Acidic sandy soil improvement with biochar — A microcosm study

Molnár, Mónika; Vaszita, Emese; Farkas, Éva; Ujaczki, Éva; Fekete-Kertész, Ildikó; Tolner, Mária; Klebercz, Orsolya; Kirchkeszner, Csaba; Gruiz, Katalin; Uzinger, Nikolett; Feigl, Viktória

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.01.091

Cited by 63 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 81 publications

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“…Furthermore, there are conflicting results in the literature regarding the effect of biochar on sandy soils and there is a need to understand the effects of this product on different soil types on a char by char basis (Molnár et al, 2016). Molnár et al, (2016) also noted that investigations focusing on the complex effects of different biochars on sandy soils 4 are scarce. Biochars are inherently variable due to differences in production technologies and feedstock and caution must be used when applying them to agricultural soils.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of three different biochars on aggregate stability, organic carbon mobility and micronutrient bioavailability

Hartley

Riby

Waterson

2016

Journal of Environmental Management

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Abstract. Previous studies have demonstrated both beneficial and detrimental effects on soil properties from biochar incorporation. Several biochars, with different feedstock origins, were evaluated for their effectiveness at improving soil quality of a sandy agricultural soil. A pot trial was used to investigate aggregate stability and microbial activity, pore water trace element mobility and micronutrient concentrations in grain of spring wheat after incorporation of three biochars. The feedstocks for biochar production were selected because they were established UK waste products, namely oversize woody material from green waste composting facilities, and rhododendron and soft wood material from forest clearance operations. Biochars were incorporated into the soil at a rate of 5% v/v. Aggregate stability was improved following addition of oversize biochar whilst microbial activity increased in all treatments. Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations in soil pore water from biochartreated soils were raised, whilst micronutrient concentrations in wheat grain grown in the treated soils were significantly reduced. It was concluded that incorporation of biochar to temperate agricultural soils requires caution as it may result in reductions of essential grain micronutrients required for human health, whilst the effect on aggregate stability may be linked to organic carbon functional groups on biochar surfaces and labile carbon released from the char into the soil system.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of three different biochars on aggregate stability, organic carbon mobility and micronutrient bioavailability

Hartley

Riby

Waterson

2016

Journal of Environmental Management

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“…The effect of biochar as soil amendment and its effect on sandy soils and crop yield has been studied at various scales (Atkinson et al, 2010;Brockhoff et al, 2010;Jeffery et al, 2011Jeffery et al, , 2015Uzoma et al, 2011;Basso et al, 2012;Githinji, 2013;Nelissen et al, 2014;Molnár et al, 2016), confirming that the extent of the effects of biochar on soil depends on the biochar production conditions and feedstock (Nelissen et al, 2014;Molnar et al, 2016), the soil type (Basso et al, 2012;Githinji, 2013), the climatic conditions (Atkinson et al, 2010;Nelissen et al, 2014), the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) content (Hale et al, 2012) and trace metal level of the biochar (Freddo et al, 2012) and the biochar ageing process (Zhao et al, 2015). Biochar could be used with organic amendments to increase their stability and reduce organic matter solubility (Ngo et al, 2013(Ngo et al, , 2014Doan et al, 2014), with positive effects on soil fertility, maize growth and yield, and nutrient retention, while mitigating erosion of degraded acidic sandy soils (Doan et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Biochar has been shown to increase the pH of acid soil (Jeffery et al, 2011), improve water retention, aggregation and permeability in some soils (Downie et al, 2009;Molnár et al, 2016), as well as increase plant nutrient availability (Major et al, 2010), influencing microbial abundance and causing community shifts (Lehmann et al, 2011;McCormack et al, 2013;Domene et al, 2014). Through the increase in soil aggregation and porosity, pH, moisture retention and soil temperature, as well as nutrient retention, biochar may positively affect soil biota (McCormack et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…During the last years several studies pointed out the need to consider ecotoxicological criteria in characterising the complex effects of biochar on soil (Domene et al, 2015;Molnár et al, 2016;Tammeorg et al, 2017) and the necessity to investigate the ecological effects of biochars in different soils on a "char by char" basis (Jeffrey et al, 2015;Molnár et al, 2016), prior to large scale application. It has been outlined, that often the impacts of biochar as a soil amendment over a short period, based on laboratory and greenhouse studies, are inconclusive and contradictory (Mukherjee and Lal, 2014;Jeffrey et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This paper presents a microcosm study on the mid-term effects (12 months) of 3 biochar types, applied individually and combined with compost and fertilizer, at various rates, on the physicochemical, biological properties and ecotoxicity of an acidic sandy soil in Hungary. The work is part of a scale-up experimental plan, starting with pre-screening and ranking of 13 biochar products , recommending 3 biochar types for a short term (2 months) microcosm experiment (Molnár et al, 2016), which we continued to monitor, evaluating the mid-term effects (12 months) in this study, prior to a field study, which applies the ecologically most efficient biochar treatment combinations selected further to the recommendations of this microcosm study.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Microcosm incubation study for monitoring the mid-term effects of different biochars on acidic sandy soil applying a multiparameter approach

