This article may require copy editing for cohesion.(May 2024) |
Biochar is charcoal, sometimes modified, that is intended for organic use, as in soil. It is the lightweight black remnants, consisting of carbon and ashes, remaining after the pyrolysis of biomass, and is a form of charcoal. [1] Despite its name, immediately following production biochar is sterile and only gains biological life following assisted or incidental exposure to biota.
Biochar is defined by the International Biochar Initiative as the "solid material obtained from the thermochemical conversion of biomass in an oxygen-limited environment". [2]
Biochar is mainly used in soils to increase soil aeration, reduce soil emissions of greenhouse gases, [3] reduce nutrient leaching and reduce soil acidity [4] and can increase soil water content in coarse soils. [5] Biochar application may increase soil fertility and agricultural productivity. [4] Biochar soil amendments, when applied at excessive rates or with unsuitable soil type and biochar feedstock combinations, also have the potential for negative effects, including harming soil biota, reducing available water content, altering soil pH and increasing salinity. [6]
Beyond soil application, biochar can be used for slash-and-char farming, for water retention in soil, and as an additive for animal fodder. There is an increasing focus on the potential role of biochar application in global climate change mitigation. Due to its refractory stability, biochar can stay in soils or other environments for thousands of years. [7] This has given rise to the concept of Biochar Carbon Removal, i.e. carbon sequestration in the form of biochar. [7] Carbon removal can be achieved when high-quality biochar is applied to soils, or added as a substitute material to construction materials such as concrete and tar.
The word "biochar" is a late 20th century English neologism derived from the Greek word βίος , bios, "life" and "char" (charcoal produced by carbonization of biomass). [8] It is recognized as charcoal that participates in biological processes found in soil, aquatic habitats and in animal digestive systems.[ citation needed ]
Pre-Columbian Amazonians produced biochar by smoldering agricultural waste (i.e., covering burning biomass with soil) [9] in pits or trenches. [10] It is not known if they intentionally used biochar to enhance soil productivity. [10] European settlers called it terra preta de Indio . [11] Following observations and experiments, one research team working in French Guiana hypothesized that the Amazonian earthworm Pontoscolex corethrurus was the main agent of fine powdering and incorporation of charcoal debris in the mineral soil. [12]
Biochar is a high-carbon, fine-grained residue that is produced via pyrolysis; it is the direct thermal decomposition of biomass in the absence of oxygen (preventing combustion), which produces a mixture of solids (biochar), liquid (bio-oil), and gas (syngas) products. [13]
Gasifiers produce most of the biochar sold in the United States. [14] The gasification process consists of four main stages: oxidation, drying, pyrolysis, and reduction. [15] Temperature during pyrolysis in gasifiers is 250–550 °C (523–823 K), 600–800 °C (873–1,073 K) in the reduction zone and 800–1,000 °C (1,070–1,270 K) in the combustion zone. [16]
The specific yield from pyrolysis, the step of gasification that produces biochar, is dependent on process conditions such as temperature, heating rate, and residence time. [17] These parameters can be tuned to produce either more energy or more biochar. [18] Temperatures of 400–500 °C (673–773 K) produce more char, whereas temperatures above 700 °C (973 K) favor the yield of liquid and gas fuel components. [19] Pyrolysis occurs more quickly at higher temperatures, typically requiring seconds rather than hours. The increasing heating rate leads to a decrease in biochar yield, while the temperature is in the range of 350–600 °C (623–873 K). [20] Typical yields are 60% bio-oil, 20% biochar, and 20% syngas. By comparison, slow pyrolysis can produce substantially more char (≈35%); [19] this contributes to soil fertility. Once initialized, both processes produce net energy. For typical inputs, the energy required to run a "fast" pyrolyzer is approximately 15% of the energy that it outputs. [21] Pyrolysis plants can use the syngas output and yield 3–9 times the amount of energy required to run. [10]
The Amazonian pit/trench method, [10] in contrast, harvests neither bio-oil nor syngas, and releases CO2, black carbon, and other greenhouse gases (GHGs) (and potentially, toxicants) into the air, though less greenhouse gasses than captured during the growth of the biomass.[ citation needed ] Commercial-scale systems process agricultural waste, paper byproducts, and even municipal waste and typically eliminate these side effects by capturing and using the liquid and gas products. [22] [23] The 2018 winner of the X Prize Foundation for atmospheric water generators harvests potable water from the drying stage of the gasification process. [24] [25] The production of biochar as an output is not a priority in most cases.[ citation needed ]
