1st Asia Pacific Biochar ConferenceAP BioChar Conference-May09

8/8/2019 1st Asia Pacific Biochar ConferenceAP BioChar Conference-May09

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W at e r m a r k H o t e l | G o l d C o a s t | a u s t r a l i a | 1 7 - 2 0 m ay 2 0 0 9

Welcome to the 1st Asia Pacic Biochar Conerence!

This conerence eatures speakers rom the Asia Pacic region presenting

the latest scientic research on biochar, and business opportunities or

development o a biochar industry. We have accepted 57 submitted

abstracts or posters and oral presentations, and are pleased to presenta comprehensive and well-rounded program that brings together

academics, armers, media, policy makers and industry rom around the

region. We are particularly pleased to welcome Proessor Dr Johannes

Lehmann and Proessor Makoto Ogawa as conerence keynote speakers.

The goals o the conerence are to:

share expertise on aspects o biochar characterisation, standardisation

and its application to soil

provide inormation on biochar production technologies and

renewable energy

discuss business models or development o a biochar industry

debate the environmental benets o biochar, including mitigation o

major (CO2) and trace (CH

4and N

2O) greenhouse gases

discuss policy issues that impact on development o the biochar

industry.


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1 s t a s i a P a C i i C B i o C H a r C o n e r e n C e 2 0 0 9

ANZ Biochar Researchers Network 2009

NSW Department o Primary Industries on behal o the ANZ Biochar Researchers Network 2009

This publication is copyright. You may download, display, print and reproduce this material in an

unaltered orm only (retaining this notice) or your personal use or or non-commercial use within

your organisation. To copy, adapt, publish, distribute or commercialise any o this publication you

will need to seek permission rom the Manager Publishing, NSW Department o Primary Industries,

Orange, NSW Australia

For updates to this publication, check ANZ Biochar Researchers Network

http://www.anzbiochar.org/

Published by NSW Department o Primary Industries

First published May 2009

ISBN 978 0 7347 1973 7

Acknowledgements

The conerence organising committee acknowledges the generosity o keynote presenters

Proessor Johannes Lehmann and Proessor Makoto Ogawa in giving precious time to present

their work at the conerence. The committee thanks all sponsors, whose generosity enabled the

committee to sponsor delegates rom Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, India and Fiji.

The committee also acknowledges the hard work o the ollowing people:

NSW DPI: Lee Munro (organisation), Josh Rust and Scott Petty (preparation),

Rebecca Lines-Kelly (proceedings), Elspeth Berger (photography), Brad Lane (IT support),

Lyn Cullen (administration)

Watermark Hotel: Karen Kuss and Joelene Craig

Carleen Imlach, evoke design (proceedings design)

Photographs

Cover: top let - Scanning electron micrograph o biochar. Adriana Downie, BEST Energies

top centre - Biochar amended Ferrosol. Stephen Kimber, NSW DPI

top right - Sugarcane in biochar-amended soil, Tweed Valley. Stephen Kimber, NSW DPI

bottom - Seedlings in biochar-amended soil. Adriana Downie, BEST Energies

Inside: All photos o greenwaste biochar in the proceedings by Elspeth Berger, NSW DPI

Disclaimer

The inormation contained in this publication is based on knowledge and understanding at the

time o writing (May 2009). However, because o advances in knowledge, users are reminded o the

need to ensure that inormation on which they rely is up to date and to check the currency o the

inormation with the individual author or the users independent advisor.

Opinions expressed in the sponsors editorials are those o the sponsors and their inclusion does

not imply endorsement by NSW Department o Primary Industries or the ANZ Biochar Researchers

Network. Editorials rom sponsors were not edited.


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Contents

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11 s t a s i a P a C i i C

B i o C H a r C o n e r e n C e 2 0 0 9

Organis

ingcomm

ittee

Dr Annette Cowie

nsW dp P i

Ms Adriana Downie

Best ega

Prof Stephen Joseph

u nsW

Mr Steve Kimber

nsW dp P i

Mr JeromeMatthews

a Bch

Dr Attilio Pigneri

m u,nw Z

Dr Evelyn Krull

Csiro

Dr Akira Shibata

ru, Jp

Dr YoshiyukiShinogi

n i r egg,Jp

Dr Lukas VanZwieten

nsW dp P i


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21 s t a s i a P a C i i CB i o C H a r C o n e r e n C e 2 0 0 9

P Jh lh

Cornell University, USA

Johannes Lehmann, associate proessor o soil

biogeochemistry and soil ertility management at

Cornell University, received his graduate degrees

in soil science at the University o Bayreuth,

Germany. During the past 10 years, he has ocused

on nano-scale investigations o soil organic matter,

the biogeochemistry o black carbon and the

development o biochar and bioenergy systems.

Dr Lehmann is co-ounder and chair o the Board o

the International Biochar Initiative, and a member

o the editorial boards oNutrient Cycling in

Agroecosystems and Plant and Soil.


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Ke

ynotespea

kers

P m ogw

Osaka Institute o Technology, Japan

Proessor Ogawa graduated rom the doctoral course

o Applied Botany, Faculty o Agriculture at Kyoto

University in 1967. He was engaged as the leader

o soil microbiology, mushroom sciences in the

Forestry and Forest Products Institute (MAFF), and

then worked in the Biological Environment Institute

as director until 2007. His major research elds

are mycorrhizae, ecology o soil microorganisms,

mushrooms and orest ecology. He has studied

reorestation techniques in tropical regions and

devastated areas using mycorrhizae and charcoal,

and investigated charcoal use in agriculture since

the 1980s. He has published many text books and

scientic papers and has received the Japan Forestry

Prize (1980), IUFRO Scientic Achievement Award

(1981), Nikkei Environment Technology Award (1998),

Japan Mycological Education Prize (2000) and Global

100 Eco-Tech Award (2005). At present he is working

as the opinion leader o the CSFC Project (Carbon

sequestration by orestation and charcoal use) and as

chair o Sea Coast Forest Rehabilitation and the Japan

Biochar Association.


