Biochar for Environmental Management



Biochar for Environmental
Management
Science and Technology

Edited by
Johannes Lehmann and Stephen Joseph

London • Sterling,VA


First published by Earthscan in the UK and USA in 2009
Copyright © Johannes Lehmann and Stephen Joseph, 2009
All rights reserved
ISBN:

978-1-84407-658-1

Typeset by MapSet Ltd, Gateshead, UK
Cover design by Susanne Harris
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A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Biochar for environmental management : science and technology / edited by Johannes Lehmann and Stephen Joseph.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-84407-658-1 (hardback)
1. Charcoal. 2. Soil amendments. 3. Environmental management. I. Lehmann, Johannes, Dr. II. Joseph, Stephen,
1950TP331.B56 2009
631.4'22—dc22
2008040656
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an ISO 14001 accredited company.The paper used
is FSC certified and the inks are vegetable based.


Contents

List of figures, tables and boxes
List of contributors
Preface
Foreword by Tim Flannery
List of abbreviations
1


2

3

Biochar for Environmental Management: An Introduction
Johannes Lehmann and Stephen Joseph
What is biochar?
Biochar terminology
The origin of biochar management and research
The big picture
Adoption of biochar for environmental management
Physical Properties of Biochar
Adriana Downie, Alan Crosky and Paul Munroe
Introduction
Biochars: Old and new
Relevance of extended literature
Caution on comparing data
Origin of biochar structure
Influence of molecular structure on biochar morphology
Loss of structural complexity during pyrolysis
Industrial processes for altering the physical structure of biochar
Soil surface areas and biochar
Biochar nanoporosity
Biochar macroporosity
Particle-size distribution
Biochar density
Mechanical strength
Future research
Characteristics of Biochar: Microchemical Properties

James E. Amonette and Stephen Joseph
Introduction and scope
Formation and bulk composition
Surface chemistry

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BIOCHAR FOR ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT

Characteristics of Biochar: Organo-chemical Properties
Evelyn S. Krull, Jeff A. Baldock, Jan O. Skjemstad and Ronald J. Smernik
Introduction
Elemental ratios
13C-nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy
Oulook

Biochar: Nutrient Properties and Their Enhancement
K. Yin Chan and Zhihong Xu
Introduction
Nutrient properties of biochars and crop production responses
Factors controlling nutrient properties of biochar
Improving the nutrient value of biochars: Research opportunities and challenges
Conclusions
Characteristics of Biochar: Biological Properties
Janice E.Thies and Matthias C. Rillig
Introduction
Biochar as a habitat for soil microorganisms
Biochar as a substrate for the soil biota
Methodological issues
Effects of biochar on the activity of the soil biota
Diversity of organisms interacting with biochar
Conclusions
Developing a Biochar Classification and Test Methods
Stephen Joseph, Cordner Peacocke, Johannes Lehmann and Paul Munroe
Why do we need a classification system?
Existing definitions and classification systems for charcoal, activated carbon and coal
Proposed classification system for biochar
Biochar Production Technology
Robert Brown
Introduction
History of charcoal-making
Mechanisms of biochar production from biomass substrates
Opportunities for advanced biochar production
Biochar Systems
Johannes Lehmann and Stephen Joseph
Introduction

Motivation for biochar soil management
Components of biochar systems
Biochar systems
Outlook

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CONTENTS

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Changes of Biochar in Soil
Karen Hammes and Michael W. I. Schmidt
Introduction
Mechanisms of incorporation and movement of biochar in soil
Physical changes of biochar in soil
Chemical changes of biochar in soil
Biotic changes of biochar in soil

Conclusions
Stability of Biochar in Soil
Johannes Lehmann, Claudia Czimczik, David Laird and Saran Sohi
Introduction
Extent of biochar decay
Biochar properties and decay
Mechanisms of biochar decay
Stabilization of biochar in soil
Environmental conditions affecting biochar stability and decay
A biochar stability framework
Biochar Application to Soil
Paul Blackwell, Glen Riethmuller and Mike Collins
Introduction
Purpose of biochar application
Biochar properties and application methods
Methods of application and incorporation: Specific examples
Comparison of methods and outlook
Biochar and Emissions of Non-CO2 Greenhouse Gases from Soil
Lukas Van Zwieten, Bhupinderpal Singh, Stephen Joseph, Stephen Kimber,
Annette Cowie and K. Yin Chan
Introduction
Evidence for reduced soil greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions using biochar
Biological mechanisms for reduced GHG emissions following biochar application
Abiotic mechanisms influencing GHG emissions using biochar
Conclusions
Biochar Effects on Soil Nutrient Transformations
Thomas H. DeLuca, M. Derek MacKenzie and Michael J. Gundale
Introduction
Nutrient content of biochar
Potential mechanisms for how biochar modifies nutrient transformations

