Definition
Biochar has been known to the ancient world in the Amazonia and agricultural practices of South America. The rich black soil of Amazonians, Terra Preta de Indio, was believed to have been created 500-2000 years ago. This provided a base for agriculture and natural growth encountered by the Europeans in these parts of Amazon and South America. In recent years, the general term biochar is used and researchers and practitioners alike have been trying to apply the lessons from these bygone indigenous farmers from Amazonia, for soil management. The technical definition, per Lehmann and Joseph is the following: biochar is the carbon-rich product obtained when biomass, such as wood, manure or leaves, is heated in a closed container with little or no available air. This process of heating with lack of oxygen at medium to high temperatures is called pyrolysis. Therefore biochar is thermally decomposed organic matter under lack of oxygen. The technical term for the organic matter burnt is called feedstock. Hence its similar to the process of making charcoal, but in specific conditions of temperature and lack of oxygen content and differs in applications from how charcoal was used in times past.
Traditional Making of Biochar
As formerly mentioned, pyrolysis is the method used to produce biochar. The organic waste is burnt at moderate to high temperatures (400-2000 F) void of oxygen. This burns all of the volatile organic gases and have most of the original matter reduced to its carbon form. Therefore, not all biochar are created the same, since the qualities and properties will be based on the feedstock and its origins, as well as the pyrolysis process used. There are number of home grown and industrial systems for creating biochar. The most prevalent one is called the Kon-Tiki Kiln, which uses a large metal drum and specific open fire burning technique to perform pyrolysis.
We use a state of the art system built closer to the Amazonian models, that produces quality biochar consistently in large quantities. If you need to know more about our process please contact info.
Some uses of Biochar
The primitive use of biochar was in agriculture and production of fuel and forestry control. Although there is a large body of work around uses of biochar in agriculture, there are other innovative uses that has been discovered in the last century. The properties of biochar includes low thermal conductivity, stability, water absorption, large surface area per gram for binding foreign materials, to name a few. These properties then lend itself to some interesting usage. We will explore just a few
- Construction: The biochar has two key properties around low thermal conductivity and its ability to absorb water up to 6 times its weight. These properties ensures that biochar can be used in insulating buildings and regulating humidity. There have been several demonstrated uses from plaster, paint to being added in bricks and concrete blocks. There seems to be other studies that show it as an efficient absorber of electromagnetic radiations as well as termite resistant.
- Water filtration: Due to the ability to bind foreign particles and the large surface area per unit mass, makes it an ideal filtration materials for both micro and macro filters, not just for drinking water, but also in waste water treatment.
- Smell control: The highly stable and large surface area lends itself as a key property for biochar to be used in smell and odor control. The various gases that are odorous in nature from both inorganic and organic processes, can be bound to biochar and thereby reducing the impact of odor.
Biochar in Soil
The main focus of this introduction paper will be on its known use in agriculture and gardening. Before we explore this topic, it would be good to present the nutrient cycle in plant biology.
The exudates are what the plants put out as a product of their photosynthesis, in creating simple and complex sugars, which then become the food needed for the micro organisms. These micro organisms in turn feed on these exudates. Their excretions and the food web they become part of, becoming food for macro organisms, creates a fabric in the soil to release the nutrients (minerals and compounds) locked in the soil. These nurtients, naturally available in most soil, is then made available to plant for its growth. This balance symbiotic relationship of the plant and the rich set of soil organisms, along with the birds and bees that are part of this cycle, help in the overall health of the plant. In various instances, the soil might be damaged in its nutrient density or might have the nutrients locked away or might be nutrient rich, but not have enough biological organisms to spur this nutrient cycle. These are the causes of poor plant yield. In the past we have looked at this as a chemistry problem and there by taking a chemical approach to feed the plants. A more complete approach is to treat this as a biological problem and ensure the right organisms are able to support the plant, with right soil structure and unhindered flow of the nutrients for the plants to consume.
This is where biochar comes in. In addition to compost and other natural organic fertilizers, biochar with its large surface area in its particulates is able to make these nutrients more freely available to the plants. The stable carbon also provides a constant source of base nutrient many of these organisms need.
Biochar, therefore not only enhances the nutrient cycle but also helps with soil structure, which is critical to making structurally sound plants resistant to diseases and weather elements. This makes biochar a prime candidate in building of various soil amendments and additives that can be used to drive a higher plant yield in a more organic way.
A more detailed paper with scientific background will be published to elaborate these points at a later date.
Research Paradigm & Conclusion
Most if not all of the biochar related research in the academia, in the last 20 years, has been motivated and funded with a reducing global warming/climate change paradigm. Since they start with the assumptions from global warming/climate change, the methodology, uses and recommendations from various scientific studies are to reduce and retard their concept of climate change. Therefore many conclusions and recommendations are around best ways to sequester carbon, ways to effectively eliminate carbon and such.
Not withstanding these presuppositions, we will look at the research objectively and try to duplicate relevant ones as part of the biochar initiatives at Tejas Buds, coming from a Biblical and scriptural point of view. We will apply the scientific principles to the best of our God-given abilities and document what we see in the field with the pre-supposition that God created the earth and gave it to man for his dominion. It was sin and therefore man's greed that has slowly wreaked havoc on soil from which we come from and go back to. More specifically, in the last 100 years, our recent forefathers who grew up farming and applied known ancient practices, went with the ways of the world using its alleged innovations, justified its use for the need to make a living, with changing prices and agricultural pressures around them, to adopt the practices of corporate farming and methods that became prevalent in the last century.
In our ongoing research and publications, we will look to apply all of the available methods and innovations, as it glorifies our Savior Jesus Christ, from a Scriptural view, giving sovereignty to our Creator and the Most High God. We will be publishing these updates on our website, so be sure to check back or reach out to the author info@tejasbuds.com for any specific follow up or discussion. On our web site you can also find our biochar related products. If you are unable to access the Internet, reach out to the address in our contact page or call us for additional information.
It is our belief that the plain communities on this realm can benefit from the lessons from the ancients and corroborated by science, to treat God given dirt and soil with natural care without the over pollution of chemicals and big-ag constructs. The respect for God's creations and the use of His resources in the way He intended, is a foundational part of taking dominion over the realm, He has appointed for us. We believe that biochar can provide a catalyst and play a small part in taking us back to the land in how the Most High intended us to steward the land.
References
- This paper is the property of Tejas Buds, LLC. Contact us for any use or additional publishing/sharing of the document info@tejasbuds.com P.O Box 247 Edgar Springs, MO 65462 Phone +15127964287
- https://wiki.opensourceecology.org/wiki/Kon-Tiki_Kiln
- http://www.css.cornell.edu/faculty/lehmann/research/terra%20preta/terrapretamain.html
- https://biomassenergytechniques.com/
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/plant-exudates