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a nw Z Bch rch nw

http://www.anzbiochar.org/

The Australian and New Zealand Biochar Researchers Network, ormed

in 2008, is a group o researchers interested in advancing scientic

understanding o the production and utilisation o biochar. Collectively our

aim is to undertake collaborative research, promote the adoption o proven

biochar applications, and communicate the opportunities presented by

biochar to policy makers, land managers, the public, industry and ellow

scientists. The Network supports the use o biochars made rom sustainably

harvested and renewable biomass resources, using biochar production

processes that meet relevant environmental, health and saety standards,

minimise net greenhouse gas emissions, and do not adversely aect air and

water quality. While our ocus is biochar research in the Australian and New

Zealand context, we also engage in and encourage broader international

collaboration. The ANZBRN website provides basic inormation about

biochar and describes current research projects.

The network is a platinum conerence sponsor.*

Jp Bch ac

http://www.geocities.jp/yasizato/JBA

The Japan Biochar Association was established on 4 April 2009. It is named as

an association rather than an initiative because biochar has been produced

and used by armers, oresters, gardeners and builders in Japan or more

than 20 years. The associations objectives are listed below.

1. Dene standards or the production and utilisation o biochar.

2. Evaluate the net carbon sink capacity o biochar.

3. Advocate biochar potential to combat global warming.

4. Network with Asian countries to promote international progress on

biochar.

5. Establish an institution or certication o biochar carbon sinks in Japan.

For more inormation, see the website, currently in Japanese. An English

version o the website is coming soon. We hope many Asian riends will join

in our movement.

Contact: Akira Shibata, Ritsumeikan University

[email protected]


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i Bch i

http://www.biochar-international.org/home.html

IBI is a registered non-prot organisation supporting researchers, commercial

entities, policy makers, development agents, armers and gardeners, and

others committed to supporting sustainable biochar production and

utilisation systems that remove carbon rom the atmosphere and enhance

the earths soils. It advocates biochar as a strategy to:improve the Earths soils

help mitigate the anthropogenic greenhouse eect by reducing

greenhouse gas emissions and sequestering atmospheric carbon in a

stable soil carbon pool

improve water quality by retaining agrochemicals.

The IBI also promotes:

sustainable co-production o clean energy and other bio-based products

as part o the biochar process

ecient biomass utilisation in developing country agriculture

cost-eective utilisation o urban, agricultural and orest co-products.

IBI supports biochar production and utilisation systems that reduce net

greenhouse (GHG) emissions on a ull GHG liecycle analysis, that do not

contribute to direct or indirect land use change, and that are supported by

indigenous peoples and stakeholders.

* The ollowing pages eature our other platinum ($5000), gold ($3500)

and silver ($1500) conerence sponsors. We would also like to acknowledge

Rick Davies, philanthropist, as a platinum sponsor. Rick Davies is a consultant

or international development aid programs and is interested in applications

o biochar that could benet poor rural communities in Arica and Asia, via

increased soil ertility and income rom carbon credit and carbon oset sales.

www.mande.co.uk


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BEST Energies has engaged with the broader research community and

invested heavily in the market development o their AgricharTM biochar

product. Clients o our proprietary BEST PyrocharTM technology, through their

licensing agreement, gain access to the use o this industry recognised brand,

with the associated guarantees o product quality control and best practice

environmental and engineering standards.

BEST Energies Australia are part o the BEST Energies amily o companies

which oers economically viable answers to the interrelated problems o

declining oil and gas reserves, greenhouse gas production and global warming.

By combining proprietary biomass technologies with proven production

solutions BEST is building distributed, clean energy production networks or

our customers. Our solutions ocus on using renewable bio-based resources,helping the environment through preventative management o the excessive

biomass waste streams which are responsible or many o the problem

greenhouse gases. By converting these waste streams into a stable orm the

by-product is an eective carbon sequestration mechanism.

BEST Energies Australia holds a portolio o proprietary key technologies that

signicantly improve the economics o pyrolysis and gasication o biomass

streams. These advancements are essential or the creation o clean energy

alternatives to traditional oil and coal based uels. By bringing together the

leading pyrolysis experts rom around the world, with more than 20 years oresearch and development experience, we have created a rich, patentable

pipeline o productivity and eciency enhancement and 1st mover products.

When our customers are aced with waste management and green energy

generation challenges we provide integrated bioenergy solutions engineered

to their specic needs. The distributed solutions we create allow production

near biomass sources and close to consumption centres. Because o our

scalability, we have clean energy solutions or a wide range o commercial and

governmental producers and users o energy and the majority o producers o

biomass and biowaste products.

Sponsors


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Richmond Landcare Incorporated: the Landcare Network representing

Landcare Groups in the Richmond Catchment o Northern NSW

Originally named the Richmond Catchment Landcare Group, incorporated in January 1998

as a not or prot association, had the task o sourcing grant unding rom the Federal and

State Governments to be parked in an incorporated entity and subsequently passed on to

various Landcare/Dunecare/Bushcare community groups or environmental projects. Funds

were also used to employ Landcare Coordinators.

In 2000 the organisation attained the tax status o a charitable und. Three years later, theoriginal ounders o Richmond Catchment Landcare Inc. handed management o the entity

over to landcare groups within the Richmond Catchment and the name o the organisation

changed to Richmond Landcare Inc.

The organization continued to pursue available grants and employ landcare coordinators,

community support ocers and specic project ocers. Funding originates rom Federal,

State and Local Government agencies, the Northern Rivers Catchment Management

Authority as well as private organisations.

Richmond Landcare Inc. is managed by a committee o seven volunteers who are nominated

by landcare member groups o the association. These seven committee members have in

total more than 70 years experience in landcare. They also have had careers and or currently

are involved in education, banking, public relations, nance and corporate management

both in Australia and overseas, auctioneering, horticulture, bee cattle and orestry.

