Agronomic and environmental performance of biochar amendment in alluvial soils under subtropical sugarcane production

Abstract

This study investigated the amendment of sugarcane bagasse biochar (SCBB) on soil fertility, crop yield, and nutrient loss in two different-textured soils under sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) production. Eleven megagrams per hectare of freshly incorporated biochar increased yield of plant cane by 22% in light-texture soil (LS) and 12% in heavy-textured soil (HS). Although the overall yield of the ratoon crop was lower, the biochar treatment produced 20 and 14% higher yields than the control at the LS and HS sites, respectively. Biochar increased soil carbon (C soil ) across LS and HS sites by 15% and decreased the soil C/N ratio by 19%. Over the two growing seasons and sites, cumulative runoff volume, and loads of NO 3 --N, PO 4 -3 -P, biological oxygen demand (BOD 5 ), total organic C (TOC), and total suspended solids (TSS) were reduced by 33, 35, 39, 25, 24, and 54% with biochar. Calcium and K losses in runoff were also reduced by 43 and 24% with biochar. It reduced NH 4 + -N leaching in LS and HS soils over the two growing seasons by 33-167% and 66-81%, respectively, and reduced PO 4 -3 -P leaching by 45-57% in HS over 2 yr. Although biochar is not considered a fertilizer, SCBB acted as a source of nutrients, increasing soil fertility and crop yield. It also reduced nutrient losses during heavy rain events typical of the subtropical climate of Louisiana. 1 INTRODUCTION Sugarcane(Saccharum spp.) is one of the major crops in Louisiana, the second largest producer of sugarcane in the United States (Viator et al., 2019). Harvest sugarcane gen-Abbreviations: BOD 5 , biological oxygen demand; CEC, cation exchange capacity; DIW, deionized water; EC, electrical conductivity; HS, heavy-textured soil; ICP-OES, inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy; LS, light-textured soil; SCBB, sugarcane bagasse biochar; TOC, total organic carbon; TSS, total suspended solidsThis is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Biochar Improved Sugarcane Growth and Physiology under Salinity Stress

“…Chen et al [31] reported that biochar application reduced soil dry density and increased available moisture, resulting in higher yield and sugar content. Similarly, Tafti revealed that, by applying biochar, crop yield increased in both light-and heavy-texture soil and reduced nutrient losses in subtropical sugarcane production [49]. Under saline stress conditions, Farhangi-Abriz and Torabian [50] also indicated that biochar modifies the oxidative stress in plant tissues of bean seedlings and thereby enhances plant growth.…”

Thermal Conversion of Sugarcane Bagasse Coupled with Vapor Phase Hydrotreatment over Nickel-Based Catalysts: A Comprehensive Characterization of Upgraded Products

“…Both samples presented average elemental percentages of 69.4 wt % of C, 2.9 wt % of H, 0.88 wt % of N, and 16.8 wt % of O. From the implementation of a thermal conversion process of SCB in sugarcane industries, the produced biochar can be destined to soil applications, thus improving the production capacity of sugarcane, as well as in applications for energy generation for industry [32,33]. On the basis of the observation that the gases and LLFs were the only ones influenced by the processes, to evaluate the effect of the atmosphere alteration and catalyst insertion over the chemical composition of these products, we conducted analyses for chemical characterization.…”