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Influence of in-house produced biochars on cracks and retained water during drying-wetting cycles: comparison between conventional plant, animal, and nano-biochars

  • Soils, Sec 2 • Global Change, Environ Risk Assess, Sustainable Land Use • Research Article
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Abstract

Purpose

Biochars produced from different feedstocks (such as wood, pig manure) possess varying physical and chemical properties, which have influence on crack and evaporation rate of biochar-amended soil (BAS). Furthermore, influence of compaction state and drying-wetting cycles on evaporation rate and cracking of BAS has not been investigated comprehensively. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of biochar types, compaction state of BAS, and drying-wetting cycles on crack propagation and retained water (or evaporation rate).

Material and methods

An animal and plant feedstock-based biochars were produced in-house from pig manure (PM) and wood (W), respectively. In addition, nano structured chalk and wheat biochar (CWB) were also produced. Soil amended with individual biochars was compacted in petri-glass discs at two densities. Disc specimens were subjected to multiple drying-wetting cycles, and evaporation rate of specimens and crack area were monitored throughout the experimental period (70 days). Images were captured after every 24 h and processed using image processing technique to obtain the crack intensity factor (CIF).

Results and discussion

The results show that plant-based W BAS showed the high water retention, i.e., low evaporation rate and low CIF. Furthermore, the crack potential of CW BAS was seen to be higher. In dense compacted soil, maximum CIF% can be reduced from 3.9 to 0.4% for W BAS, from 3.9 to 1.7% for PM BAS, and from 3.9 to 1.6% for CW BAS.

Conclusion

WB was able to resist cracking more efficiently than other types of biochar. Evaporation was found to be minimal for plant-based W BAS at 10% biochar percentage. Higher biochar content in soil was seen to increase the water retention of BAS significantly. Dense state of BAS at high biochar content (i.e., 10%) was effective in reducing evaporation rate and crack progression.

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Abbreviations

ASTM:

American Society of Testing and Materials

BAS:

Biochar amended soil

CIF:

Crack intensity factor

CW:

Chalk and wheat nano-biochar

DoC:

Degree of compaction

FE-SEM:

Field emission scanning electron microscope

FTIR:

Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy

LL:

Liquid limit

MDD:

Maximum dry density

MLCS:

Multilayered cover system

OMC:

Optimum moisture content

PL:

Plastic limit

PM:

Pig manure biochar

RGB:

Red green blue

USCS:

Unified Soil Classification System

WB:

Wood biochar

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Funding

Dr. YangPing Wen (Institute of Functional Materials and Agricultural Applied Chemistry/Collaborative Innovation Centre of Jiangxi Typical Trees Cultivation and Utilization, Jiangxi Agricultural University) received support for his Projects of Water Science and Technology of Jiangxi Province (KT201739, 201820TG03) and Scientific Research Key Project of Jiangxi Provincial Department of Education (GJJ160351). Dr. Ankit Garg received grant (2017KQNCX067) provided by Ministry of Education, Guangdong.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Guangdong Engineering Center for structure Safety and Health Monitoring, Shantou University, Shantou, China

    Himanshu Kumar, Weiling Cai, Junlong Lai, Peinan Chen, Suriya Prakash Ganesan, Sanandam Bordoloi, Xiaoying Liu & Ankit Garg

  2. College of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Guangxi University, Guangxi, China

    Himanshu Kumar & Guoxiong Mei

  3. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, SAR, China

    Himanshu Kumar & Sanandam Bordoloi

  4. Institute of Functional Materials and Agricultural Applied Chemistry/Collaborative Innovation Center of Jiangxi Typical Trees Cultivation and Utilization, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang, 330045, China

    YangPing Wen

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  1. Himanshu Kumar
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  2. Weiling Cai
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  3. Junlong Lai
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  4. Peinan Chen
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  9. Ankit Garg
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  10. Guoxiong Mei
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Correspondence to Guoxiong Mei.

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Kumar, H., Cai, W., Lai, J. et al. Influence of in-house produced biochars on cracks and retained water during drying-wetting cycles: comparison between conventional plant, animal, and nano-biochars. J Soils Sediments 20, 1983–1996 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-020-02573-8

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