Smallholder farmers in developing countries easily produce their own biochar without special equipment. They make piles of crop waste (e.g., maize stalks, rice straw, or wheat straw), light the piles on the top, and quench the embers with dirt or water to make biochar. This method greatly reduces smoke compared to traditional methods of burning crop waste. This method is known as the top-down burn or conservation burn. [27] [28] [29]
Alternatively, more industrial methods can be used on small scales. While in a centralized system, unused biomass is brought to a central plant for processing into biochar, [30] it is also possible for each farmer or group of farmers can operate a kiln.[ citation needed ] In this scenario, a truck equipped with a pyrolyzer can move from place to place to pyrolyze biomass. Vehicle power comes from the syngas stream, while the biochar remains on the farm. The biofuel is sent to a refinery or storage site. Factors that influence the choice of system type include the cost of transportation of the liquid and solid byproducts, the amount of material to be processed, and the ability to supply the power grid.[ citation needed ]
Various companies in North America, Australia, and England also sell biochar or biochar production units. In Sweden, the 'Stockholm Solution' is an urban tree planting system that uses 30% biochar to support urban forest growth. [31] At the 2009 International Biochar Conference, a mobile pyrolysis unit with a specified intake of 1,000 pounds (450 kg) was introduced for agricultural applications. [32]
Common crops used for making biochar include various tree species, as well as various energy crops. Some of these energy crops (i.e. Napier grass) can store much more carbon on a shorter timespan than trees do. [33]
For crops that are not exclusively for biochar production, the Residue-to-Product Ratio (RPR) and the collection factor (CF), the percent of the residue not used for other things, measure the approximate amount of feedstock that can be obtained. For instance, Brazil harvests approximately 460 million tons (MT) of sugarcane annually, [34] with an RPR of 0.30, and a CF of 0.70 for the sugarcane tops, which normally are burned in the field. [35] This translates into approximately 100 MT of residue annually, which could be pyrolyzed to create energy and soil additives. Adding in the bagasse (sugarcane waste) (RPR=0.29 CF=1.0), which is otherwise burned (inefficiently) in boilers, raises the total to 230 MT of pyrolysis feedstock. Some plant residue, however, must remain on the soil to avoid increased costs and emissions from nitrogen fertilizers. [36]
Besides pyrolysis, torrefaction and hydrothermal carbonization processes can also thermally decompose biomass to the solid material. However, these products cannot be strictly defined as biochar. The carbon product from the torrefaction process contains some volatile organic components, thus its properties are between that of biomass feedstock and biochar. [37] Furthermore, even the hydrothermal carbonization could produce a carbon-rich solid product, the hydrothermal carbonization is evidently different from the conventional thermal conversion process. [38] Therefore, the solid product from hydrothermal carbonization is defined as "hydrochar" rather than "biochar".[ citation needed ]
Thermo-catalytic depolymerization is another method to produce biochar, which utilizes microwaves. It has been used to efficiently convert organic matter to biochar on an industrial scale, producing ≈50% char. [39] [40]
The physical and chemical properties of biochars as determined by feedstocks and technologies are crucial. Characterization data explain their performance in a specific use. For example, guidelines published by the International Biochar Initiative provide standardized evaluation methods. [13] Properties can be categorized in several respects, including the proximate and elemental composition, pH value, and porosity. The atomic ratios of biochar, including H/C and O/C, correlate with the properties that are relevant to organic content, such as polarity and aromaticity. [41] A van-Krevelen diagram can show the evolution of biochar atomic ratios in the production process. [42] In the carbonization process, both the H/C and O/C atomic ratios decrease due to the release of functional groups that contain hydrogen and oxygen. [43]
Production temperatures influence biochar properties in several ways. The molecular carbon structure of the solid biochar matrix is particularly affected. Initial pyrolysis at 450–550 °C leaves an amorphous carbon structure. Temperatures above this range will result in the progressive thermochemical conversion of amorphous carbon into turbostratic graphene sheets. Biochar conductivity also increases with production temperature. [44] [45] [46] Important to carbon capture, aromaticity and intrinsic recalcitrance increases with temperature. [47]