There are more than 65 lie member groups (with over 3,000 individual members) in the

Richmond Landcare Network. O these member groups, 14 are school (junior) landcare

groups, 23 are armer related landcare groups and the remaining are community rainorest/

dunecare regeneration groups.

Examples o our projects are:

1. A Caring For Our Country Grant rom the Australian Government running until 2011

which is in partnership with the NSWDPI or carbon sequestration and biochar.

2. A Community Support Ocer grant rom the Northern Rivers Catchment Management

Authority to provide support to environmental community groups in the East Richmond

Catchment..

3. A Soils Grant or the Cudgen Plateau rom the Northern Rivers Catchment Management

Authority to remedy soil erosion on the vegetable arms on that plateau.

4. A Dairy Waste Composting grant rom the Australian Government National Landcare

Program

In addition to the above, Richmond Landcare is providing $40,000 towards the cost o an

interpretive centre at Flat Rock, Ballina. This building will serve as shelter or the thousands oschool children who visit Flat Rock each year or their environmental studies. On this project

we are in partnership with the Aboriginal Community, Ballina Shire Council, Angels Beach

Dunecare, the Northern Rivers Catchment Management Authority and several local businesses.


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t H e P r i m a r y i n d u s t r i e s i n n o v at i o n C e n t r e ( P i i C )

PIIC, Directed by Proessor Bob Martin, is a joint venture partnership between the NSWDepartment o Primary Industries (NSW DPI) and the University o New England (UNE) to boostprimary industries research, extension and training outcomes. PIIC develops science-basedinnovative solutions to crises and trends that aect rural communities and the industries thatthey rely on. PIIC is thereore committed to improving the protability and sustainability oprimary industries through research and development, education, extension and trainingwhich is relevant to northern areas o New South Wales in particular but which also hasnational and/or international relevance. The work o the PIIC is aimed at two types o outcome.

Integrated approaches to research, teaching and extension aimed at ensuringimprovement in sustainable primary production; andCoordination and co-investment o resources to improve cost-eectiveness in deliveringservices and improving outcomes rom these services.

The National Centre o Rural Greenhouse Gas Research (NCRGGR) is a new jointly undedinitiative o UNE and the NSW DPI and will be administered through PIIC. Proessor AnnetteCowie commenced as Director, NCRGGR on 4th May 2009.

Annettes research interests include: greenhouse accounting or orests, wood products andbioenergy; soil carbon management; emissions trading in the orest and agricultural sectors;and biochar as a soil amendment. Annettes immediate role as Director o NCRGGR will beto manage new projects unded under the ederal Department o Agriculture, Forestry andFisheries Climate Change Research Program. These projects include research and on-armdemonstrations to help prepare Australias primary industries or climate change and buildthe resilience o the agricultural sector into the uture. The program involves projects thatprovide practical management solutions to armers and industries.

Projects are ocussing on:

reducing greenhouse gas emissions such as methane, nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide.improving soil management and determining the potential o sequestration o carbonin agricultural soils in a variety o soil types, locations and under diering managementpractices.

The ollowing UNE-DPI projects have received unding in the Climate Change ResearchProgram:

Land the Carbon Bank Proessor Annette Cowie

Genetic Improvement o Bee Cattle or Greenhouse Gas Outcomes Dr Roger Hegarty

Novel strategies or enteric methane abatement Dr Roger Hegarty

Mitigating nitrous oxide emissions rom soils Dr Graeme Schwenke

Contact: Proessor Bob MartinDirector, Primary Industries Innovation CentreUniversity o New England, Armidale NSW 2351

Phone 02 6773 2869Fax 02 6773 3238Mobile 0411 109 610Email [email protected]


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The Queensland Government, like most governments

worldwide, is grappling with the issue o how to best

reduce greenhouse gas emissions and eectively sequester

the emissions that cannot be reduced. The Queensland

Governments Oce o Climate Change, incorporating the

Queensland Climate Change Centre o Excellence (QCCCE), is

engaged in work on carbon sequestration in the rural sector.Biochar production technologies may oer considerable

potential or carbon sequestration. However, there is a need to

strengthen our knowledge o the benets they might deliver

in local applications.

There are a wide range o soil types across Queensland.

Current research indicates that the response o these soils to

biochar is variable in terms o both eectiveness to sequester

carbon and also in the benecial eects o the material.

The potential benets include the reduced use o inorganic

ertilisers produced and transported using ossil uels and

a reduction o the nitrous oxide emissions that occur when

inorganic ertilisers are applied.

Given the expensive nature o research trials and the need

to assess a wide range o soil types, a modelling approach is

required to examine the many combinations o source materialand soil types. Accounting or the carbon that is sequestered

through biochar or any other technology is also a major

challenge.

The Queensland Government is pleased to support the Asia

Pacic Biochar Conerence, as a key opportunity to bring

together experts in the biochar eld and to share the latest

research evidence about the carbon sequestration potential

associated with biochar production technologies.


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nsW dp P iNSW Department o Primary Industries (NSW DPI) is the largest

provider o science and research services within the NSW

Government. The department undertakes strategic science which

underpins the growth, sustainability and biosecurity o primary

industries in New South Wales. The Science and Research Division

has over 700 scientists and technicians working on more than 900 projects in collaboration

with government and research partners, universities and industry groups. In 2007/08 the NSW

government and external partners contributed over $100M towards these projects.

For the past decade, NSW DPI has investigated strategies to help the states primary industriescope with a variable and changing climate and inorm governmental climate change mitigation

programs.

In 2007/08 NSW DPI participated in 121 projects to improve water use eciency, mitigate

greenhouse gas emission, adapt to climate variability or improve soil health. Soil-based problems

cost Australia over $2700 million annually. Healthy soils hold more moisture, are more productive

and have the potential to sequester a signicant proportion o NSWs carbon emissions.

