Biochar reduces nutrient loss and improves microbial biomass of composted cattle manure and maize straw

Abstract

In this study, nutrient loss, the direct and indirect relationship between period, compost types, temperature, total nitrogen (TN), nitrate nitrogen (NO 3 −-N), ammonium nitrogen (NH 4 +-N), microbial biomass carbon (MBC), and microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN) were investigated during composting of cattle manure-maize straw mixture. This study findings revealed that biochar addition lowered NH 4 +-N but did not increase NO 3 −-N concentrations unlike no biochar piles during composting. The first-order kinetic models showed that biochar accelerated organic matter (OM) degradation and improved nitrogen mineralization, consequently reducing TN losses by 13.6% and OM losses by 12.66%. Transformation ratio of MBC/MBN, coupled with other chemical components of the entire microbial community, suggested a shift in the microbial succession and diversity during composting from the dominant bacteria and actinomycetes to fungi. The structural equation model and path coefficient revealed temperature to be the main factor mediating the evolution of MBC and MBN in composting. The physicochemical variables, phytotoxicity, and final product quality revealed that biochar incorporation to the composting feedstock is an ideal material for mitigating problems of TN and OM losses in composting and ultimately enhancing the fertility potential of the final compost product.

Effective Carbon Dioxide Mitigation and Improvement of Compost Nutrients with the Use of Composts’ Biochar

“…Lower values of N were also seen in the case of biochar produced at 650 • C. Although some authors claimed that biochar-amended piles showed significantly higher N content in comparison to control treatments, in our study we did not clearly confirm this trend. Nevertheless, processes that have an impact on nitrogen dynamics are complex, and reports of enriching N content in the biochar-composted material involve longer incubation times, of up to 40 days [81,82]. On the other hand, presented observations support the theories that despite the role of biochar in the mitigation of carbon and nitrogen losses from composting processes, the final C/N ratio in the material is not significantly affected by the addition of biochar.…”

Carbon-based catalyst for environmental bioremediation and sustainability: Updates and perspectives on techno-economics and life cycle assessment

“…Therefore, adding biochar to early composting mixes has been recommended as an effective management approach for reducing nitrogen loss. In the original composting material, a diverse set of biochar ratios from 3 to 50% has been employed, and an addition of about 10% is typically suggested for maximum composting concert (Awasthi et al, 2017;Bello et al, 2020;Liu et al, 2017b;Wang et al, 2017b). In certain studies, biochar has been employed as a filler in chicken manure composting and has resulted in a significant increase in the rate of degradation (up to 70%), as well as a reduction in odour, gas emissions, and nitrogen loss (Dias et al, 2010;Liu et al, 2017b).…”

“…MBC has been used to reduce pollution in wastewater, soil and gas. MBC, as a good soil improvement, may not only enhance the physiochemical characteristics of the soil but also immobilize or eliminate heavy metals, adsorb and breakdown organic pollutants from the soil (Mandal et al, 2020a(Mandal et al, , 2020bQin et al, 2020;Wu et al, 2020). MBC has been successfully utilized to remove hazardous chemicals from flue gas for gas pollution control (Shan et al, 2019).…”

Biofuels Production from Renewable Resources

“…Bello et al. [11] tested Biochar addition, within cattle manure composting process, as a positive modulator in the nitrogen transformation process. The results indicate that Biochar addition accelerated organic matter degradation and improved nitrogen mineralization.…”