• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.357-366
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• 2022

Biochar can be obtained by using various types of biomass under an oxygen-limited condition. Biochar can be utilized for various applications such as soil improvement, waste management, growth promotion, and adsorption. Wood vinegar is produced by the process of pyrolysis wood biomass and is used as a growth promoter, for soil improvement, and as a feed additive. When wood vinegar is treated on soil, it acts to control soil pH, improve nutrient availability, and alleviate N₂O and NH₃ volatilization. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of biochar and wood vinegar on the growth of perilla and soil quality. The experiment was conducted by using a Wagner pot (1·5,000 a^-1) in a glass greenhouse. The biochar was produced by pyrolysis at 450℃ for 30 minutes using rice husk and rice straw. Wood vinegar was diluted to 1 : 500 (v·v^-1) and used in this experiement. In the results of a cultivation experiment, co-application of biochar and wood vinegar enhanced the growth of perilla. In particular, rice husk biochar affected the leaves of the perilla, and rice straw biochar influenced the stems of the perilla. In addition, soil quality after treatment with biochar and wood vinegar applied together was highest compared to other units. Therefore, it is anticipated that co-application of biochar and wood vinegar will be more productive and improve soil quality compared to individual utilization of biochar and wood vinegar.

• Clean Technology
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.201-211
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• 2013

Biochar is charred materials generated during pyrolysis processes in the absence of oxygen using biomass, resulting in high carbon contents. In recent years, biochar has attracted more increasingly due to its potential role in carbon sequestration, renewable energy, waste management, soil amendment for agricultural use, and environmental remediation. Since biochar has a long-term stability in soil for thousands of years, biochar can be carbon negative compared to carbon-neutral biomass energy that decomposes eventually. Moreover, when biochar is applied to soil, crop production can be largely improved due to its high pH and its superior ability to retain water and nutrients. This paper review the research trends of biochar including the principles of carbon sequestration by biochar, its physico-chemical properties, and its applications on agricultural and environmental area.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2018

BACKGROUND: Different physical and chemical properties of biochar, which is made out of a variety of biomass materials, can impact water movement through amended soil. The objective of this research was to develop a decision support tool evaluating the impact of the shape and the size distribution of biochar on soil saturated hydraulic conductivity ($K_{sat}$). METHODS AND RESULTS: Plastic beads of different size and morphology were compared with biochar to assess impacts on soil $K_{sat}$. Bead and biochar were added at the rate of 5% (v/w) to coarse sand. The particle size of bead and biochar had an effect on the $K_{sat}$, with larger and smaller particle sizes than the original sand grain (0.5 mm) decreasing the $K_{sat}$ value. The equivalent size bead or biochar to the sand grains had no impact on $K_{sat}$. The amendment shape also influenced soil hydraulic properties, but only when the particle size was between 3-6 mm. Intra-particle porosity had no significant influence on the $K_{sat}$ due to its small pore size and increased tortuosity compared to the inter-particle spaces (macro-porosity). CONCLUSION: The results supported the conclusion that both particle size and shape of the amended biochar impacted the $K_{sat}$ value.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.608-617
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• 2019

The adsorption of sulfamethoxazole (SMX) onto a NaOH-activated pine wood-derived biochar was investigated via batch experiments and models. Surprisingly, the maximum adsorption capacity of activated biochar for SMX (397.29 mg/g) was superior than those of pristine biochars from various feedstock, but comparable to those of commercially available activated carbons. Elovich kinetic and Freundlich isotherm models revealed the best fitted ones for the adsorption of SMX onto the activated biochar indicating chemisorptive interaction occurred on surface of the activated biochar. In addition, the intraparticle diffusion limitation was thought to be the major barrier for the adsorption of SMX on the activated biochar. The main mechanisms for the activated biochar would include hydrophobic, π-π interactions and hydrogen bonding. This was consistent with the changes in physicochemical properties of the activated biochar (e.g., increase in sp² and surface area, but decrease in the ratios of O/C and H/C).

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.471-477
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• 2013

Biochar amendment to agricultural soil is regarded as a promising option to mitigate climate change and enhance soil quality. It could sequester more carbon within the soil system and increase plant yield by changing soil physicochemical characteristics. However, sustainable use of biochar requires comprehensive environmental assessment. In this sense, it is important to measure additional greenhouse gas emission from soils after biochar addition. We investigated emissions of $CO_2$, $N_2O$, and $CH_4$ from incubated soils collected from rice paddy and cultivated grassland after amendment of 3% biochar (wt.) produced from rice chaff. During incubation, soils were exposed to three wet-dry cycles ranging from 5~85% soil gravimetric water content (WC) to investigate the changes in effect of biochar when influenced by different water levels. The $CO_2$ emission was reduced in biochar treatment compared to the control at WC of 30~70% both in rice paddy and grassland soils. This indicates that biochar could function as a stabilizer for soil organic carbon and it can be effective in carbon sequestration. The $N_2O$ emission was also reduced from the grassland soil treated with biochar when WC was greater than 30% because the biochar treated soils had lower denitrification due to better aeration. In the rice paddy soil, biochar addition resulted in decrease in $N_2O$ emission when WC was greater than 70%, while an increase was noted when WC was between 30~70%. This increase might be related to the fact that available nutrients on biochar surface stimulated existing nitrifying bacterial community, resulting in higher $N_2O$ emission. Overall results imply that biochar amendment to agricultural soil can stabilize soil carbon from fast decomposition although attention should be paid to additional $N_2O$ emission when biochar addition is combined with the application of nitrogen fertilizer.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.127-132
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• 2015

