Oxidation of Black Carbon by Biotic and Abiotic Processes

Abstract The objectives of this study were to assess the relative importance of either biotic or abiotic oxidation of biomass-derived black carbon (BC) and to characterize the surface properties and charge characteristics of oxidized BC. We incubated BC and BC–soil mixtures at two temperatures (30 °C and 70 °C), with and without microbial inoculation, nutrient addition, or manure amendment for four months. Abiotic processes were more important for oxidation of BC than biotic processes during this short-term incubation, as inoculation with microorganisms at 30 °C did not change any of the measured indicators of surface oxidation. Black C incubated at both 30 °C and 70 °C without microbial activity showed a decrease in pH (in water) from 5.4 to 5.2 and 3.4, as well as an increase in cation exchange capacity (CEC at pH 7) by 53% and 538% and in oxygen (O) content by 4% and 38%, respectively. Boehm titration and Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy suggested that formation of carboxylic functional groups was the reason for the enhanced CEC during oxidation. Analysis of surface properties of BC using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) indicated that the oxidation of BC particles was initiated on the surface. Incubation at 30 °C only enhanced oxidation on particle surfaces, while oxidation during incubation at 70 °C penetrated into the interior of particles. Such short-term oxidation of BC has significance for the stability of BC in soils as well as for its effects on soil fertility and biogeochemistry.

[1]  R. M. Bustin,et al.  FTIR spectroscopy and reflectance of modern charcoals and fungal decayed woods: implications for studies of inertinite in coals , 1998 .

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

[3]  Jeff Baldock,et al.  Chemical composition and bioavailability of thermally altered Pinus resinosa (Red pine) wood , 2002 .

[4]  C. Morterra,et al.  The Nature of the 1600 cm−1 Band of Carbons , 1982 .

[5]  B. Puri.  SURFACE OXIDATION OF CHARCOAL AT ORDINARY TEMPERATURES , 1962 .

[6]  H. Boehm.,et al.  Functional Groups on the Surfaces of Solids , 1966 .

[7]  H. Boehm.,et al.  Some aspects of the surface chemistry of carbon blacks and other carbons , 1994 .

[8]  Fred Shafizadeh,et al.  Chemisorption of oxygen on cellulose char , 1980 .

[9]  N. Price,et al.  Organic Geochemistry , 1970, Nature.

[10]  W. E. Marshall,et al.  Surface functional groups on acid-activated nutshell carbons , 1999 .

[11]  C. Morterra,et al.  IR studies of carbons—III: The oxidation of cellulose chars , 1984 .

[12]  Steven D. Gardner,et al.  Surface properties of electrochemically oxidized carbon fibers , 1999 .

[13]  Bernd Marschner,et al.  Interactive priming of black carbon and glucose mineralisation , 2004 .

[14]  J. Lehmann,et al.  Bio-char soil management on highly weathered soils in the humid tropics , 2006 .

[15]  R. Fakoussa,et al.  Biological bleaching of water-soluble coal macromolecules by a basidiomycete strain , 1997, Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology.

[16]  L. Lundgaard,et al.  Oxidation of Cellulose , 2008, Conference Record of the 2008 IEEE International Symposium on Electrical Insulation.

[17]  Chris Jacobsen,et al.  Near‐edge X‐ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) spectroscopy for mapping nano‐scale distribution of organic carbon forms in soil: Application to black carbon particles , 2005 .

[18]  D. Furlong,et al.  The electrokinetic properties of carbon black and graphitized carbon black aqueous colloids , 1986 .

[19]  R. J. Holmes,et al.  An examination of how exposure to humid air can result in changes in the adsorption properties of activated carbons , 1988 .

[20]  K. László,et al.  Surface chemistry of nanoporous carbon and the effect of pH on adsorption from aqueous phenol and 2,3,4-trichlorophenol solutions , 2003 .

[21]  G. Sheng,et al.  Pesticide adsorptivity of aged particulate matter arising from crop residue burns. , 2003, Journal of agricultural and food chemistry.

