Biochar

Biochar is a carbonaceous product obtained through pyrolysis of biomass waste (i.e., plants, organic waste materials and animal waste). The unique properties of biochar such as large surface area, high porosity, surface functional groups, high cation exchange capacity (CEC), and adsorption capacity make it suitable for various applications such as soil remediation, carbon sequestration, water treatment, and wastewater treatment.
Feedstock type has a substantial impact on the compositional constituents and physical and chemical properties of biochar. For instance, biochars produced from poultry litter and swine manure are rich in phosphorus and calcium. The biochars derived from wood and sugarcane have high C concentration and low H/C ratio, which increases their potential for improving C storage in soils due to their high aromatic character.

Advantages of Biochar

  1. The impacts on soil health and agricultural productivity; this includes soil pH, nutrient availability, soil moisture, soil organic matter, and the amount of biochar applied;

  2. The impacts on climate change; Carbon storage and stabilization is probably the most direct and essential quality for climate change mitigation efforts based on biochar.

  3. Biochar is potentially an excellent feed additive that can improve animal growth, improve blood profiles, strengthen immunity, reduce pathogens, lower methane production by improving gut microbial fermentation

Biochar is being promoted as a climate change mitigation tool as it can increase soil carbon sequestration and reduce soil GHG emissions when applied as a soil amendment. Biochar production and burial remove carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere through uptake by plants, allowing, in principle, an actual reduction of atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. Also, the production and burial of biochar allow the sequestration of carbon in the soil at the same time as providing fertilizer. A recent expert assessment estimates that biochar could sequester 0.5–2 GtCO2 per year by 2050 at a cost of $30–120 per ton of CO2.
As a soil amendment, biochar is part of a process that can simultaneously produce renewable biofuels, sequester carbon, and improve degraded soils. Promoting soil carbon sequestration through recommended management practices has the potential to mitigate 5% to 15% of global fossil fuel emissions.

Pyroltech offers a solution to reduce carbon foot print with uptake carbon dioxide by plants in process of turning waste into energy.