Biochar is the carbon-rich product when biomass (such as wood, manure or crop residues) is heated in a closed container with little or no available air. It can be used to improve agriculture and the environment in several ways, and its stability in soil and superior nutrient-retention properties make it an ideal soil amendment to increase crop yields. In addition to this, biochar sequestration, in combination with sustainable biomass production, can be carbon-negative and therefore used to actively remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, with major implications for mitigation of climate change. Biochar production can also be combined with bioenergy production through the use of the gases that are given off in the pyrolysis process. This book is the first to synthesize the expanding research literature on this topic. The book's interdisciplinary approach, which covers engineering, environmental sciences, agricultural sciences, economics and policy, is a vital tool at this stage of biochar technology development. This comprehensive overview of current knowledge will be of interest to advanced students, researchers and professionals in a wide range of disciplines.

Fully revised and updated for its third edition, this book presents the definitive compilation of current knowledge on all aspects of biochar. Research on biochar continues to accelerate as its importance for soil health, climate change mitigation and adoption, and the circular economy becomes more widely acknowledged. This book not only reviews recent advances made in our understanding of biochar properties, behavior, and effects in agriculture, environmental management, and material production, but specifically develops fundamental principles and frameworks of biochar science and application. This third edition has been fully revised and updated to reflect recent developments and growing trends, with important coverage of the application of biochar outside of its traditional soil-based uses, the commercialization of biochar, and its incorporation into policy. This includes brand new chapters on the role of biochar-based materials for environmental remediation, building construction, and animal feed, and a greater discussion of biochar's role in the circular economy, climate change mitigation, and sustainable development. Overall, this book provides a systematic, comprehensive, and global examination of biochar. Written by an international team of academics and professionals, it addresses its uses, production, and management and its broader potential for mitigating climate change and driving forward sustainable development. Edited by two leading figures in the field, Biochar for Environmental Management is essential reading for students, scholars, practitioners, and policymakers interested in biochar and the role it can play in environmental sustainability and global sustainable development.

Biochar: Fundamentals and Applications in Environmental Science and Remediation Technologies, Volume Six provides readers with the fundamentals of scientific and technological aspects of biochar application in stormwater treatment, its use in contaminant removal, greenhouse gas mitigation, as landfill cover material, and new environmental and agronomic applications. Chapters in this new release cover Biochar application for soil remediation in a redox-sensitive environment, Remediation of heavy metal contaminated soil: Role of biochar, Role of biochar as a cover material in Landfill waste disposal system- Perspective from Unsaturated soil mechanics, Biochar in soil re-engineering, Green remediation of contaminated agricultural land using biochar, and more. Additional chapters cover the Impact of biochars on redox processes in soils, Biochar for manipulation of manure properties, A relationship paradigm between biochar amendments and green house gas emissions, Biochar amalgamation with clay: Enhanced performance for environmental remediation, Functionalization of biochar using microbial consortia, and the Potential role of biochar to mitigate the negative impacts of climate change on water quality. Provides up to-date information on the use of biochar for contaminant remediation, as landfill cover material, and as a tool for energy transition Includes the aspect of biochar’s use in mitigating impacts of climate change and how manure properties can be altered through biochar addition Covers the role of microbial consortia on biochar functionalization

This book provides up-to-date information on biochar use in management of soil health, agriculture productivity, green-house gases, restoration ecology and environment. Biochar application to nutrient deficient and disturbed soils is a viable option which may promotes advances in food safety and food security to human nutrition and overall fundamental research in the agricultural sciences. The book describes in detail how the recalcitrant biochar is able to persist for long periods of time and work as a shelter for soil microbial colonisation and their biomass/numbers. This book also includes contents related to important role of biochar applications in the restoration of contaminated agricultural soils. The book will be of particular interest to students, teachers and researchers in the disciplines.

Biochar is a carbon-rich material produced from the pyrolysis of organic materials from agricultural and forestry biomass at a relatively low temperature in the absence of oxygen. As such, it has potential for solving many agricultural and environmental problems.This book is divided into five sections: “Introduction,” “Production and Legislation of Biochar,” “Applications of Biochar for Soil Fertility Improvement,” “Role of Biochar for Soil Remediation and Ameliorating Salinity Effects” and “Applications of Biochar for Water Treatment.” Chapters address topics such as the pros and cons of biochar, its production, and its role in remediating and treating contaminated soils and water.

Agricultural and Environmental Applications of Biochar: Advances and Barriers: Over the past decade, biochar has been intensively studied by agricultural and environmental scientists and applied as a soil quality enhancer and environmental ameliorator in various trials worldwide. This book, with 21 chapters by 57 accomplished international researchers, reports on the recent advances of biochar research and the global status of biochar application. Scientific findings, uncertainties, and barriers to practice of biochar amendment for sustaining soil fertility, improving crop production, promoting animal performance, remediating water and land, and mitigating greenhouse gas emissions are synthesized. The book presents a whole picture of biochar in its production, characterization, application, and development. Agricultural and Environmental Applications of Biochar: Advances and Barrier highlights the mechanisms and processes of biochar amendment for achieving stunning agricultural and environmental benefits. Composition and characteristics of biochar, its interactions with contaminants and soil constituents, and its transformation in the environment are illustrated to enlighten the achievements of biochar amendment in improving soil physical, chemical, and biological quality and animal health, reducing soil greenhouse gas emissions, and decontaminating stormwater and mine sites. Additional emphasis is given to the pyrogenic carbon in Terra Preta soils and Japanese Andosols, the pyrolysis technology for converting agricultural byproducts to biochar, and the existing economic and technical barriers to wide application of biochar in Australia, China, New Zealand, North America, and Europe. Readers will appreciate the comprehensive review on the up-to-date biochar research and application and gain critical guidance in best biochar generation and utilization.

First Published in 2004. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.