Direct and indirect influences of biochar on soil nutrient transformations
Conclusions

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BIOCHAR FOR ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT

15

Biochar Effects on Nutrient Leaching
Julie Major, Christoph Steiner, Adriana Downie and Johannes Lehmann
Introduction
Evidence for relevant characteristics of biochar
Magnitude and temporal dynamics of biochar effects on nutrient leaching
Conclusions and research needs

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19

Biochar and Sorption of Organic Compounds
Ronald J. Smernik
Introduction
Sorption properties of ‘pure’ biochars
Influence of biochar on the sorption properties of soils
Effects on sorption of adding biochar to soil
Direct identification of organic molecules sorbed to biochar
Conclusions and directions for future research
Test Procedures for Determining the Quantity of Biochar within Soils
David A. C. Manning and Elisa Lopez-Capel
Introduction
Biochar quantification methods
Routine quantification of biochar in soils
Conclusions
Biochar, Greenhouse Gas Accounting and Emissions Trading
John Gaunt and Annette Cowie
The climate change context
Greenhouse gas emissions trading
How biochar contributes to climate change mitigation
What mitigation benefits are tradable in a pyrolysis for biochar and bioenergy project?
Greenhouse gas balance of example biochar systems
Issues for emissions trading based on pyrolysis for bioenergy and biochar
Conclusions
Economics of Biochar Production, Utilization and Greenhouse
Gas Offsets
Bruce A. McCarl, Cordner Peacocke, Ray Chrisman, Chih-Chun Kung and
Ronald D. Sands
Introduction

Pyrolysis and biochar
Examination of a biomass to pyrolysis feedstock prospect
Sensitivity analysis
Omitted factors
Conclusions

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CONTENTS

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Index

Socio-economic Assessment and Implementation of Small-scale
Biochar Projects
Stephen Joseph
Introduction
Developing a methodology
Model scenario of a hypothetical village-level biochar project
Conclusions
Taking Biochar to Market: Some Essential Concepts for

Commercial Success
Mark Glover
Introduction
Biochar’s positioning in the sustainability and climate change agendas
The sustainability context for biomass generally
Inherent characteristics of the biomass resource
Lessons from the first-generation liquid biofuels sector
Biochar commercialization framework
Commercial factors and business modelling
Policy to Address the Threat of Dangerous Climate Change:
A Leading Role for Biochar
Peter Read
The tipping point threat
Beyond emissions reductions
Carbon removals
The economics of biosphere C stock management (BCSM) and biochar
A policy framework for carbon removals:The leaky bucket
Food versus fuel and biochar
Conclusions

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List of Figures,Tables and Boxes

Figures
1.1
1.2
1.3
1.4

Structure of graphite as proven for the first time by J. D. Bernal in 1924
Advertisement for biochar to be used as a soil amendment in turf greens
Motivation for applying biochar technology

The global carbon cycle of net primary productivity and release to the atmosphere
from soil in comparison to total amounts of carbon in soil, plant and atmosphere,
and anthropogenic carbon emissions
2.1 Ideal biochar structure development with highest treatment temperature (HTT)
2.2 Relationship between biochar surface area and micropore volume
2.3 Biochar surface area plotted against highest treatment temperature (HTT)
2.4 Scanning electron microscope (SEM) image showing macroporosity of a
wood-derived biochar produced by ‘slow’ pyrolysis
2.5 SEM image showing macroporosity in biochar produced from poultry manure
using slow pyrolysis
2.6 Influence of biomass pre-treatment and HTT on the particle-size distribution
of different biochars
2.7 Helium-based solid densities of biochars with HTT
2.8 Bulk density of wood biochar, plotted against that of its feedstock
3.1 Biochar yields for wood feedstock under different pyrolysis conditions
3.2 Selected small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) profiles from normal wood
3.3 Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images of modern biochar samples
3.4 Schematics demonstrating the concepts of the quasi-percolation model of Kercher
and Nagle (2003)
3.5 Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) micrographs of different mineral phases
in chicken manure biochar and their energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS)
spectra
3.6 Distribution of non-C elements on the surface of wood biochar determined by
microprobe analysis
3.7 SEM micrographs and associated EDS spectra for mineral phases in maize-cob
biochar prepared by flash pyrolysis
3.8 SEM micrographs and associated EDS spectra for mineral phases in white oak
biochar prepared by fast pyrolysis
3.9 SEM micrographs and associated EDS spectra for mineral phases in poplar wood
biochar from a combustion facility