In this study, biochar-bead, prepared from biochar powder derived from woody biomass, was used for removal cadmium ion in aqueous solution. Various mixing ratios of alginate solution and biochar powder were used for the production of round shape biochar-bead. An optimum mixing ratio was selected as 1.5% alginate solution and 20 wt% biochar. The produced biochar-bead was characterized by SEM, FT-IR, and XRD analyses. The adsorption capacity of Cd(II) by biochar-bead was found to be 9.72 mg/g which was higher than that by GAC and PAC. According to this study, round shape biochar-bead is expected to be used as a media for reactive barrier or water filtration.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.931-939
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• 2019

Biochar is a solid carbon material made by pyrolyzing a biomass under limited oxygen conditions. Biochar has been reported to confer various benefits, such as increased soil productivity, pollutant absorption, and reduced greenhouse gas. In this study, oak pyrolyzed at 600℃ for 3 hours was either powdered or pelleted. Each of the biochar types was added to the soil at a rate of 2%. The control did not receive any biochar while a combination of the biochar and NPK treatment (biochar 2% + NPK) was also included. The cherry tomatoes were grown in greenhouse pots for 50 days to compare the growth characteristics of the different treatments. The cherry tomato with the powdered biochar 2% + NPK treatment had the heaviest plant fresh shoot weight of 276.4 g and the highest chlorophyll content of 59.3 SPAD. The control had the lightest plant fresh shoot weight of 44.2 g and a chlorophyll content of 26.5 SPAD. Both forms of biochar affected the chemical properties of the soil, increased the pH, electrical conductivity, available phosphate, total carbon and total nitrogen and positively influenced the cherry tomato growth and productivity. From the above results, therefore, both biochar forms are suited for use as soil amendments.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.589-596
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• 2021

Nitrogen applied to soil is highly prone to leaching and volatilization leading to gaseous emissions of nitrous oxide (N₂O) and ammonia (NH₃) which are of great environmental concern. Usage of biochar to reduce the discharge of nitrogen to the environment has attracted much interest in the recent past. Biochar is produced by pyrolyzing various biomasses under oxygen-limited conditions. Biochar is a carbonized material with high adsorptive powers for not only plant nutrients but also heavy metals. The objective of this study was to investigate the adsorption characteristics of NH₄-N onto biochar made from pine needles. The biochar was produced at various pyrolysis temperatures including 300, 400 and 500℃ and holding times of 30 and 120 minutes. The Langmuir isotherm was used to evaluate the adsorption test results. The chemical properties of the biochar varied with the pyrolysis conditions. In particular, the pH, EC and total carbon content increased with the increasing pyrolysis conditions. The rate of adsorption of NH₄-N by the biochar decreased with the increasing pyrolysis conditions. Of these conditions, biochar that was pyrolyzed at 300℃ for 30 minutes showed the highest adsorption rate of approximately 0.071 mg·g^-1. Thus, the use of biochar pyrolyzed at low temperatures with a short holding time can most efficiently reduce ammonia emissions from agricultural land.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.435-443
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• 2023

Global concern over climate change, driven by greenhouse gas emissions, has prompted widespread interest in sustainable solutions. In the agricultural sector, biochar has emerged as a focal point for mitigating these emissions. This study investigated the impact of continuous biochar application on CO₂ and N₂O emissions during the spring cabbage cultivation period. Greenhouse gas emissions in the biochar treatment groups (soils treated with 1, 3, and 5 tons/ha of rice husk biochar) were compared to those in the control group without biochar. During the spring cabbage cultivation period in 2022, the total CO₂ emissions were in the range of 71.6-119.0 g/m² day, and in 2023, with continuous biochar application, they were in the range of 71.6-102.1 g/m² day. The total emissions of N₂O in 2022 and 2023 were in the range of 11.7-23.7 and 7.8-19.9 g/m² day, respectively. Overall, greenhouse gas emissions decreased after biochar treatment, confirming the positive influence of biochar on mitigating greenhouse gas release from the soil. Nevertheless, further research over an extended period exceeding five years is deemed essential to delve into the specific mechanisms behind these observed changes and to assess the long-term sustainability of biochar's impact on greenhouse gas dynamics in agricultural settings.

• 한국연소학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2013.06a
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• pp.69-72
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• 2013

This study investigates the characteristics of biochar by slow pyrolysis at $500^{\circ}C$ for various biomass residues. Six biomass materials were tested: Tree bark, Tree stem, bagasse, cocopeat, paddy straw and palm kernel shell. In the biochar yield, the effect of ash in the raw biomass was significant for paddy straw. Excluding the ash content, the timber bark, bagasse and paddy straw had a similar biochar yield of 26-29 wt.%. Tree stem and bagasse had well developed pores in a wide size range and large surface area over $200m^2/g$. Cocopeat and PKS has significantly higher biochar yield due to the increased content of lignin, but the development of intra-particle pores and microscopic surface area was very poor. The elemental composition, pH and other properties of the biochar samples were also compared.