The refractory stability of biochar leads to the concept of Biochar Carbon Removal, i.e. carbon sequestration in the form of biochar. [48] [7] It may be a means to mitigate climate change due to its potential of sequestering carbon with minimal effort. [49] [50] [51] Biomass burning and natural decomposition releases large amounts of carbon dioxide and methane to the Earth's atmosphere. The biochar production process also releases CO2 (up to 50% of the biomass); however, the remaining carbon content becomes indefinitely stable. [51] Biochar carbon remains in the ground for centuries, slowing the growth in atmospheric greenhouse gas levels. Simultaneously, its presence in the earth can improve water quality, increase soil fertility, raise agricultural productivity, and reduce pressure on old-growth forests. [52]
Biochar can sequester carbon in the soil for hundreds to thousands of years, like coal. [53] [54] [55] [56] [57] Early works proposing the use of biochar for carbon dioxide removal to create a long-term stable carbon sink were published in the early 2000s. [58] [59] [60] This technique is advocated by scientists including James Hansen [61] and James Lovelock. [62]
A 2010 report estimated that sustainable use of biochar could reduce the global net emissions of carbon dioxide (CO
2), methane, and nitrous oxide by up to 1.8 billion tonnes carbon dioxide equivalent (CO
2e) per year (compared to the about 50 billion tonnes emitted in 2021), without endangering food security, habitats, or soil conservation. [51] However a 2018 study doubted enough biomass would be available to achieve significant carbon sequestration. [63] A 2021 review estimated potential CO2 removal from 1.6 to 3.2 billion tonnes per year, [64] and by 2023 it had become a lucrative business renovated by carbon credits. [65]
As of 2023, the significance of biochar's potential as a carbon sink is widely accepted. Biochar is found to have the technical potential to sequester 7% of carbon dioxide in average of all countries, with twelve nations able to sequester over 20% of their greenhouse gas emissions. Bhutan leads this proportion (68%), followed by India (53%). [66]
In 2021 the cost of biochar ranged around European carbon prices, [67] but was not yet included in the EU or UK Emissions Trading Scheme. [68]
In developing countries, biochar derived from improved cookstoves for home-use can contribute[ clarification needed ] to lower carbon emissions if use of original cookstove is discontinued, while achieving other benefits for sustainable development. [69]
Biochar offers multiple soil health benefits in degraded tropical soils but is less beneficial in temperate regions. [70] [71] Its porous nature is effective at retaining both water and water-soluble nutrients. Soil biologist Elaine Ingham highlighted its suitability as a habitat for beneficial soil micro organisms. She pointed out that when pre-charged with these beneficial organisms, biochar promotes good soil and plant health. [72]
Biochar reduces leaching of E-coli through sandy soils depending on application rate, feedstock, pyrolysis temperature, soil moisture content, soil texture, and surface properties of the bacteria. [73] [74] [75]
For plants that require high potash and elevated pH, [76] biochar can improve yield. [77]
Biochar can improve water quality, reduce soil emissions of greenhouse gases, reduce nutrient leaching, reduce soil acidity, [78] and reduce irrigation and fertilizer requirements. [79] Under certain circumstances biochar induces plant systemic responses to foliar fungal diseases and improves plant responses to diseases caused by soilborne pathogens. [80] [81] [82]
Biochar's impacts are dependent on its properties [83] as well as the amount applied, [82] although knowledge about the important mechanisms and properties is limited. [84] Biochar impact may depend on regional conditions including soil type, soil condition (depleted or healthy), temperature, and humidity. [85] Modest additions of biochar reduce nitrous oxide (N
2O) [86] emissions by up to 80% and eliminate methane emissions, which are both more potent greenhouse gases than CO2. [87]
Studies reported positive effects from biochar on crop production in degraded and nutrient–poor soils. [88] The application of compost and biochar under FP7 project FERTIPLUS had positive effects on soil humidity, crop productivity and quality in multiple countries. [89] Biochar can be adapted with specific qualities to target distinct soil properties. [90] In Colombian savanna soil, biochar reduced leaching of critical nutrients, created a higher nutrient uptake, and provided greater nutrient availability. [91] At 10% levels biochar reduced contaminant levels in plants by up to 80%, while reducing chlordane and DDX content in the plants by 68 and 79%, respectively. [92] However, because of its high adsorption capacity, biochar may reduce pesticide efficacy. [93] [94] High-surface-area biochars may be particularly problematic. [93]
Biochar may be plowed into soils in crop fields to enhance their fertility and stability and for medium- to long-term carbon sequestration in these soils. It has meant a remarkable improvement in tropical soils showing positive effects in increasing soil fertility and improving disease resistance in West European soils. [89] Gardeners taking individual action on climate change add biochar to soil, [95] increasing plant yield and thereby drawing down more carbon. [96] The use of biochar as a feed additive can be a way to apply biochar to pastures and to reduce methane emissions. [97] [98]