As part o the departments soils research program, NSW DPI has developed research

partnerships with university, government, industry, landcare and armers to evaluate the use o

biochar or climate mitigation, adaptation and economic development. Activities include:160 eld plots under management on research stations and arms throughout the state

NATA accredited laboratories or chemical characterisation o biochars, soils and plant tissue

ISO9001:2000 certied research acilities or testing biochars in laboratory, glasshouse andeld studies

Greenhouse gas emission monitoring rom soil to test benets o biochar

Biometrical support

Involvement in ANZ Biochar Researchers Network and International Biochar Initiative

Managing scoping studies or business development and implementation o biocharproduction technologies

Liecycle assessment

Economic assessment o biochar


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Biosequestration is a path to

combat climate change but

it requires vast quantities o

biochar to be manuactured

using waste biomass and applied

to soil. The challenge is to nd a

commercially viable agricultural

mechanism to acilitate this

process.

AnthroTerra is responding to this

challenge by leading the R&D

to develop a stable carbon rich

additive able to be applied to

soil using existing agricultural

techniques to mimic the efect o

the larger application rates.

Australian Biochars would like to welcome all delegates

and guests to the conerence.

Biochar research is rightly at the vanguard o

international eorts to both alleviate hunger through

generating increased crop yields and reduce global

warming by the sequestration o greenhouse gases.

The regions researchers and scientists are to be

congratulated.Australian Biochars wishes all attendees

an inormative, productive and most o all an enjoyable

1st Asia Pacic Biochar Conerence.

Jerome Matthews, Director

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www.biochars.com

www.anthroterra.com.au


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BioSol a v is a business modeling company. Logo

a moving green globe atop a tree symbolises that

earth will go around only when it remains green. The

signature statement adapto velox meaning, adopt ast

underscores its belie that intervention should be ast

as technologies are there in plenty. Active in the area

o bio-char, renewable energy, ossil uel analogs such

as DME and bio Hydrogen Tripod Projects---EnerGreen

Power---Venus Engineers are technology associates.

Principal advisor and partner is Mr. Krushnun Venkat

who can be reached at Mobile: 91-98400 28596

Email: [email protected]

Transeld Services is a leading global provider o

operations, maintenance and project management

services to key industries in the resources, industrial,

inrastructure and acilities management sectors; with

more than 29,000 employees in Australia, New Zealand,

North America and the Middle East. Transeld Services

is publicly listed in Australia and included in the S&P/

ASX 100.

Transeld Services sees great potential in biochar as a

technology or addressing major challenges like climate

change and declining soil ertility.

SoilCare Inc is a Landcare group based in northern New

South Wales, Australia. Ninety percent o the members are

armers and the remaining members are soil proessionals.

All members share an interest in soil processes and a

commitment to sustainable soil management. SoilCare

objectives are to access and share current inormation on

soil management; secure unding or educational seminars

and workshops; sponsor eldtrips; and address soil issues

o sustainability and productivity to promote secure

livelihoods and vigorous communities. SoilCare alsosponsors TAFE biological arming courses and SoilCare

Expo, a one-day event showcasing sustainable soil

management strategies and products.

www.biosolav.com

www.transeldservices.com

www.soilcare.org


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The Northern Rivers CMA is a proud supporter o the Asia

Pacic Biochar Conerence, 2009. Along with our partners,

NSW DPI, Soilcare and Richmond Landcare, we look

orward to demonstrating local soil health projects that

have increased soil carbon and improved soil condition.

Supporting the development o such innovations in

natural resource management enhances our communities

ability to eectively contribute to the broader goals o

reduced impacts o climate change and the creation o

resilient natural landscapes in the long term.

Gansel Australia is pleased to announce the launch o

its Outback Biochar premium soil conditioner at the

Asia Pacic Biochar Conerence. Outback Biochar will

be available rom the companys website and through

national resellers working to bring biochar into the

hands o Australian gardeners. The companys aim is to

increase public awareness about the benets o biochar

while demonstrating the economic viability o what we

consider to be a cornerstone o uture environmental

policy.

Gansel Australia: 02 9773 9455

The New Zealand Biochar Research Centre (NZBRC) aims

to advance the understanding o biochar or mitigating

global climate change and to enable its use in New

Zealand, particularly by agricultural and orestry sectors.

The work at the NZBRC is organized into three closely

linked streams o R&D activities:soil science and biochar

pyrolysis plant and biochar engineering

biochar and greenhouse mitigation strategies

www.outbackbiochar.com

www.biochar.org.nz


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Cone

renceprogram

d 1: s 17 m 2009Time Activity Presentation Speaker

4.00 pm Registration and speaker preparation

6.00 -8.00pm

Welcome reception, Atlantis Auditorium, Level 2 Watermark HotelWelcome address by The Hon. Malcolm Turnbull MP

d 2: m 18 m 2009Time Activity Presentation Speaker Page

7.30 am RegistrationSpeaker preparation

8.15 am Opening address TBA

8.30 am Keynote address Biochar: Science and policy Pro. Johannes

Lehmann

Cornell University US

24

9.25 am Platinum sponsorpresentation

Queensland Government

Biocharcharacterisation

Chair:LukasVanZwieten 9.30 am Session keynote Biochar: How stable is it? Andhow accurately do we need to

know?

Evelyn KrullCSIRO Glen Osmond SA 27

10.00 am Oral presentation Turnover o biochars in soil:Preliminary estimates based ontwo years o observation

Bhupinderpal SinghNSW DPI, West PennantHills

29

10.20 am Platinum sponsorpresentation

Crucible Carbon

10.25 am Morning tea


Chair:AdrianaDownie

10.50 am Oral presentation Inuence o biochar on theavailability o As, Cd, Cu, Pb andZn to maize (Zea mays L.)

