Increasing global population and decreasing arable land pose tremendous pressures to agricultural production. The application of conventional chemical fertilizers improves agricultural production, but causes serious environmental problems and significant economic burdens. Biochar gains increasing interest as a soil amendment. Recently, more and more attentions have been paid to biochar-based slow-release of fertilizers (SRFs) due to the unique properties of biochar. This review summarizes recent advances in the development, synthesis, application, and tentative mechanism of biochar-based SRFs. The development mainly undergoes three stages: (i) soil amendment using biochar, (ii) interactions between nutrients and biochar, and (iii) biochar-based SRFs. Various methods are proposed to improve the fertilizer efficiency of biochar, majorly including in-situ pyrolysis, co-pyrolysis, impregnation, encapsulation, and granulation. Considering the distinct features of different methods, the integrated methods are promising for fabricating effective biochar-based SRFs. The in-depth understanding of the mechanism of nutrient loading and slow release is discussed based on current knowledge. Additionally, the perspectives and challenges of the potential application of biochar-based SRFs are described. Knowledge surveyed from this review indicates that applying biochar-based SRFs is a viable way of promoting sustainable agriculture. 

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2022.100167

Biochar-based slow-release of fertilizers for sustainable agriculture: A mini review

Climate-change-induced variations in temperature and rainfall patterns are a serious threat across the globe. Flooding is the foremost challenge to agricultural productivity, and it is believed to become more intense under a changing climate. Flooding is a serious form of stress that significantly reduces crop yields, and future climatic anomalies are predicted to make the problem even worse in many areas of the world. To cope with the prevailing flooding stress, plants have developed different morphological and anatomical adaptations in their roots, aerenchyma cells, and leaves. Therefore, researchers are paying more attention to identifying developed and adopted molecular-based plant mechanisms with the objective of obtaining flooding-resistant cultivars. In this review, we discuss the various physiological, anatomical, and morphological adaptations (aerenchyma cells, ROL barriers (redial O2 loss), and adventitious roots) and the phytohormonal regulation in plants under flooding stress. This review comprises ongoing innovations and strategies to mitigate flooding stress, and it also provides new insights into how this knowledge can be used to improve productivity in the scenario of a rapidly changing climate and increasing flood intensity.

Plant Adaptation to Flooding Stress under Changing Climate Conditions: Ongoing Breakthroughs and Future Challenges

The effects of rice husk flour (RHF), rice husk biochar (RHB), and rice husk-sludge cake biochar (RH-SCB, expresses sludge cake biochar deriving from a sludge that has been previously conditioned with rice husk) used as physical conditioners on sludge dewaterability were compared. The effects of characteristics of physical conditioners on sludge compressibility and zeta potential were analyzed. The optimal rice husk-based powder was RH-SCB, which presented the highest net sludge solid yield (YN, expresses the dry mass flow by filtration) at 20.39 kg/(m2 h) for 70% dry sludge (DS). Characterization analysis indicates that the hardness and surface Fe content of powders which could influence the compressibility coefficient of sludge cake and sludge zeta potential were the major factors influencing sludge dewaterability. The comparison of feasibility and economic analysis showed that adding RH-SCB improves the quality of the sludge filtrate and reduces the pollution potential of conditioned sludge (the ratio of secondary and primary (RSP) of Cu, Zn, Cd reduces from 43.05, 144.00, 7.25 to 7.89, 14.63, 4.27, respectively), and the costs of using RH-SCB were the lowest (at 88.4% lower than that of the raw sludge). Therefore, it is feasible to use RH-SCB to improve sludge dewaterability.

/pdf/comparative-study-of-the-effect-of-rice-husk-based-powders-3hsgcvh7z0.pdf

Comparative study of the effect of rice husk-based powders used as physical conditioners on sludge dewatering

One approach to water optimization in agriculture is to increase soil water retention. A soil amendment that has received attention for its ability to increase soil water retention is biochar, the remaining biomass after high-C materials have been pyrolyzed. Two studies were conducted in Utah at two sites each during 2018–2020 to evaluate how a fast-pyrolysis wood biochar influenced the productivity and crop quality of irrigated alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.), corn (Zea mays L.), and wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) along with soil water tension. One study included a single biochar rate of 22 Mg ha−1 at two levels of irrigation (full vs. partial), where soil-incorporated biochar increased silage corn yield by 12% in 2018 and reduced yield by 10% in 2019. Topdressed biochar had no effect on alfalfa yield from 2018 to 2020 in either irrigation rate. The other trial had six to seven biochar rates (0–67 Mg ha−1) plus the addition of wood chips at a single rate (22 Mg ha−1) at one site. This trial displayed a yield decrease of 0.01 Mg ha−1 of wheat grain for each additional 1 Mg ha−1 of biochar applied; however, there were no effects on silage corn production. Data obtained over 10 site-years showed minimal effects from this type of biochar on crop yield, quality, or soil water tension, leading us to conclude that this wood biochar was not an effective tool for enhancing short-term crop production or conserving irrigation water in arid agriculture. 

