Biochar : A Sustainable Approach for Improving Plant Growth and Soil fertility .

Lehmann et al 2007 ; Biochar have been reported to improve the key soil biological properties,
mainly owing to their alkaline pH and structure, improving the soil porosity, aggregation, and
water-holding capacity that promotes soil nutrient bioavailability and microbial growth.
Introduction
Biochar is a pyrogenic material which is derived from the thermochemical conversion of
biomass in an oxygen -depleted environment .It come into the limelight in the last decade for its
beneficial role in different things like carbon activation, nutrient retention, sorption of
pesticides , increase porosity, immobilization of heavy metals etc.
Due to the rapid urbanization and a booming population are placing immense pressure on our
agriculture . For the fulfilment of their need extensive agrochemicals are being used. This
resulted in unsustainable farming. Around the world,biochar,a multipurpose carbonaceous
material, is being used for improvement of soil fertility.
Effect on soil fertility
The application of biochar has both direct and in direct role on improving of soil fertility.
Directly it play important role in enhancing the nutrients availablity potassium[K] , phosphorus [
P] , calcium [ Ca] , magnesium [ Mg] and sulphur [ S] , while indirect effects are through the
improvement of soil physical , biological and chemical properties of the soil (Cheng et al.,2012).
The main reported effect on chemical and biological parameter are increases in soil pH ( Sohi et
al.,2010) , Cation exchange capacity ( Das et al.2021), mineral , nitrogen [ N] availablity ,
dissolve organic carbon and microbial diversity ( bacterial and fungal) ( Singh et al.,2022).
Effect of biochar on nutrient reactions in soil and uptake by plants.
Due to large surface area, porosity and presence of both nonpolar polar surface site, biochar can
contribute in improving nutrients retention capacity (Mukherjee et al.,2011). Biochar with high
CEC retains more nutrient in soil by reducing lose through leaching ( Tomczyk et al.,2020).
Application of biochar also increases the nutrients retention by increasing soil pH and soil
organic matter ( Mendez et al.,2012).
Role of biochar in improving fertilizer use efficiency .
An Improvement in the water holding capacity and the increase In cation and anion exchange
capacities in biochar-amended Soils are reasons both for the higher retention of nutrients and
Decreased leaching of applied fertilizers out of the soil–plant Ecosystem (Sohi et al., 2010). The
effect of applied biochar is Also shown to alleviate abiotic stresses in saline–sodic soils and
Positively affects maize and wheat productivity (El-Sharkawy et Al., 2022). Biochar produced
from manure, greenhouse waste And grasses are more effective for nutrient supplementation than
wood-based biochar, with the opposite being true in Terms of their carbon sequestration potential
(Ippolito et al.,2020)
Biochar effect on nutrient leaching.
Nutrient leaching is a significant issue in agriculture, leading to soil degradation and reduced
crop yields. Biochar has been observed to help mitigate nutrient leaching by improving soil
structure and increasing nutrient retention (Karimi et al., 2020). The high CEC of biochar allows
it to bind to nutrients and prevent them from being leached away by water (Rubin et al., 2020).
As biochar improve soil structure, the soil becomes porous, which allows water to drain more
slowly. This gives the plants more time to absorb nutrients before they are leached away. Biochar
can physically trap nutrients, particularly anions such as nitrate and phosphate, in its pores.
Biochar also can increase water retention, which can keep nutrients in the soil. Biochar
reportedly reduced nitrate leaching by up to 37% in a sandy-loam soil(Jiang et al., 2022).
Reduce nitrous oxide emission
Nitrous oxide (N2O) is a greenhouse gas that is approximately 300 times more effective at
trapping heat compared with CO2 over a 100-year period (Hoekman, 2020). It primarily released
from agriculture practice such as using of nitrogenous fertilizer and livestock manure . Biochar
help in reducing the nitrous oxide emission by reducing soil compaction , soil pH, increase soil
microbial population . The reduction of nitrous oxide emission depends on the rate of application
of biochar and C: N ratio (Kaur et al., 2023).
Environmental concerns of biochar
Along with the widespread use of biochar, it may have some disadvantages which may lead to
harmful impact on the environment. When using bio-char in the environment, one of the most
crucial aspects to consider is stability. The carbon structure makes up the majority of biochar.
Biochar stability refers to the stability of the carbon structure in general. Aromaticity and the
degree of aromatic condensation in biochar are markers of its carbon structure. Biochar stability
must be considered because different biochar have varying physiochemical properties. Due to the
instability of biochar, (Huang et al. 2020).l
Feature reasearch
The capacity to carefully adjust the structure and chemistry of biochar at nanoscale (nm) scales
allows certain aspects of the biochar to be altered to target certain environmental engineering
solutions, comparable to the proposed “designer biochar” for agricultural uses. It is crucial to
remember, however, that once in the field; biochar characteristics do not remain constant over
time. Even at ambient temperatures, ageing, oxidation, and microbial degradation can modify
surface functional groups and chemistry, affecting sorption characteristics. The list of biochar
Potential engineering applications is continually growing.