Balwant SinghUniversity o Sydney

30

11.10 am Oral presentation Biochar addition to soils:Implications or pesticidepersistence and ecacy

Rai KookanaCSIRO Land & Water,Glen Osmond

31

11.30 am Oral presentation Detailed analyses o 20 year oldbiochar recovered rom Bolivianlowland agricultural soils

Nikolaus FoidlVenearth Group USA

32

11.50 am Oral presentation A simple method or determiningbiochar condensation

Ron SmernikUniversity o Adelaide

33


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Time Activity Presentation Speaker Page


Chair:AdrianaDownie

3 minute poster oral Development o a synthetic TerraPreta (STP): Characterisation andinitial research ndings

C ChiaUniversity o NSW

35

3 minute poster oral Detailed characterisation obiochars obtained rom NZeedstocks at dierent pyrolysistemperatures

William AitkenheadMassey University,New Zealand

36

3 minute poster oral Evaluation o laboratoryprocedures or the

characterisation o biochars

Balwant SinghUniversity o Sydney

38

3 minute poster oral Temperature sensitivity o blackcarbon decomposition andoxidation

Binh Thanh NguyenCornell University, Ithaca

39

3 minute poster oral Black carbon characterisation:Implications or understandingbiochar behaviour in depositionalenvironments

Michael BirdJames Cook University,Cairns

40

3 minute poster oral Retention capacity o three typeso biochar or estrogenic steroidhormones in dairy arm soil

Ajit SarmahLandcare Research,New Zealand

41

3 minute poster oral Simulating the weathering obiochar with a Soxhlet reactor FX YaoMassey University,New Zealand

42

3 minute poster oral Characterisation o charsproduced rom dierentcarbonisation processes

Marta Camps-ArbestainMassey University,New Zealand

44

3 minute poster oral A undamental understandingo biochar: Implications andopportunities or the grainsindustry

Lynne M MacdonaldCSIRO

45

12.45 pm Lunch and poster viewing

B

iocharproduction&technologies

C

hair:AttilioPigneri

1.45 pm Oral presentation Carbonisation o empty ruitbunches using the hydrothermalmethod

Nsamba Hussein KisikiUniversiti Putra Malaysia

46

2.05 pm Oral presentation Production o charcoal compostrom organic solid waste

Gustan PariForest Products RDCIndonesia

47

2.25 pm Oral presentation Assessment o yield, salttolerance and energy conversionoArundo donax, a potentialbiochar and biouel crop

Chris WilliamsSARDI

48

2.45 pm 3 minute poster oral A simple method or productiono porous bamboo charcoal

Gou YamamotoInternational Charcoal

Co-op Association Japan

49

d 2 c


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Biocharproduction&technologies

Chair:AttilioPign

eri

3 minute poster oral Preparation o low volatilecharcoal or liquid steelrecarburisation plant trials

Michael SomervilleCSIRO

50

3 minute poster oral Maximising char yield rompyrolysis o low cost biomass

Rex MandersonChaotech Pty LtdAustralia

51

3 minute poster oral Openchar: Open-sourced biocharproduction technology

Andrew MurphyHatch, Brisbane

52

3 minute poster oral Project 540: Low-emission, lowcost biochar kilns or small armsand villages

Paul TaylorRainorest InormationCentre, Australia

53

3 minute poster oral Maximising environmental andeconomic benets o biocharproduction using an innovativeindirectly-red kiln technology

Matthew MartellaUniversity o WesternAustralia

55

3.10 pm Aternoon tea and poster viewing

Businessmodelsorcomme

rcialisation

Chair:YoshiyukuShinogi

3.35 pm Session keynote Carbon abatement potentialand sustainability credentials oProject Rainbow Bee Eater

Joe HerbertsonCrucible Carbon Pty LtdAustralia

57

4.05 pm Platinum sponsorpresentation BEST Energies

4.10 pm Oral presentation Agro-economic valuation o biochar using eld-derived data

Lukas Van ZwietenNSW DPI, Wollongbar

58

4.30 pm Oral presentation Biochar: A people initiative Krushnun VenkatBioSol India

59

4.50 pm 3 minute poster oral Development o sustainable uelsand reductants or the iron andsteel Industry

Michael SomervilleCSIRO

60

4.55 pm Panel discussion Biochar: Addressing theunanswered questionsWhat criticisms have beenlevelled at biochar?Are these criticisms valid?What are the knowledge gaps?How do we address these issues?

Johannes LehmannMakoto OgawaAnnette CowieChair:Rebecca Lines-Kelly

5.30 pm Close

7.00 pm Gala dinner

8.30 pm Keynote address TBA


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d 3: t 19 m 2009Time Activity Presentation Speaker Page

8.15 am Housekeeping

8.30 am Keynote address Charcoal use in agriculture inJapan

Proessor Makoto OgawaOsaka Institute oTechnology, Japan

61

9.15 am Platinum sponsoraddress

NSW Department o PrimaryIndustries

Environmentalbenets

obiocharincludinggreenhouseg

asmitigation

Chair:SteveKimber

9.20 am Session keynote Discovering Terra PretaAustralis:Rethinking the capacity oAustralian soils to sequester C

Adriana DownieBEST Energies

64

9.50 am Platinum sponsoraddress

Richmond Landcare Inc.

