Biochar, that is, carbonized biomass similar to charcoal, has been used in acute medical treatment of animals for many centuries. Since 2010, livestock farmers increasingly use biochar as a regular feed supplement to improve animal health, increase nutrient intake efficiency and thus productivity. As biochar gets enriched with nitrogen-rich organic compounds during the digestion process, the excreted biochar-manure becomes a more valuable organic fertilizer causing lower nutrient losses and greenhouse gas emissions during storage and soil application. Scientists only recently started to investigate the mechanisms of biochar in the different stages of animal digestion and thus most published results on biochar feeding are based so far on empirical studies. This review summarizes the state of knowledge up to the year 2019 by evaluating 112 relevant scientific publications on the topic to derive initial insights, discuss potential mechanisms behind observations and identify important knowledge gaps and future research needs. The literature analysis shows that in most studies and for all investigated farm animal species, positive effects on different parameters such as toxin adsorption, digestion, blood values, feed efficiency, meat quality and/or greenhouse gas emissions could be found when biochar was added to feed. A considerable number of studies provided statistically non-significant results, though tendencies were mostly positive. Rare negative effects were identified in regard to the immobilization of liposoluble feed ingredients (e.g., vitamin E or Carotenoids) which may limit long-term biochar feeding. We found that most of the studies did not systematically investigate biochar properties (which may vastly differ) and dosage, which is a major drawback for generalizing results. Our review demonstrates that the use of biochar as a feed additive has the potential to improve animal health, feed efficiency and livestock housing climate, to reduce nutrient losses and greenhouse gas emissions, and to increase the soil organic matter content and thus soil fertility when eventually applied to soil. In combination with other good practices, co-feeding of biochar may thus have the potential to improve the sustainability of animal husbandry. However, more systematic multi-disciplinary research is definitely needed to arrive at generalizable recommendations.
Biodegradable containers support zero-waste initiatives when alternative end-of-life scenarios are available (e.g., composting, bio digestion). Thermoplastic starch (TPS) has emerged as a readily biodegradable and inexpensive biomaterial that can replace traditional plastics in applications such as food service ware and packaging. This study has two aims. First, demonstrate the thermoformability of starch/polycaprolactone (PCL) as a thermoplastic material with varying starch loadings. Second, incorporate biochar as a sustainable filler that can potentially lower the cost and enhance compostability. Biochar is a stable form of carbon produced by thermochemical conversion of organic biomass, such as food waste, and its incorporation into consumer products could promote a circular economy. Thermoformed samples were successfully made with starch contents from 40 to 60 wt.% without biochar. Increasing the amount of starch increased the viscosity of the material, which in turn affected the compression molding (sheet manufacturing) and thermoforming conditions. PCL content reduced the extent of biodegradation in soil burial experiments and increased the strength and elongation at break of the material. A blend of 50:50 starch:PCL was selected for incorporating biochar. Thermoformed containers were manufactured with 10, 20, and 30 wt.% biochar derived from waste coffee grounds. The addition of biochar decreased the elongation at break but did not significantly affect the modulus of elasticity or tensile strength. The results demonstrate the feasibility of using starch and biochar for the manufacturing of thermoformed containers.
AimTo compare the climate change mitigation bene ts of nature-based solutions for management of municipal green waste with conventional management. MethodsThis study analyzed the carbon footprint of managing one ton of municipal green waste (MGW) in Lima Peru under 4 different scenarios: 1) Final disposal in authorized land ll, 2) Final disposal in informal land ll, 3) composting and 4) biochar production using a low-cost low tech Kon-Tiki reactor. ResultsThe results demonstrate the very clear potential for climate change mitigation from biochar production using low tech and therefore accessible technology in a typical developing world context. The carbon footprint of producing biochar was lower than for composting and biochar and compost both had carbon footprints signi cantly lower than waste management achieved via land lling. ConclusionWe argue that the standards used by nascent platforms for trading carbon removal credits generated by biochar should be expanded to include small scale market participants in the so-called developing world. Waste management in the developing world presents signi cant challenges but often starts from a very low base which means there is very large potential for reducing emissions as well as sequestering carbon.
AimTo compare the climate change mitigation benefits of nature-based solutions for management of municipal green waste with conventional management. MethodsThis study analyzed the carbon footprint of managing one ton of municipal green waste (MGW) in Lima Peru under 4 different scenarios: 1) Final disposal in authorized landfill, 2) Final disposal in informal landfill, 3) composting and 4) biochar production using a low-cost low tech Kon-Tiki reactor. ResultsThe results demonstrate the very clear potential for climate change mitigation from biochar production using low tech and therefore accessible technology in a typical developing world context. The carbon footprint of producing biochar was lower than for composting and biochar and compost both had carbon footprints significantly lower than waste management achieved via landfilling. ConclusionWe argue that the standards used by nascent platforms for trading carbon removal credits generated by biochar should be expanded to include small scale market participants in the so-called developing world. Waste management in the developing world presents significant challenges but often starts from a very low base which means there is very large potential for reducing emissions as well as sequestering carbon.
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