mediates systemic response of strawberry to foliar fungal pathogens , 2012, Plant and Soil.

[9]  L. Beesley,et al.  The immobilisation and retention of soluble arsenic, cadmium and zinc by biochar. , 2011, Environmental pollution.

[10]  R. Kookana,et al.  Marked changes in herbicide sorption-desorption upon ageing of biochars in soil. , 2012, Journal of hazardous materials.

[11]  Davey L. Jones,et al.  Biochar effects on soil nutrient transformations , 2009 .

[12]  Pusker Regmi,et al.  Removal of copper and cadmium from aqueous solution using switchgrass biochar produced via hydrothermal carbonization process. , 2012, Journal of environmental management.

[13]  K. Spokas,et al.  Impacts of Biochar (Black Carbon) Additions on the Sorption and Efficacy of Herbicides , 2011 .

[14]  B. Xing,et al.  Compositions and sorptive properties of crop residue-derived chars. , 2004, Environmental Science and Technology.

[15]  Minori Uchimiya,et al.  Retention of heavy metals by carboxyl functional groups of biochars in small arms range soil. , 2012, Journal of agricultural and food chemistry.

[16]  P. Westerman,et al.  Management considerations for organic waste use in agriculture. , 2005, Bioresource technology.

[17]  H. Arp,et al.  Quantifying the total and bioavailable polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and dioxins in biochars. , 2012, Environmental science & technology.

[18]  K. T. Klasson,et al.  Influence of pyrolysis temperature on biochar property and function as a heavy metal sorbent in soil. , 2011, Journal of agricultural and food chemistry.

[19]  D. Laird,et al.  Short-term CO2 mineralization after additions of biochar and switchgrass to a Typic Kandiudult ☆ , 2010 .

[20]  R. Xu,et al.  Immobilization of Cu(II), Pb(II) and Cd(II) by the addition of rice straw derived biochar to a simulated polluted Ultisol. , 2012, Journal of hazardous materials.

[21]  Baoliang Chen,et al.  Enhanced sorption of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by soil amended with biochar , 2011 .

[22]  SeChin Chang,et al.  Immobilization of heavy metal ions (CuII, CdII, NiII, and PbII) by broiler litter-derived biochars in water and soil. , 2010, Journal of agricultural and food chemistry.

[23]  Johannes Lehmann,et al.  A handful of carbon , 2007, Nature.

[24]  Shahamat U. Khan,et al.  Immobilization of pentachlorophenol in soil using carbonaceous material amendments. , 2009, Environmental pollution.

[25]  Luke Beesley,et al.  Efficiency of green waste compost and biochar soil amendments for reducing lead and copper mobility and uptake to ryegrass. , 2011, Journal of hazardous materials.

[26]  C. Atkinson,et al.  Potential mechanisms for achieving agricultural benefits from biochar application to temperate soils: a review , 2010, Plant and Soil.

[27]  Stephen Joseph,et al.  Biochar for environmental management: an introduction , 2015 .

[28]  N. Peranio,et al.  Quantitative high-resolution mapping of phenanthrene sorption to black carbon particles. , 2011, Environmental science & technology.

[29]  B. Simoneit,et al.  Solvent-extractable polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in biochar: influence of pyrolysis temperature and feedstock. , 2012, Environmental science & technology.

[30]  Suzelle Barrington,et al.  Effectiveness of three bulking agents for food waste composting. , 2009, Waste management.

[31]  A. Zimmerman,et al.  Adsorption of sulfamethoxazole on biochar and its impact on reclaimed water irrigation. , 2012, Journal of hazardous materials.

[32]  P. Pullammanappallil,et al.  Biochar derived from anaerobically digested sugar beet tailings: characterization and phosphate removal potential. , 2011, Bioresource technology.

[33]  F. Miglietta,et al.  Impact of biochar application to a Mediterranean wheat crop on soil microbial activity and greenhouse gas fluxes. , 2011, Chemosphere.

[34]  Gareth Edwards-Jones,et al.  Biochar-mediated changes in soil quality and plant growth in a three year field trial , 2012 .

[35]  L. Tsechansky,et al.  Sorption, Volatilization, and Efficacy of the Fumigant 1,3-Dichloropropene in a Biochar-Amended Soil , 2011 .

[36]  Jun Jiang,et al.  Adsorption of Pb(II) on variable charge soils amended with rice-straw derived biochar. , 2012, Chemosphere.

[37]  L. Beesley,et al.  A review of biochars' potential role in the remediation, revegetation and restoration of contaminated soils. , 2011, Environmental pollution.

[38]  C. Masiello,et al.  Temperature sensitivity of black carbon decomposition and oxidation. , 2010, Environmental science & technology.

[39]  Lester Smith,et al.  Poor efficacy of herbicides in biochar-amended soils as affected by their chemistry and mode of action. , 2011, Chemosphere.

[40]  L. Van Zwieten,et al.  Biochar Application to Soil: Agronomic and Environmental Benefits and Unintended Consequences , 2011 .

[41]  J. Rivera-Utrilla,et al.  Adsorbent-adsorbate interactions in the adsorption of Cd(II) and Hg(II) on ozonized activated carbons. , 2002, Environmental science & technology.

[42]  John Gaunt,et al.  Bio-char Sequestration in Terrestrial Ecosystems – A Review , 2006 .

[43]  R. Kookana,et al.  Reduced plant uptake of pesticides with biochar additions to soil. , 2009, Chemosphere.

[44]  Minori Uchimiya,et al.  Sorption of triazine and organophosphorus pesticides on soil and biochar. , 2012, Journal of agricultural and food chemistry.