9.55 am Session keynote Greenhouse gas mitigationbenets o biochar as a soilamendment

Annette CowieNSW DPIWest Pennant Hills

66

10.25am Platinum sponsoraddress

University o New England-National Centre RuralGreenhouse Gas Research

10.30 am Morning tea and poster viewing11.00 am Oral presentation Estimation o net carbon

sequestration potential witharmland application o bagasse-char: Liecycle CO

2analysis

through a pilot pyrolysis plant

Yoshiyuki ShinogiNational Institute orRural Engineering, Japan

68

11.20 am Oral presentation Biochar eects on nitrous oxideemissions rom a pasture soil

Leo CondronLincoln UniversityNew Zealand

69

11.40 am 3 minute poster oral Inuence o biochars on nitrousoxide emission and nutrientleaching rom two contrastingsoils

Bhupinderpal SinghNSW DPIWest Pennant Hills

71

3 minute poster oral BEST pyrolysis o waste wood:Greenhouse gas balanceassessment

Adriana DownieBEST Energies

72

3 minute poster oral Biochar holds potential orreducing soil emissions ogreenhouse gases

Steve KimberNSW Dept o PrimaryIndustries, Wollongbar

74


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Efectsobiocharutilisa

tion

Chair:JeromeMatthews

11.50 am Session keynote The reaction o soil with high andlow mineral ash content biochars

Stephen JosephUniversity o NSW,Australia

75

12.20 pm Platinum sponsorpresentation

Mantria Industries USA

12.25 pm Oral presentation The role or biochar inmanagement o the agriculturallandscape: A armers perspective

Robert QuirkDuranbah

77

12.45 pm Oral presentation Productivity and nutrient

availability on a Ferrosol:Biochar, lime and ertiliser

Katrina Sinclair

NSW Dept o PrimaryIndustries, Wollongbar

79

1.05 pm Lunch and poster viewing

2.00 pm Oral presentation Evidence or biochar savingertiliser or dryland wheatproduction in Western Australia

Paul BlackwellDepartment oAgriculture and FoodWA, Geraldton

80

2.20 pm Oral presentation Charcoal application or poultryarming

Tsuyoshi HirowakaInternational CharcoalCo-op Association, Japan

81

2.40 pm Oral presentation Eect o biochar application on

soil amelioration and growthoAcacia mangium (Willd.) andMichelia montana Blume

Chairil Siregar

Forestry Research andDevelopment AgencyMinistry o Forestry,Indonesia

82

3.00 pm 3 minute poster oral The eects o biochars on maize(Zea mays) germination

Helen FreeMassey UniversityNew Zealand

83

3 minute poster oral Eect o bagasse charcoal anddigested slurry on sugarcanegrowth and physical propertieso Shimajiri-maji soil

Yoshiyuki ShinogiNational Institute orRural Engineering, Japan

84

3 minute poster oral Concepts o dryland armingsystems incorporating biocharand carbon-rich biologicalertilisers


85

3 minute poster oral Soil nutrient retention underbiochar-amended broadacrecropping soils in southern NSW

David WatersNSW DPI, Wagga Wagga

86

3 minute poster oral Nitrogen use eciency improvesusing greenwaste biochar

Lukas Van ZwietenNSW DPI, Wollongbar

87


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Efects

obiocharutilisation

Chair:J

eromeMatthews

3 minute poster oral Eect o biochar on mycorrhizalcolonisation in subterraneanclover and wheat growth

Zakaria SolaimanUniversity o WesternAustralia

89

3 minute poster oral Preliminary assessment o theagronomic value o syntheticTerra Preta (STP)


91

3 minute poster oral Biochar research in sandy soils ocentral coastal Vietnam

Hoang Minh TamVietnam Academy o

Agricultural Science

92

3 minute poster oral Developing collaborative biocharresearch in Aceh, Indonesia

Malem McLeodNSW DPI, Tamworth

94

Policyissuesortheb

iocharindustry

Chair:AnnetteCowie

3 minute poster oral Towards a aster and broaderapplication o biochar: Assessingand recommending appropriatemarketing mechanisms

Tek Narayan MaraseniUniversity o SouthernQueensland,Toowoomba

96

3 minute poster oral Prime Carbon presents a programthat rewards armers with carboncredits or increasing the carbonin their soil

Debra BurdenPrime Carbon Pty Ltd,Townsville

97

3.35 pm Aternoon tea and poster viewing4.05 pm Session keynote The New Zealand Biochar

Research Centre: Firmly walkingon the ground

Marta Camps-ArbestainMassey UniversityNew Zealand

98

4.35 pm Oral presentation Opportunities and challengesor biochar/bioenergy systemsin the compliance and voluntarycarbon markets

Attilio PigneriMassey UniversityNew Zealand

100

4.55 pm Workshop wrap-up Stephen Joseph andEvelyn Krull

5.30 pm Post conerence canaps and drinks

d 4: W 20 m 2009 P cc Time Activity

8.00 am Depart Watermark Hotel

9.00 am Arrive sugar cane site, Tweed Valley

9.30 am Depart sugar cane site

10.30 am Arrive NSW Department o Primary Industries, Wollongbar eld sites

11.30 am Lunch at NSW Department o Primary Industries, Wollongbar

12.30 pm Depart NSW Department o Primary Industries, Wollongbar

1.00 pm Arrive Baclisin, avocado and macadamia arm

1.30 pm Depart Baclisin

3.00 pm Arrive Watermark Hotel

d 3 c


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Abst

racts


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Johannes Lehmann

Cornell University, Ithaca NY 14853 USA

[email protected]

The science o biochar has made rapid progress in the past two years since the biochar

research and development community began creating platorms or communication.

The International Biochar Initiative (IBI) builds on regional activities that drive research

and national policy debate. This rst regional conerence o the Asia Pacic Biochar

Initiative is a testament to the interest in advancing the development o our knowledge

on biochar. The impressive mobilising o intellectual capacity is mirrored by an equally

impressive public interest in biochar and its use in home gardens and on arms. But

demand or inormation on biochar production and application currently outstrips our

ability to provide recommendations.

The increasing number o scientic publications provides a signicant step orward

in demonstrating basic scientic principles o biochar behaviour that are critical

or rening biochar systems. For example, signicant progress has been made in

quantiying the stability o biochar and several recent publications calculate a mean

residence time in excess o 1000 years (Cheng et al 2008; Lehmann et al 2008; Liang etal 2008; Kuzyakov et al 2009). This body o literature employs both incubation studies

that are longer (up to 3.2 years) than have been used previously and modelling o

equilibrium conditions under natural char production. It also combines observations o

aged and reshly produced biochars which signicantly expands the body o published

literature that had mostly studied resh biochars.