3.10 Heteroatoms and functional groups commonly found in activated carbons

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3.11 Macroscopic representation of the features of C surface chemistry thought to
be sufficient for understanding aqueous-phase sorption phenomena;
microscopic representation of the functional groups thought to be sufficient
for understanding aqueous-phase adsorption phenomena
4.1 Van Krevelen diagram of H/C and O/C ratios of biochars made under different
temperature regimes between low-temperature biochars and those produced by
high-temperature pyrolysis, as well as naturally occurring black C
4.2 Changes in elements with increasing temperature during the charring process of
wood, as well as data from fast pyrolysis products and biochar
4.3 Changes in functional group chemistry obtained by nuclear magnetic resonance
(NMR) spectroscopy with increasing temperature
4.4 Cross-polarization (CP) NMR spectra from biochar derived from wood
(Eucalyptus camaldulensis) and pea straw (Pisum sativum) materials (biochar
produced in the laboratory at 450°C in a muffle furnace for 1 hour) and
vegetation fire residues from a natural fire
4.5 Changes in the proportions of O-alkyl, aryl and alkyl C from grass biochars
produced at different temperatures
4.6 Comparison of the proportion of total signal intensity from CP 13C-NMR of
biochars produced at unknown temperatures with those from known temperatures
5.1 Dry matter production of radish as a function of biochar application rate, either
with or without N fertilizer application
5.2 Changes in total N, P and K concentrations in biochars produced from sewage
sludge at different temperatures
5.3 Changes in K contents of rice straw biochar as a function of temperature during
pyrolysis
5.4 Available P (bicarbonate extractable) as a percentage of total P of biochar as
compared to biosolid and dried biosolid pellet
6.1 The porous structure of biochar invites microbial colonization

6.2 Arbuscular mycorrhiza fungal hyphae growing into biochar pores from a
germinating spore
6.3 Time course of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) adsorption in slurries of soil
with 30t biochar ha–1 added compared to unamended soil
6.4 Soil respiration rate decreases as the rate of biochar applied increases
6.5 Potential simultaneous adsorption of microbes, soil organic matter, extracellular
enzymes and inorganic nutrients to biochar surfaces
6.6 Taxonomic cluster analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences from Amazonian Dark
Earths (ADE) and adjacent pristine forest soil based on oligonucleotide
fingerprinting
6.7 Bacteria, fungi and fine roots readily colonize biochar surfaces
7.1 Classification of biochars as high, medium and low C-containing as a function of
temperature for different feedstocks
7.2 Possible framework for classifying biochars
8.1 Large pit kiln
8.2 Mound kiln
8.3 Operation of a mound kiln showing the heavy smoke emitted during the
carbonization process
8.4 Brick kiln

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LIST OF FIGURES, TABLES AND BOXES

8.5
8.6
8.7
8.8
8.9
8.10
8.11

8.12

8.13
8.14

8.15
8.16
8.17
8.18
8.19
8.20
9.1
9.2
9.3
9.4
9.5
9.6
9.7
9.8
10.1

10.2
10.3
11.1
11.2
11.3

Transportable metal kiln,Tropical Products Institute (TPI)
The Missouri-type charcoal kiln
The continuous multiple hearth kiln for charcoal production
Chemical structure of cellulose
Structural formula for a common hemicellulose found in softwoods