Farkas

Feigl

Gruiz

et al. 2018

Process Safety and Environmental Protection

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Biochar is produced from organic materials by pyrolysis specifically for soil improvement. Interactions with beneficial outcomes between biochar and soil can arise within a short time but it is uncertain whether the effects are similar in all soil types and at different time-scale. The objective of this study was to evaluate the short-term and mid-term effects of biochars from different feedstocks (grain husks and paper fibre sludge, post-treated grain husks and paper fibre sludge, woodscreenings) on the soil physico-chemical, biological and ecotoxicological properties. As part of a complete scale-up technology, aiming improvement of an acidic sandy soil, a 12-month microcosm experiment was conducted with combined application of biochars, compost and fertilizer. The applied multiparameter approach made possible the selection of the most optimal treatment. All the three biochars had favourable influence on the soil, but the effects were different in terms of extent and time. Although the biochar from woodscreenings had not the most promising short-term effects, but combined with fertilizer at 0.5 w /w% biochar rate it was the most favourable treatment after 12 months. The grain husk and the paper fibre sludge biochar at 1 w /w% rate could also efficiently improve soil parameters and functions.

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Effect of Biochar and Amendments on Pb and As Phytotoxicity and Phytoavailability in a Technosol

Nandillon

Miard

Lebrun

et al. 2019

CLEAN Soil Air Water

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Phytostabilization has been proposed as a promising tool for long-term management of polluted sites. Optimization of the process efficiency involves choosing suitable amendments to allow both efficient plant growth and the immobilization of contaminants. The objectives of this study are to evaluate the effect of amendments on (i) the physicochemical properties of technosol and (ii) the mobility and phyto-availability of metal(loid)s. A dwarf bean growth test is conducted on technosols amended with compost, garden soil, slag, and biochar. The physicochemical properties of soil pore water (SPW) are determined as well as the phyto-available concentrations of metal(loid)s by simple extraction tests. All amendments used are able to increase SPW pH and electrical conductivity, allowing a decrease in the lead concentration in SPW by 90% and the lead phytoavailable part by 93%. However, for all amendments, SPW As concentration increased. Lastly, the amendments improve bean growth and tend to decrease the metal(oid) concentrations in aerial organs. As concentration in roots did not decrease whereas Pb concentration decreased. Metal(loid) concentrations of Pb accumulated in the aerial parts of beans and their extractable concentrations show a significant positive correlation with the extraction procedures. In contrast, the phytoavailable As shows a weak correlation with As concentrations in the aerial parts. The 1-M NH 4 NO 3 extraction procedure is the most appropriate and provides the most useful indications of the phytoavailability for the studied elements.

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Acidic sandy soil improvement with biochar — A microcosm study

Cited by 63 publications

References 81 publications

Effects of three different biochars on aggregate stability, organic carbon mobility and micronutrient bioavailability

Effects of three different biochars on aggregate stability, organic carbon mobility and micronutrient bioavailability

Microcosm incubation study for monitoring the mid-term effects of different biochars on acidic sandy soil applying a multiparameter approach

Effect of Biochar and Amendments on Pb and As Phytotoxicity and Phytoavailability in a Technosol

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