These analyses need to be expanded to a wider variety o biochar types and soil

environments. Interactions between mineral suraces, metal ions and biochar particles

are still insuciently explored. These renements are necessary to estimate the extent

biochar may be able to mitigate climate change. But it will not question the principalargument o the benets o biochar soil management or climate change mitigation.

The science o biochar is complex; it requires new theories to explain its environmental

behaviour, adaptation o established methods or its study, and a systems approach to

its appraisal. The required systems thinking is or example made clear by the dierences

in conclusion drawn rom ndings by Wardle et al (2008) who interpreted data o mass

loss rom litterbag experiments as a greater loss o orest humus ater the addition o

biochar. This interpretation has ound criticism because mass loss rom the litterbags

may not only be explained by mineralisation to carbon dioxide but may also lead to a

more rapid stabilisation in mineral soil (Lehmann and Sohi, 2008). Indeed, greater and

more rapid incorporation o litter into soil carbon ractions is now being ound in the

presence o biochar in a number o experiments.

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While this process-oriented research is the basis or the evaluation o biochar or

environmental management and vital or its adoption, it is not sucient to ensure the

sustainability o biochar systems, so that they deliver agronomic and environmental

benets and are economically viable.

We need to know more about, or example, energy outputs and emissions during

pyrolysis, methods or applying biochar to soil, and transportation. Yield increases on

dierent soils with dierent types o biochar require eld experimentation. While some

inormation rom eld trials has recently become available (Steiner et al 2007, 2008;

Kimetu et al 2008) the published body o research is still restricted to highly weathered

soils. And not a single case study has been published reporting a systems-scale

assessment o energy or carbon budgets.

The main challenge in the past has been the lack o pyrolysis systems available to

stakeholders. A sustainable approach to environmental management o carbon means

it must be relevant to arm economies, waste processing acilities and home kitchens.

Some groundbreaking advances have recently been made or arm-scale biochar

systems (Lehmann and Joseph 2009), and this trend is expected to continue.

Communication o research results on biochar provides opportunities and distinct

challenges. Realistic expectations must be grounded in reliable basic science as well as

site-specic adaptive science. Reliable science has largely been embraced by an increasing

number o research organisations, but adaptive science is still in its inancy; learning rom

implementation is required to be able to scale biochar systems. Only i suciently large

demonstration projects are available will we we be able to better quantiy the potential

o biochar. The number and scope o demonstration projects that will advance the

development o biochar systems and orecast their long term and large-scale potential are

still insucient, a clear signal or investment in research on biochar.

Policy is increasingly investigating the potential o biochar. Biochar has been ront

page news in Australia and several countries are now preparing internal policy bries

to educate their sta. Intergovernmental organisations are investigating biochar asan option to meet their goals. Feeding unbiased science into this process is critical to

advance biochar research and development.

From a policy perspective, biochar is certainly a strategy that deserves special attention.

Since it has been overlooked or decades, much work needs to be done in a short period

o time. But biochar alone will not solve climate change or declining productivity o

the worlds soil resources. Conservation o energy, a portolio o renewable energy

options, and sustainable resource management are all part o a broader strategy.

Biochar has helped bring soils and carbon sequestration in agricultural landscapes into

global discussions. In hindsight it may well turn out to be the entry point that brings a

sustainable bioenergy option, an accountable soil carbon sequestration option and a

viable soil conservation option, to the negotiation table o national and international

policy makers.

continued >

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Johannes Lehmann


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Reerences

Cheng CH, Lehmann J, Thies JE, Burton S 2008. Stability o black carbon in soils across a

climatic gradient.Journal o Geophysical Research 113, G02027.

Kimetu J, Lehmann J, Ngoze S, Mugendi D, Kinyangi J, Riha S, Verchot L, Recha J, Pell A

2008. Reversibility o soil productivity decline with organic matter o diering quality

along a degradation gradient. Ecosystems 11: 726-739.

Kuzyakov Y, Subbotina I, Chen H, Bogomolova I, Xu X 2009. Black carbon decomposition

and incorporation into soil microbial biomass estimated by 14C labelling. Soil Biology

and Biochemistry41: 210-219.

Lehmann J, Sohi S 2008. Comment on Fire-derived charcoal causes loss o orest

humus. Science 321: 1295.

Lehmann J, Skjemstad JO, Sohi S, Carter J, Barson M, Falloon P, Coleman K, Woodbury

P, Krull E 2008. Australian climate-carbon cycle eedback reduced by soil black carbon.

Nature Geoscience 1: 832835.

Lehmann J, Joseph S 2009. Biochar systems. In: Lehmann J and Joseph S (eds.) Biochar

or Environmental Management: Science and Technology. Earthscan London, 147-168.

Liang B, Lehmann J, Solomon D, Sohi S, Thies JE, Skjemstad JO, Luizo FJ, Engelhard MH,

Neves EG, Wirick S 2008. Stability o biomass-derived black carbon in soils. Geochimica et

Cosmochimica Acta 72, 6096-6078.

Steiner C, Teixeira WG, Lehmann J, Nehls T, Macedo JLV, Blum WEH, Zech W 2007. Long

term eects o manure, charcoal and mineral ertilisation on crop production and

ertility on a highly weathered Central Amazonian upland soil. Plant and Soil291: 275-

290.

Steiner C, Glaser B, Teixeira WG, Lehmann J, Blum WEH, Zech W 2008. Nitrogen retention

and plant uptake on a highly weathered central Amazonian Ferralsol amended withcompost and charcoal.Journal o Plant Nutrition and Soil Science 171: 893-899.

Wardle DA, Nilsson MC, Zackrisson O 2008. Fire-derived charcoal causes loss o orest

humus. Science 320: 629.