Biochar had minor impacts on yield, quality, and water availability of irrigated alfalfa, corn, and wheat

Biochar is a solid material obtained from the thermal decomposition of biomass of diverse biological origins through a process called pyrolysis. Biochar has great potential for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, sequester carbon in the soil, rehabilitate degraded soils, and reduce dependence on chemical fertilizers in crops. It also improves the physical, chemical, and biological properties of the soil and has a positive effect on plant growth. Given these attributes, there is a growing interest for adopting its use in agriculture, soil and land reclamation, and climate change mitigation. The effects of biochar application can be neutral or positive and will be determined mainly by factors such as the origin of the raw materials, carbonization conditions, frequency of applications, the method of application and dosage. In this review, we offer a detailed examination of the origins of biochar and the technologies used for its production. We examine the various materials that have been used to produce biochars and how they affect their physico-chemical characteristics, and we describe their applications in agriculture and climate change mitigation. Finally, we list the guides that describe the standards for the production, characterization, and commercialization of biochar that seek to guarantee the quality of the product and the essential characteristics for its safe use.

/pdf/impact-of-biochar-use-on-agricultural-production-and-climate-1pkrwua82x.pdf

Impact of biochar use on agricultural production and climate change. A review

The concentrations and fractions of heavy metal in sediments at different altitudes in the water-level fluctuation zone (WLFZ) of the Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR) were determined. The Pearson correlation analysis was used to determine the differences between heavy metal fractions and physicochemical properties. The results showed that Cr and Cu were mainly horizontally and vertically distributed in the residual (RE) fractions with the highest stability and relatively low ecological risk. Pb and Zn were mainly in the Fe-Mn oxide-bound (Fe-Mn) fractions, which can be reduced to a bioavailable state when the redox potential decreased or the oxygen was severely depleted in the aquatic environment. There were significant differences in the heavy metal fractions and risks in sediment in the three different altitudes of the TGR. The physicochemical characteristics of the sediment indicated that the sediments in the low altitude area had rough forms and large pores. In addition, heavy metals at low altitudes were likely to be released into the water during antiseasonal water storage, causing secondary pollution, which greatly increased the mobility of heavy metals and ecological risks to the environment.

Influence of Sediment Characteristics on Heavy Metal Fraction Distribution in the Water-Level Fluctuation Zone of the Three Gorges Reservoir Area, China

The invention relates to a residual sludge circulating-type processing method, which is characterized in that a transition metal element is added to the sludge as a sludge conditioner for conditioning, the sludge after conditioning is subjected to dehydration treatment, and then the dehydrated sludge is pyrolyzed, and the pyrolysis product is recycled to a sludge conditioning, dehydration and pyrolysis system. The solid-phase product after pyrolysis obtained by the invention has high quality, easy control of dehydration rate, and stable process, and can be recycled and utilized effectively inat least 2 years, and has low cost and good sustainability; at the same time, the sludge pyrolysis solid-phase product conditioned by the transition metal conditioning agent has a good promoting effect in steps of the sludge conditioning, dehydration and pyrolysis, and improves the systemicity of sludge treatment and disposal; and moreover, the hydrogen amount and the quality of sludge biochar aresuperior to that of the traditional sludge pyrolysis process. In the processing method, the hydrogen volume in each step of sludge pyrolysis accounts for 70-80% of the total pyrolysis gas, and a specific surface area of sludge biochar is 50-80 m /g.

Residual sludge circulating-type processing method

https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1755-1315/424/1/012015/pdf

Advances in research on effects of biochar on soil nitrogen and phosphorus

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Influence of Sediment Characteristics on Heavy Metal Fraction Distribution in the Water-Level Fluctuation Zone of the Three Gorges Reservoir Area, China

Residual sludge circulating-type processing method

Advances in research on effects of biochar on soil nitrogen and phosphorus