[45]  H. Andry,et al.  Effect of cow manure biochar on maize productivity under sandy soil condition , 2011 .

[46]  Weihua Zhang,et al.  Relative distribution of Pb2+ sorption mechanisms by sludge-derived biochar. , 2012, Water research.

[47]  Y. Qiu,et al.  Effectiveness and mechanisms of dye adsorption on a straw-based biochar. , 2009, Bioresource technology.

[48]  Caroline A. Masiello,et al.  Biochar effects on soil biota – A review , 2011 .

[49]  Yanzheng Gao,et al.  Cosorption of phenanthrene and mercury(II) from aqueous solution by soybean stalk-based biochar. , 2011, Journal of agricultural and food chemistry.

[50]  M. Hodson,et al.  Effects of biochar and the earthworm Eisenia fetida on the bioavailability of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and potentially toxic elements. , 2011, Environmental pollution.

[51]  David A. Laird,et al.  The Charcoal Vision: A Win–Win–Win Scenario for Simultaneously Producing Bioenergy, Permanently Sequestering Carbon, while Improving Soil and Water Quality , 2008 .

[52]  Emma Marris,et al.  Putting the carbon back: Black is the new green , 2006, Nature.

[53]  Baoliang Chen,et al.  A novel magnetic biochar efficiently sorbs organic pollutants and phosphate. , 2011, Bioresource technology.

[54]  L. Douglass,et al.  Compost age and sample storage effects on maturity indicators of biosolids compost. , 2001, Journal of environmental quality.

[55]  P. Pullammanappallil,et al.  Enhanced Lead Sorption by Biochar Derived from Anaerobically Digested Sugarcane Bagasse , 2011 .

[56]  P. Lavelle,et al.  Biochar but not earthworms enhances rice growth through increased protein turnover. , 2012 .

[57]  W. P. Ball,et al.  Sorption of aqueous Zn[II] and Cd[II] by multiwall carbon nanotubes: the relative roles of oxygen-containing functional groups and graphenic carbon. , 2010, Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids.

[58]  H. Cui,et al.  Enhancing phosphorus availability in phosphorus-fertilized zones by reducing phosphate adsorbed on ferrihydrite using rice straw-derived biochar , 2011 .

[59]  U. Ghosh,et al.  Effectiveness of activated carbon and biochar in reducing the availability of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins/dibenzofurans in soils. , 2012, Environmental science & technology.

[60]  J. Skjemstad,et al.  Black Carbon Increases Cation Exchange Capacity in Soils , 2006 .

[61]  Hui Zhou,et al.  Temperature- and duration-dependent rice straw-derived biochar: Characteristics and its effects on soil properties of an Ultisol in southern China , 2011 .

[62]  B. Robinson,et al.  Biochar for the mitigation of nitrate leaching from soil amended with biosolids. , 2011, The Science of the total environment.

[63]  Ying-xu Chen,et al.  Sorption and desorption of pentachlorophenol to black carbon of three different origins. , 2011, Journal of hazardous materials.

[64]  Asunción Roig,et al.  Use of biochar as bulking agent for the composting of poultry manure: effect on organic matter degradation and humification. , 2010, Bioresource technology.

[65]  P. Oleszczuk,et al.  Activated Carbon and Biochar Amendments Decrease Pore-water Concentrations of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (pahs) in Sewage Sludge , 2022 .

[66]  N. Borchard,et al.  Physical activation of biochar and its meaning for soil fertility and nutrient leaching – a greenhouse experiment , 2012 .

[67]  Warren J. Busscher,et al.  Selection and Use of Designer Biochars to Improve Characteristics of Southeastern USA Coastal Plain Degraded Soils , 2013 .

[68]  M. Engelhard,et al.  Long-term black carbon dynamics in cultivated soil , 2008 .

[69]  David A. Laird,et al.  The Charcoal Vision : A Win – Win – Win Scenario for Simultaneously Producing Bioenergy , Permanently Sequestering Carbon , while Improving Soil and Water Quality , 2008 .

[70]  K. T. Klasson,et al.  Copper(II) adsorption by activated carbons from pecan shells: effect of oxygen level during activation. , 2009 .

[71]  L. Zwieten,et al.  Effect of biochar amendment on the soil-atmosphere exchange of greenhouse gases from an intensive subtropical pasture in northern New South Wales, Australia , 2011, Plant and Soil.

[72]  M. Velde,et al.  Biochar Application to Soils - A Critical Scientific Review of Effects on Soil Properties, Processes and Functions , 2010 .

[73]  Joseph J Pignatello,et al.  Effect of natural organic substances on the surface and adsorptive properties of environmental black carbon (char): pseudo pore blockage by model lipid components and its implications for N2-probed surface properties of natural sorbents. , 2005, Environmental science & technology.

[74]  Baoliang Chen,et al.  Enhanced bioremediation of PAH-contaminated soil by immobilized bacteria with plant residue and biochar as carriers , 2012, Journal of Soils and Sediments.

[75]  Yuncong C. Li,et al.  Characteristics and mechanisms of hexavalent chromium removal by biochar from sugar beet tailing. , 2011, Journal of hazardous materials.

[76]  J. Paz-Ferreiro,et al.  Effects of sewage sludge biochar on plant metal availability after application to a Mediterranean soil. , 2012, Chemosphere.

[77]  Xinde Cao,et al.  Properties of dairy-manure-derived biochar pertinent to its potential use in remediation. , 2010, Bioresource technology.