Application rates of 2.5–20 tonnes per hectare (1.0–8.1 t/acre) appear required to improve plant yields significantly. Biochar costs in developed countries vary from $300–7000/tonne, which is generally impractical for the farmer/horticulturalist and prohibitive for low-input field crops. In developing countries, constraints on agricultural biochar relate more to biomass availability and production time. A compromise is to use small amounts of biochar in lower-cost biochar-fertilizer complexes. [99]
Biochar soil amendments, when applied at excessive rates or with unsuitable soil type and biochar feedstock combinations, also have the potential for negative effects, including harming soil biota, reducing available water content, altering soil pH and increasing salinity. [6]
Biochar can remove heavy metals from the soil. [100]
Switching from slash-and-burn to slash-and-char farming techniques in Brazil can decrease both deforestation of the Amazon basin and carbon dioxide emission, as well as increase crop yields. Slash-and-burn leaves only 3% of the carbon from the organic material in the soil. [101] Slash-and-char can retain up to 50%. [102] Biochar reduces the need for nitrogen fertilizers, thereby reducing cost and emissions from fertilizer production and transport. [103] Additionally, by improving soil's till-ability, fertility, and productivity, biochar-enhanced soils can indefinitely sustain agricultural production, whereas slash/burn soils quickly become depleted of nutrients, forcing farmers to abandon the fields, producing a continuous slash and burn cycle. Using pyrolysis to produce bio-energy does not require infrastructure changes the way, for example, processing biomass for cellulosic ethanol does. Additionally, biochar can be applied by the widely used machinery. [104]
Biochar is hygroscopic due to its porous structure and high specific surface area. [105] As a result, fertilizer and other nutrients are retained for plants' benefit.
Biochar has been used in animal feed for centuries. [106]
Doug Pow, a Western Australian farmer, explored the use of biochar mixed with molasses as stock fodder. He asserted that in ruminants, biochar can assist digestion and reduce methane production. He also used dung beetles to work the resulting biochar-infused dung into the soil without using machinery. The nitrogen and carbon in the dung were both incorporated into the soil rather than staying on the soil surface, reducing the production of nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide. The nitrogen and carbon added to soil fertility. On-farm evidence indicates that the fodder led to improvements of liveweight gain in Angus-cross cattle. [107] Doug Pow won the Australian Government Innovation in Agriculture Land Management Award at the 2019 Western Australian Landcare Awards for this innovation. [108] [107] Pow's work led to two further trials on dairy cattle, yielding reduced odour and increased milk production. [109]
Ordinary Portland cement (OPC), an essential component of concrete mix, is energy- and emissions-intensive to produce; cement production accounts for around 8% of global CO2 emissions. [110] The concrete industry has increasingly shifted to using supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs), additives that reduce the volume of OPC in a mix while maintaining or improving concrete properties. [111] Biochar has been shown to be an effective SCM, reducing concrete production emissions while maintaining required strength and ductility properties. [112] [113]
Studies have found that a 1-2% weight concentration of biochar is optimal for use in concrete mixes, from both a cost and strength standpoint. [112] A 2 wt.% biochar solution has been shown to increase concrete flexural strength by 15% in a three-point bending test conducted after 7 days, compared to traditional OPC concrete. [113] Biochar concrete also shows promise in high-temperature resistance and permeability reduction. [114]
A cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment of biochar concrete showed decreased production emissions with higher concentrations of biochar, which tracks with a reduction in OPC. [115] Compared to other SCMs from industrial waste streams (such as fly ash and silica fume), biochar also showed decreased toxicity.[ citation needed ]
Biochar mixed with liquid media such as water or organic liquids (ethanol, etc.) is an emerging fuel type known as biochar-based slurry. [116] Adapting slow pyrolysis in large biomass fields and installations enables the generation of biochar slurries with unique characteristics. These slurries are becoming promising fuels in countries with regional areas where biomass is abundant, and power supply relies heavily on diesel generators. [117] This type of fuel resembles a coal slurry, but with the advantage that it can be derived from biochar from renewable resources.