[22]  M. McBride,et al.  Thermally induced changes in metal solubility of contaminated soils is linked to mineral recrystallization and organic matter transformations. , 2001, Environmental science & technology.

[23]  J. Yates,et al.  FTIR study of the oxidation of amorphous carbon by ozone at 300 K — Direct COOH formation , 2001 .

[24]  N. Uphoff.  Biological Approaches to Sustainable Soil Systems , 2006 .

[25]  F. Rodríguez-Reinoso,et al.  Chemistry and Physics of Carbon , 2022 .

[26]  H. Shindo.  Elementary composition, humus composition, and decomposition in soil of charred grassland plants , 1991 .

[27]  M. Hofrichter,et al.  Biotechnology and microbiology of coal degradation , 1999, Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology.

[28]  E. A. Shneour.  Oxidation of Graphitic Carbon in Certain Soils , 1966, Science.

[29]  A. Chughtai,et al.  The Structure of Hexane Soot. Part III: Ozonation Studies , 1987 .

[30]  S. Parker,et al.  INS-, SIMS- and XPS-investigations of diesel engine exhaust particles , 2000 .

[31]  E. Rideal,et al.  CLXXXIV.—Low temperature oxidation at charcoal surfaces. Part I. The behaviour of charcoal in the absence of promoters , 1925 .

[32]  Da,et al.  Slash-and-char: a Feasible Alternative for Soil Fertility Management in the Central Amazon? , 2022 .

[33]  J. Skjemstad,et al.  The chemistry and nature of protected carbon in soil , 1996 .

[34]  A. Celzard,et al.  Electrical conductivity of anthracites as a function of heat treatment temperature , 2000 .

[35]  G. Cody,et al.  NMR studies of chemical structural variation of insoluble organic matter from different carbonaceous chondrite groups , 2005 .

[36]  M. G. Evans,et al.  The growth of surface oxygen complexes on the surface of activated carbon exposed to moist air and their effect on methyl iodide-131 retention , 1984 .

[37]  F. Carrasco-Marín,et al.  Changes in surface chemistry of activated carbons by wet oxidation , 2000 .

[38]  Y. Imamura,et al.  Reactivity of wood charcoal with ozone , 2005, Journal of Wood Science.

[39]  E. H. Tryon,et al.  Effect of Charcoal on Certain Physical, Chemical, and Biological Properties of Forest Soils , 1948 .

[40]  E. Veenendaal,et al.  Stability of elemental carbon in a savanna soil , 1999 .

[41]  Georg Guggenberger,et al.  The 'Terra Preta' phenomenon: a model for sustainable agriculture in the humid tropics , 2001, Naturwissenschaften.

[42]  H. Teng,et al.  Activation energy for oxygen chemisorption on carbon at low temperatures , 1999 .

[43]  J. Lehmann,et al.  Ameliorating physical and chemical properties of highly weathered soils in the tropics with charcoal – a review , 2002, Biology and Fertility of Soils.

[44]  M. Schmidt,et al.  Black carbon in soils and sediments: Analysis, distribution, implications, and current challenges , 2000 .

[45]  G. Brindley.  Atlas of infrared spectroscopy of clay minerals and their admixtures , 1977 .

[46]  A. Podgórska,et al.  Microbial degradation of low rank coals , 2002 .

[47]  E. Goldberg.  Black carbon in the environment : properties and distribution / Edward D. Goldberg , 1985 .

[48]  J. S. Mattson,et al.  Activated carbon: surface chemistry and adsorption from solution, , 1971 .

[49]  P. Crutzen,et al.  Toward a global estimate of black carbon in residues of vegetation fires representing a sink of atmospheric CO2 and a source of O2 , 1995 .

[50]  K. Edwards,et al.  14C-Dead Living Biomass: Evidence for Microbial Assimilation of Ancient Organic Carbon During Shale Weathering , 2001, Science.

[51]  J. M. Kim,et al.  The Effect of Temperature and Humidity on the Reaction of Ozone with Combustion Soot: Implications for Reactivity near the Tropopause , 2003 .