Monomers from which lignin is assembled
Thermogravimetric analysis of the pyrolysis of cellulose, hemicellulose (xylan)
and lignin at constant heating rate (10°C min–1) with N2 (99.9995 per cent)
sweep gas at 120mL min–1
Reaction pathways for cellulose decomposition
Chemical equilibrium products of cellulose pyrolysis: (a) effect of pressure at
400°C; (b) effects of temperature at 1MPa
Carbon conversion for gasification of cellulose as a function of equivalence ratio
(fraction of stoichiometric O requirement for theoretical complete combustion)
calculated with STANJAN chemical equilibrium software
Effect of pressure and purge gas flow rate on carbonization of cellulose
Effect of pressure and purge gas flow rate on heat of pyrolysis for cellulose
Screw pyrolyser with heat carrier
Fluidized-bed fast pyrolysis reactor
Different kinds of gasifiers suitable for co-production of producer gas and biochar
Wood-gas stove
Components of biochar systems
Energy use in transportation of wood chips (Salix) as a percentage of energy
delivered by the biomass
Pyrolysis unit and adjacent poultry house,Wardensville,West Virginia
Estimated annual production of the main biomass resources appropriate for
biochar and bioenergy production of a 2.7ha farm in western Kenya
Production of biochar using simple earthen mound kilns
Highly diverse cropping system (maize, yam) with secondary forest in Ghana
managed with rotational slash-and-char for 20 years
Batch kiln for production of biochar without energy capture
Case study from Sumatra, Indonesia
A basic model of a complex biochar particle in the soil, containing two main
distinguished structures of biochar: crystalline graphene-like sheets surrounded
by randomly ordered amorphous aromatic structures and pores of various sizes

Van Krevelen plot of the elemental composition change of five types of biochar
with incubation and over time
Scanning electron micrographs of biochar particles (a) in the clay fraction and
(b) in the density fraction <2.0g cm–3
Mineralization of organic C in glucose, cellulose and Pinus resinosa sapwood
heated to equilibrium at increasing temperatures
Schematic representation of the factors that may influence stability or decay and
transport of biochar, and their proposed importance over time
Scanning electron micrographs of biochar samples produced from Fagus crenata
Blume sawdust with and without ozone treatment for two hours

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11.4 Schematic of the structure of crystalline graphite, turbostratic C,
turbostratic crystallites (or non-graphitizing C) and fullerene-type
structures
11.5 Particulate and finely divided biochar embedded within micrometre-size
aggregates from a biochar-rich Anthrosol of the central Amazon region
11.6 Long-term dynamics of Si, Al and Fe on biochar surfaces originating from
forest clearing in western Kenya
11.7 Mineralogy and relative proportion of aromatic C forms as an indicator

of biochar in coarse, medium and fine clay fractions of a Typic Endoaquoll from
Iowa, US
11.8 Double-exponential model fitted to hypothetical data of biochar decay
11.9 Conceptual model of C remaining from biomass using a double-exponential
decay model with a mean residence time of 10 years for the labile C pool and
1000 years for the stable C pool, but different proportions of labile C
12.1 Spreading biochar into planting holes for banana near Manaus, Brazil
12.2 Rotary hoeing to mix biochar uniformly in field plots in Bolivia
12.3 Side dressing compost into rows of trees in an organic orchard within Okura
Plantations, Kerikeri, New Zealand
12.4 Deep banding of biochar into soil before planting a crop,Western Australia
12.5 Trenching method to incorporate biochar and correct wilting of a pine tree;
addition of biochar to holes around mature orchard trees near Wollongbar,
New South Wales, Australia
13.1 Municipal waste biochar decreased emission of N2O in an incubation study
13.2 N2O generated from a Ferrosol amended with biochar in laboratory mesocosms
13.3 Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of aged (six months in a Ferrosol) poultry
litter biochar with regions of energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analysis
(UNSW Electron Microscope Unit)
13.4 Proposed oxidation of aromatic C by N2O
13.5 Proposed structure of biochar that could interact with N2O
13.6 Summary schematic for reduced emissions of N2O from soil
14.1 The pH, electrical conductivity (EC), cation exchange capacity (CEC) and
density of biochar produced from Douglas-fir or ponderosa pine wood or bark at
350°C or 800°C
14.2 The soluble PO43–, NH4+ and NO3– concentration in biochar produced from
Douglas-fir or ponderosa pine wood or bark at 350°C or 800°C
14.3 Hypothetical change in N availability with time since the last fire, where biochar
induces a fast turnover of N for years after a fire event
14.4 Soluble P leached from columns filled with calcareous soil (pH = 8) amended