Biochar, also can have applications in the field of water treatment. [118] Its porosity and properties can be modified using different methods to increase the efficiency of removal. [119] Several contaminants such as heavy metals, dyes, organic pollutants are reported to be removed by biochar. [100] [120] [121]
This section may require copy editing for technical detail.(May 2024) |
Research into aspects involving pyrolysis/biochar is underway around the world, but as of 2018 [update] was still in its infancy. [63] From 2005 to 2012, 1,038 articles included the word "biochar" or "bio-char" in the topic indexed in the ISI Web of Science. [122] Research is in progress by the University of Edinburgh, [123] the University of Georgia, [124] [125] the Volcani Center, [126] and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. [127]
Research is also ongoing on the application of biochar to coarse soils in semi-arid and degraded ecosystems. In Namibia biochar is under exploration as climate change adaptation effort, strengthening local communities' drought resilience and food security through the local production and application of biochar from abundant encroacher biomass. [128] [129] [130] Similar solutions for rangeland affected by woody plant encroachment have been explored in Australia. [131]
In recent years, biochar has attracted interest as a wastewater filtration medium as well as for its adsorbing capacity for the wastewater pollutants, such as pharmaceuticals, personal care products, [132] and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. [133] [134] [135]
In some areas, citizen interest and support for biochar motivates government research into the uses of biochar. [136] [137]
Long-term effects of biochar on carbon sequestration have been examined using soil from arable fields in Belgium with charcoal-enriched black spots dating from before 1870 from charcoal production mound kilns. This study showed that soil treated over a long period with charcoal showed a higher proportion of maize-derived carbon and decreased respiration, attributed to physical protection, C saturation of microbial communities, and, potentially, slightly higher annual primary production. Overall, this study evidences the capacity of biochar to enhance C sequestration through reduced C turnover. [138]
Biochar sequesters carbon (C) in soils because of its prolonged residence time, ranging from years to millennia. In addition, biochar can promote indirect C-sequestration by increasing crop yield while potentially reducing C-mineralization. Laboratory studies have evidenced effects of biochar on C-mineralization using 13
C signatures. [139]
Fluorescence analysis of biochar-amended soil dissolved organic matter revealed that biochar application increased a humic-like fluorescent component, likely associated with biochar-carbon in solution. The combined spectroscopy-microscopy approach revealed the accumulation of aromatic carbon in discrete spots in the solid phase of microaggregates and its co-localization with clay minerals for soil amended with raw residue or biochar. The co-localization of aromatic-C: polysaccharides-C was consistently reduced upon biochar application. These findings suggested that reduced C metabolism is an important mechanism for C stabilization in biochar-amended soils. [140]
A carbon sink is a natural or artificial carbon sequestration process that "removes a greenhouse gas, an aerosol or a precursor of a greenhouse gas from the atmosphere". These sinks form an important part of the natural carbon cycle. An overarching term is carbon pool, which is all the places where carbon on Earth can be, i.e. the atmosphere, oceans, soil, florae, fossil fuel reservoirs and so forth. A carbon sink is a type of carbon pool that has the capability to take up more carbon from the atmosphere than it releases.
Pyrolysis is the process of thermal decomposition of materials at elevated temperatures, often in an inert atmosphere without access to oxygen.
Bioenergy is a type of renewable energy that is derived from plants and animal waste. The biomass that is used as input materials consists of recently living organisms, mainly plants. Thus, fossil fuels are not regarded as biomass under this definition. Types of biomass commonly used for bioenergy include wood, food crops such as corn, energy crops and waste from forests, yards, or farms.