with catechin alone or with biochar; or acid and Al-rich soil (pH = 6)
amended with 8-hydroxy quinoline alone or with biochar
15.1 Surface area of activated and non-activated biochar produced at varying
temperatures
15.2 Particle-size distribution of naturally occurring chars in fertilized intensive
crop soil, Germany; in burned savannah soil, Zimbabwe; in a Russian
steppe Mollisol; and hardwood biochar produced traditionally in mounds for
soil application, hand ground to pass through a 0.9mm sieve

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LIST OF FIGURES, TABLES AND BOXES

15.3 Compilation of results obtained by Dünisch et al (2007) for wood feedstocks
and biochar–ash mixtures obtained after pyrolysis
15.4 Adsorption isotherms for biochar from the tree Robinia pseudoacacia L., with
and without manure
15.5 Leaching reduction data compiled from the literature
15.6 Reduction in leaching for nutrient-impregnated biochar particles of different sizes
15.7 Recovery of 15N-labelled fertilizer applied to an Oxisol in the Brazilian Amazon
during two growing seasons
15.8 Schematic representation of proposed biochar effects on nutrient leaching
16.1 Comparison of sorption properties of biochar (ash containing char), plant
residues and soil for the pesticide diuron
16.2 13C cross-polarization (CP) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra of
13C-benzene sorbed to four different biochars exposed to 100mg L–1 of
13C-benzene
16.3 13C CP-NMR spectra of mixtures of biochar L-450 and biochar L-850 exposed
to 100mg L–1 of 13C-benzene
17.1 Secondary electron image of biochar produced from poultry litter (450°C for

20 minutes using slow pyrolysis without activation) after 12 months in soil
17.2 Comparison of analytical methods used to determine black C contents of biochar
and soils
17.3 Structures of selected benzene polycarboxylic acids used in the determination of
black C: hemimellitic acid, mellophanic acid, benzene pentacarboxylic acid,
mellitic acid and levoglucosan
17.4 Characterization of a reference set of industrial biochars by thermogravimetry
and differential scanning calorimetry (TG-DSC)
17.5 Determination of biochar in soil samples, measured using infrared spectroscopy
20.1 Framework for socio-economic assessment of biochar projects
21.1 Payback period as a function of the price of C (in CO2 equivalents)
21.2 Proposed protocol for developing sustainable land use with bioenergy recovery
22.1 Excess CO2 over the pre-industrial level for the last 50 years and (assuming
emissions fall to zero by 2035 and remain zero thereafter) for the next 50 years
22.2 Comparison of zero emission systems and negative emissions systems in mitigating
the level of CO2 in the atmosphere

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Tables
2.1
3.1
3.2
4.1
5.1
5.2
5.3

Surface areas and volumes of different sizes of biochar pores
Ash content and elemental composition of representative feedstocks and an oak
wood biochar
Summary of functional groups of S and N in a chicken-manure biochar
The data illustrate the chemical changes that occur during the charring process and
the influence of charring temperature
Nutrient contents, pH and carbonate contents of biochars
Typical N, P and K contents of common organic fertilizers
Crop yield responses as related to relevant biochar properties


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5.4
6.1
7.1
7.2
7.3
8.1
8.2
8.3
8.4
8.5
9.1
9.2
12.1
12.2
13.1
13.2
14.1

15.1

17.1
18.1
18.2
18.3
18.4
18.5

19.1
19.2
19.3

BIOCHAR FOR ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT

Effect of temperature and holding time on C and N composition and pH (measured
in aqueous slurries) of sewage sludge biochar
Pore diameters in wood and bamboo biochar compared to the ranges in the diameter
of various soil microorganisms
Common classification of carbonized organic materials
Characterization of charcoal for fuel or as a reductant
Classification of biosolids according to NSW EPA (1997)
Air emissions per kilogram biomass from different kinds of charcoal kilns
Charcoal yields (dry weight basis) for different kinds of batch kilns
Typical product yields (dry basis) for different modes of pyrolysis
Typical content of several examples of biomass (dry basis)
Influence of heating rate on pyrolysis of cellulose in a thermogravimetric analyser
with nitrogen as sweep gas (flow rate unspecified)
Availability, moisture and transportation requirements for different resource
base options for biochar production
Categories of biochar systems
List of published field experiments regarding the application of biochar to soil