Terra preta, also known as Amazonian dark earth or Indian black earth, is a type of very dark, fertile anthropogenic soil (anthrosol) found in the Amazon Basin. In Portuguese its full name is terra preta do índio or terra preta de índio. Terra mulata is lighter or brownish in color.
Biomass to liquid is a multi-step process of producing synthetic hydrocarbon fuels made from biomass via a thermochemical route.
Carbon sequestration is the process of storing carbon in a carbon pool. It plays a crucial role in limiting climate change by reducing the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. There are two main types of carbon sequestration: biologic and geologic.
Pyrolysis oil, sometimes also known as biocrude or bio-oil, is a synthetic fuel with few industrial application and under investigation as substitute for petroleum. It is obtained by heating dried biomass without oxygen in a reactor at a temperature of about 500 °C (900 °F) with subsequent cooling, separation from the aqueous phase and other processes. Pyrolysis oil is a kind of tar and normally contains levels of oxygen too high to be considered a pure hydrocarbon. This high oxygen content results in non-volatility, corrosiveness, partial miscibility with fossil fuels, thermal instability, and a tendency to polymerize when exposed to air. As such, it is distinctly different from petroleum products. Removing oxygen from bio-oil or nitrogen from algal bio-oil is known as upgrading.
Energy crops are low-cost and low-maintenance crops grown solely for renewable bioenergy production. The crops are processed into solid, liquid or gaseous fuels, such as pellets, bioethanol or biogas. The fuels are burned to generate electrical power or heat.
In the context of energy production, biomass is matter from recently living organisms which is used for bioenergy production. Examples include wood, wood residues, energy crops, agricultural residues including straw, and organic waste from industry and households. Wood and wood residues is the largest biomass energy source today. Wood can be used as a fuel directly or processed into pellet fuel or other forms of fuels. Other plants can also be used as fuel, for instance maize, switchgrass, miscanthus and bamboo. The main waste feedstocks are wood waste, agricultural waste, municipal solid waste, and manufacturing waste. Upgrading raw biomass to higher grade fuels can be achieved by different methods, broadly classified as thermal, chemical, or biochemical.
Short rotation coppice (SRC) is coppice grown as an energy crop. This woody solid biomass can be used in applications such as district heating, electric power generating stations, alone or in combination with other fuels. Currently, the leading countries in area planted for energy generation are Sweden and the UK.
Soil carbon is the solid carbon stored in global soils. This includes both soil organic matter and inorganic carbon as carbonate minerals. It is vital to the soil capacity in our ecosystem. Soil carbon is a carbon sink in regard to the global carbon cycle, playing a role in biogeochemistry, climate change mitigation, and constructing global climate models. Microorganisms play an important role in breaking down carbon in the soil. Changes in their activity due to rising temperatures could possibly influence and even contribute to climate change. Human activities have caused a massive loss of soil organic carbon. For example, anthropogenic fires destroy the top layer of the soil, exposing soil to excessive oxidation.
Slash-and-char is an alternative to slash-and-burn that has a lesser effect on the environment. It is the practice of charring the biomass resulting from the slashing instead of burning it. Due to incomplete combustion (pyrolysis) the resulting residue matter charcoal can be utilized as biochar to improve the soil fertility.
Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) is a process in which carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere by deliberate human activities and durably stored in geological, terrestrial, or ocean reservoirs, or in products. This process is also known as carbon removal, greenhouse gas removal or negative emissions. CDR is more and more often integrated into climate policy, as an element of climate change mitigation strategies. Achieving net zero emissions will require first and foremost deep and sustained cuts in emissions, and then—in addition—the use of CDR. In the future, CDR may be able to counterbalance emissions that are technically difficult to eliminate, such as some agricultural and industrial emissions.
Charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by strongly heating wood in minimal oxygen to remove all water and volatile constituents. In the traditional version of this pyrolysis process, called charcoal burning, often by forming a charcoal kiln, the heat is supplied by burning part of the starting material itself, with a limited supply of oxygen. The material can also be heated in a closed retort. Modern charcoal briquettes used for outdoor cooking may contain many other additives, e.g. coal.
Bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) is the process of extracting bioenergy from biomass and capturing and storing the carbon dioxide (CO2) that is produced.
Agrocarbon is the international brand name of biochar products produced by 3Ragrocabon. 3Ragrocarbon is owned and operated by Terra Humanities LTD, a Swedish ecological-innovation technology and engineering company. 3RAgrocarbon utilizes patented 3R zero-emission Pyrolysis to create environmentally friendly bio-char and soil-nutrient enrichment products. The firm is headquartered in Hungary where its main production facility is located. The company is supported by, and partnered with the European Union on several projects focused on eco-safe agricultural and soil nutrient initiatives. The Agrocarbon is applied in all formulations, from stand alone biofertilizer to any combination as compost or soil activator. The refined and formulated Agrocarbon products are multi effect used for sustainable soil and carbon negative environmental and climate protection improvements. This includes economical food crop production and forest nursery, biological pest control, natural fertilization, soil moisture retention, restoration of soil biodiversity and natural balance.
Hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) is a thermal depolymerization process used to convert wet biomass, and other macromolecules, into crude-like oil under moderate temperature and high pressure. The crude-like oil has high energy density with a lower heating value of 33.8-36.9 MJ/kg and 5-20 wt% oxygen and renewable chemicals. The process has also been called hydrous pyrolysis.
Carbon farming is a set of agricultural methods that aim to store carbon in the soil, crop roots, wood and leaves. The technical term for this is carbon sequestration. The overall goal of carbon farming is to create a net loss of carbon from the atmosphere. This is done by increasing the rate at which carbon is sequestered into soil and plant material. One option is to increase the soil's organic matter content. This can also aid plant growth, improve soil water retention capacity and reduce fertilizer use. Sustainable forest management is another tool that is used in carbon farming. Carbon farming is one component of climate-smart agriculture. It is also one way to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Kenneth Karl Mikael Möllersten is a Swedish researcher. He holds a PhD in chemical engineering and an MSc in mechanical engineering, both from the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Stockholm, Sweden. Möllersten is a consultant and researcher at IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute, was previously affiliated as a researcher with Mälardalen University and is currently affiliated with KTH.
Biochar carbon removal is a negative emissions technology. It involves the production of biochar through pyrolysis of residual biomass and the subsequent application of the biochar in soils or durable materials. The carbon dioxide sequestered by the plants used for the biochar production is therewith stored for several hundreds of years, which creates carbon sinks.
"Amazonian Dark Earths (ADE) are a unique type of soils apparently developed between 500 and 9000 years B.P. through intense anthropogenic activities such as biomass-burning and high-intensity nutrient depositions on pre-Columbian Amerindian settlements that transformed the original soils into Fimic Anthrosols throughout the Brazilian Amazon Basin
Large-scale wood gasifiers used to generate bioenergy, however, are relatively common and currently provide the majority of the biochar sold in the United States. Consequently, one of these full-scale facilities would be used to produce a standard wood biochar made from the same feedstock to help calibrate results across the regional sites.
Figure 1. Schematic of downdraft gasifier reactor used for char production showing (temperatures) energy transfer mechanisms and thermal stratification. (and) Many authors define highest treatment temperature (HTT) during pyrolysis as an important parameter for char characterization.
(observed five) orders of magnitude decrease in the electrical resistivity of charcoal with increasing HTT from 650 to 1050°C
When carbonized under 500 °C, wood charcoal can be used as electric insulation
The conductivity of all biochar increases with increase in heating temperature, due to increasing degree of carbonization and degree of graphitization
...biochars produced at higher temperatures contain more aromatic structures, which confer intrinsic recalcitrance...
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)supra note 11 at 407 ("If this woody above-ground biomass were converted into biochar by means of simple kiln techniques and applied to soil, more than 50% of this carbon would be sequestered in a highly stable form.")
(During the 19th century and early 20th century) in the USA, charcoal was considered a superior feed additive for increasing butterfat content of milk
Mr Pow said his innovative farming system could help livestock producers become more profitable while helping to address the impact of climate change.
118. Biochar, Activated Biochar & Application By: Prof. Dr. H. Ghafourian (Author) Book Amazon