for growing agricultural crops
Summary of methods of incorporating biochar within soil, their characteristics and
current need for information
Source, pyrolysis conditions and biochar characteristics
Nitrate and ammonium concentration in soils following incubation with various
biochars for 47 days
Effect of biochar (natural biochar, lab-generated biochar or activated carbon)
on nitrogen mineralization and nitrification from studies performed in different
forest ecosystems
Proposed biochar characteristics affecting nutrient leaching, related mechanisms
and degree of certainty associated with each process
Summary of key methods for determining black C in environmental samples and
their relevance to biochar determination
Assumptions for the calculation of avoided emissions from feedstock management
and pyrolysis
Net emissions associated with the use of a range of feedstocks for slow pyrolysis
expressed either relative to mass of feedstock used or mass of biochar produced
Assumptions used in calculation of emissions reduction from the application of
biochar to crops
Net emissions (t CO2e ha–1 yr–1) for biochar applied to agricultural crops at a rate
of 5t biochar ha–1 once
Total avoided emissions (t CO2e) over a ten-year period, per tonne of biochar
applied, at an application rate of 5t biochar ha–1 once, assuming a constant
influence of biochar
Fast pyrolysis of maize stover: Summary of modelling assumptions relative to
fast pyrolysis at 10t hr–1 (dry feedstock basis)
Summary of primary process inputs and outputs
Total capital investment cost estimates for the three plant modules in US$ million
(2007 basis)


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LIST OF FIGURES, TABLES AND BOXES

19.4 Annual costs of raw pyrolysis liquids production in US$1000 yr–1 and variation
with delivered feedstock cost
19.5 Costs of electricity production in US$1000 yr–1 and their variation with delivered
feedstock cost
19.6 Returns and costs as well as biochar yields for fast and slow pyrolysis as value
items are applied
19.7 Estimated GHG offsets for fast and slow pyrolysis
19.8 Economic assumption and results summary with economic results reported per
tonne of feedstock
20.1 Classes of data to determine vulnerability context
20.2 Summary of all impact indicators for the biochar technologies considered
20.3 Vulnerability context (assumptions for model scenario)
20.4 Summary of the assumptions of community assets
20.5 Cost-benefit analysis of the project
20.6 Summary of community perception of non-quantifiable costs and benefits of
improved stoves, biochar application and improved charcoal kilns

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370

Boxes
7.1

Process parameters affecting yields and composition of the pyrolysis products
the most
9.1 Case study 1: Large-scale bioenergy and biochar
9.2 Case study 2: Farm-scale bioenergy and biochar
9.3 Case study 3: Household-scale bioenergy and biochar in developing countries
9.4 Case study 4: Biochar and shifting cultivation
9.5 Case study 5:Traditional biochar-based management of tropical soil in subsistence
agriculture
9.6 Case study 6: Biochar production from dedicated plantations for sustainable
agriculture
9.7 Case study 7: Biochar as a waste or bio-product management tool
11.1 Terminology for quantification of decay
12.1 Safe handling of biochar in Australia
18.1 Concepts of relevance for emissions trading with biochar

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List of Contributors

James E. Amonette, Pacific Northwest Laboratories, Richland,WA 99352, US,
email:
Jeff A. Baldock, CSIRO Land and Water, Glen Osmond, SA 5064, Australia,
email:
Bhupinderpal Singh, NSW Department of Primary Industries, Forest Resources Research,
PO Box 100, Beecroft, NSW 2119, Australia, email:
Paul Blackwell, Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia, Geraldton,WA 6530,
Australia, email:
Robert Brown, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Iowa State University, Ames,
IA 50011, US, email:
K.Yin Chan, E. H. Graham Centre for Agricultural Innovation (alliance between NSW
Department of Primary Industries and Charles Sturt University), NSW Department of Primary
Industry, Locked Bag 4, Richmond, NSW 2753, Australia, email:
Ray Chrisman, Affiliate Facility, Forest Resources, University of Washington, Seattle,WA,
email:
Mike Collins, Okura Plantations, Kerikeri, New Zealand, email:
Annette Cowie, NSW Department of Primary Industries, Forest Resources Research, PO Box
100, Beecroft, NSW 2119, Australia, email:
Alan Crosky, School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales,
Sydney, Australia, email:
Claudia Czimczik, Department of Earth System Science, University of California, Irvine, CA
92697-3100, US, email:

Ken Davison,Westwood Industries, Kamloops, BC V2C 5P2 Canada,
email:


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BIOCHAR FOR ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT

Thomas H. DeLuca, Ecology and Economics Research Department,The Wilderness Society,
503 West Mendenhall, Bozeman, MT 59715, US, email:
Adriana Downie, School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of New South
Wales, Sydney, NSW 2251, Australia; and BEST Energies Australia Pty Ltd, Somersby, NSW
2250, Australia, email:
Tim Flannery, Macquarie University, NSW 2109, Australia,
email:
Nikolaus Foidl, DESA, email:
Joshua Frye, Frye Poultry, email:
John Gaunt, GY Associates, Harpenden, Herts, UK, AL5 2DF, email:
Mark Glover, Renewed Fuels, Randwick, NSW 2031, Australia, email:

Michael J. Gundale, Department of Forest Ecology and Management, Swedish University of
Agricultural Sciences, S901-83, Umeå, Sweden, email:
Karen Hammes, Department of Geography, University of Zürich, 8057 Zürich, Switzerland,
email:
Stephen Joseph, School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of New South
Wales, Sydney, NSW 2251, Australia, email:
Stephen Kimber, NSW Department of Primary Industries,Wollongbar, NSW 2477,
Australia, email:
Evelyn S. Krull, CSIRO Land and Water, Glen Osmond, SA 5064, Australia,
email:

Chih-Chun Kung, Department of Agricultural Economics,Texas A&M University, College
Station,TX 77843-2124, US, email:
David Laird, USDA-ARS National Soil Tilth Laboratory, Ames, IA 50011, US,
email:
Johannes Lehmann, Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
14853, US, email:
Elisa Lopez-Capel, School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Newcastle University,
Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, NE1 7RU, email:


LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS

xxi

M. Derek MacKenzie, Department of Renewable Resources, University of Alberta, 442 Earth
Science Building, Edmonton, AB,T6G 2E3, Canada, email:

Julie Major, Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853,
US, email:
David A. C. Manning, School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Newcastle University,
Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, NE1 7RU, email:
Bruce A. McCarl, Distinguished Professor of Agricultural Economics, Department of
Agricultural Economics,Texas A&M University, College Station,TX 77843-2124, US,
email:
Paul Munroe, School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales,
Sydney, NSW 2251, Australia, email:
Cordner Peacocke, Conversion and Resource Evaluation Ltd., 29 Ardenlee Place, Belfast,
Northern Ireland, BT6 8QS, email:
Peter Read, Centre for Energy Research, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand,
email:

Glen Riethmuller, Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia, Merredin,
Australia, email:
Matthias C. Rillig, Freie Universität Berlin, Institut für Biologie, Altensteinstr. 6, D-14195
Berlin, Germany, email:
Ronald D. Sands, Global Change Research Institute, University of Maryland and Pacific
Northwest National Laboratory, College Park, MD, email:
Michael W. I. Schmidt, Department of Geography, University of Zürich, 8057 Zürich,
Switzerland, email:
Jan O. Skjemstad, CSIRO Land and Water, Glen Osmond, SA 5064, Australia,
email:
Ronald J. Smernik, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Adelaide,
Adelaide, Australia, email:
Saran Sohi, Soil Science, Rothamsted Research, Harpenden, Herts, AL5 2JQ, UK,
email:
Christoph Steiner, Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, University of
Georgia, Athens GA 30602, US, email:


xxii

BIOCHAR FOR ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT

Janice E.Thies, Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853,
US, email:
Dorisel Torres, Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853
USA, email:
Lukas Van Zwieten, NSW Department of Primary Industries,Wollongbar, NSW 2477,
Australia, email:
May Waddington, ASSEMA, Brazil, email:
Phillip Watts, Boral Ltd, Australia, email:

Zhihong Xu, Centre for Forestry and Horticultural Research, School of Biomolecular
and Physical Sciences, Griffith University, Nathan, QLD 4111, Australia,
email:
Edward Yeboah, CSIR-Soil Research Institute, Kwadaso, Kumasi, Ghana,
email:


Preface

An increasing number of global threats such
as climate change, poverty, declining agricultural production, scarcity of water, fertilizer
shortage and the resulting social and political
unrest seem overwhelming. The urgency to
address these threats creates an ever increasing demand for solutions that can be
implemented now or at least in the near
future. These solutions need to be widely
implemented both locally by individuals and
through large programmes in order to
produce effects on a global scale. This is a
daunting and urgent task that cannot be
achieved by any single technology, but
requires many different approaches.
One such approach is biochar for environmental management. Biochar has unique
properties that make it not only a valuable
soil amendment to sustainably increase soil
health and productivity, but also an appropriate tool for sequestering atmospheric carbon
dioxide in soils for the long term in an
attempt to mitigate global warming. The
recent broad interest in biochar has been
chiefly stimulated by the discovery that

biochar is the primary reason for the sustainable and highly fertile dark earths in the
Amazon Basin, Terra Preta de Indio. Even
though biochar has been used in many other
places at other times, and has even been the
subject of scientific investigation for at least a
century, efforts have been isolated or regionally focused. The present global effort
followed the demonstration that biochar has
properties which sets it fundamentally apart
from other organic matter in the environment.

The past two years have witnessed
substantial growth in the biochar community
with the founding of the International
Agrichar Initiative at the World Congress of
Soil Science in Philadelphia in 2006. This
group formed the International Biochar
Initiative (IBI) at the first international
conference dedicated exclusively to biochar
in Terrigal, Australia, in 2007. The
International Biochar Initiative is instrumental not only in staging highly important
international meetings, but also in providing
a face for biochar research and outreach
efforts as the authoritative organization with
respect to information and policy on biochar.
Over the past decade, scientific and technological information on biochar has been
steadily increasing.The objectives of this first
book on the subject are to capture this information in a comprehensive way in order to
make it more accessible to a wider audience
interested in the fundamental science behind
biochar management. Biochar is a rapidly

emerging area with enormous potential for
growth. This publication marks the starting
point of biochar as a fundamental technology.
The book is divided into four main areas:
1

2

the basic properties of biochar, with
chapters characterizing and classifying
physical, chemical and biological features
that are the foundation of its behaviour in
the environment;
biochar production and application, in
order to introduce the multiple ways in
which biochar systems can be imple-


xxiv

3

4

BIOCHAR FOR ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT

mented and established, using existing
and projected scenarios as templates;
environmental processes that are affected
by biochar and that highlight element

flows such as leaching or gaseous losses
from soil, as well as the changes that
biochar undergoes in the environment
which influence its longevity and effectiveness as a management technique;
biochar implementation, with chapters
discussing the framework for commercialization, emissions trading, the
economics of biochar systems, and policy
opportunities and constraints.

We are extremely grateful to the numerous
referees who spent a significant amount of
their time giving expert opinions that ensured
the high scientific quality of this publication.
In particular, we want to thank Jim Amonette,
Dan Buckley, Nikolas Comerford, Gerard
Cornelissen, Annette Cowie, David Crowley,
K. C. Das, Tom DeLuca, Adriana Downie,
John Gaunt, Bruno Glaser, Karen Hammes,
Michael Hayes, William Hockaday, John
Kimble, Heike Knicker, David Laird, Jens
Leifeld, Michael Obersteiner, Cordner

Peacocke, Tom Reed, Michael Schmidt,
David Shearer, Ron Smernik, Christoph
Steiner, Janice Thies, Phillip Watts, Andy
Zimmerman, and several anonymous referees. We are indebted to Melanie Stiadle who
proofread and formatted many of the chapters.
Sincere thanks go to Tim Hardwick, the
editor at Earthscan, who believed in the
importance of this topic from the start and

guided us through the publication process
with his expert advice.We are grateful for the
financial support by the International
Biochar Initiative.
Finally and most importantly, we want to
thank our families and friends for all their
patience with the frenzy of organizing this
volume and all the late-night writing, and
their full support, without which we would
not have been able to put together this book.
Johannes Lehmann
Ithaca, NY
Stephen Joseph
Saratoga, CA
August 2008