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Evelyn Krull (1), Annette Cowie (2), Bhupinderpal Singh (2)

1. CSIRO Land and Water, Glen Osmond SA 5064 Australia

2. Forest Science Centre, NSW Department o Primary Industries

PO Box 100, Beecrot NSW 2119 Australia

[email protected]

In order or biochar to be accepted by emissions trading schemes, it is undamental

to demonstrate the stability (turnover time) o biochar in soil. A review o currently

published estimates has placed turnover time o natural and synthesised biochar in therange rom decades to centuries to millennia. The wide range in these assessments has

several causes.

1. The stability o biochar is highly dependent on the type o biomass eedstock used.

2. Dierent pyrolysis conditions (temperature, heating time) will create biochars with

dierent degrees o stability.

3. Many studies compare the stability o biochar with that o charcoal produced by

natural res.

4. Dierent C isotope-based methods (13C, 14C, 13C labelling) could be used to assess

the stability (expressed either as 14C-age, mean residence time, mean turnover time,

hal-lie etc) o biochar.

5. Edaphic and climatic conditions may inuence biochar stability.

With regard to (1): Our data rom incubation experiments ound that biochar produced

rom chicken manure is chemically (based on 13C-NMR data) very dierent to biochar

produced rom wood or green waste, and much less stable.

With regard to (2): Biochars produced at higher temperatures (>450C) have comparably

higher stability than lower temperature biochars.

With regard to (3): The presence, quantity and age o natural char rom wildres,recovered rom soils and even in the geologic rock record, cannot give a quantitative

measure o the stability o synthetic biochars because a) the proportion this remaining

charcoal constitutes o the original total is unknown and b) preservation in the geologic

record requires unusual circumstances (rapid burial and oxygen exclusion) which cannot

be used as an analogue or the biochemical and physical conditions biochars would be

subjected to when added to soil.

With regard to (4): Due to the highly stable nature o biochar, direct estimation

o turnover time o biochar in soil using eld or laboratory incubation studies is

challenging because it decomposes very slowly during commonly-used experimental

periods (ie

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With regard to (5), dynamics o decomposition will be aected by soil type (clay

type and content), native organic matter content and quality, plant inputs, and soil

temperature and moisture.

While these uncertainties are an important topic or urther scientic studies which will

provide vital data or long term models and understanding long term decomposition

o dierent biochars, it is clear that biochars produced through pyrolysis at 400500 C,

particularly rom woody biomass, are stable over the timescales required or acceptance

in emissions trading schemes (eg, >100 years). Thus, the knowledge to date with regard

to the stability o biochars is adequate or emissions trading purposes but requires

urther studies to conrm long term trends (>100 year time scales) and dierences in

various biochar and soil types.

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Evelyn Krull (1),

Annette Cowie (2),

Bhupinderpal Singh (2)


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Bhupinderpal Singh, Annette L Cowie, Kamaljeet Kaur

NSW Department o Primary Industries, PO Box 100, Beecrot NSW 2119 Australia

[email protected]

The rate o turnover (decomposition) o biochar carbon (C) is the major determinant

o its value in long term C sequestration in soil. Biochar produced during heating o

biomass at temperatures >200C under limited oxygen supply (pyrolysis) is considered

highly resistant to biological degradation due to its increased chemical recalcitrance

(aromaticity), compared with the parent eedstock. With some exceptions, C in naturalcharcoal has been shown to possess turnover time o a ew hundred to thousands o

years in soil. However, little research has been undertaken to:

document turnover rate o manuactured biochars applied to soil

measure and account or any priming eect o biochar addition on turnover o

native soil C

elucidate stabilisation mechanisms o biochar C in soil.

In order to precisely determine the magnitude and rate at which biochar C is

decomposed in soil and released as CO2, we have initiated a long term (at least ve

years) incubation experiment using a novel method based on measuring the inherentdierences in 13C isotope content between biochar and soil. Briey, biochar materials

rom a range o C3-vegetation eedstocks (bluegum wood and leaves, paper sludge,

poultry manure on rice hull, and cow manure) produced at dierent temperatures

(400C or 550C) and activation level (activated or non-activated), were applied to

soil (Vertosol) collected rom a C4-pasture (Astrebla spp.) eld. Soil-respired CO

2-C

and microbial-C and their associated 13C values are being measured periodically.

Additionally, detailed chemical characterisation o organic C ractions (separated

physically) is being perormed periodically to gain insights into the causes o biochar C

stability in soil.

Early results show decomposition o biochar C in soil in the rst 83 weeks o incubation

varied rom 0.2% to 8.4% o biochar C applied. These estimates are not yet corrected

or the priming eect o biochar on native soil C, but we expect it to be small because

o the low C content o the soil (0.42% C). Biochar application did not change the initial

(day zero) microbial-C in soil. On day 196, microbial-C in biochar- and non-amended

soils was not signicantly dierent. However, total bacterial and ungal counts on day

196 determined by the viable plate count method were signicantly higher in most o

the biochar-amended soils than in the non-amended soil.

We will present preliminary estimates o mean turnover time o C in dierent biochars,

determined by tting the two-pool kinetic model to the cumulative CO2-C evolvedover two years o incubation. Implications o biochar C turnover on greenhouse gas

mitigation through its application to soil will be discussed. The importance o long term

decomposition observations or obtaining reliable estimates o biochar mean turnover

time will be highlighted.

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Tshewang Namgay (1), Balwant Singh (1), Bhupinderpal Singh (2)

1. Faculty o Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources, The University o Sydney, NSW 2006

2. Forest Science Centre, NSW DPI, Post Box 100, Beecrot, NSW 2119

[email protected]

Biochar is a product o thermally decomposed waste biomass via pyrolysis. It has

gained attention due to its being biochemically recalcitrant in soils while improving soil

properties. It is seen as an eective tool to mitigate climate change due to its potential

to increase long term soil carbon pools and reduce greenhouse emissions. Biochar

has high porosity and it lowers the bulk density o soils; negatively charged biochar

suraces and their progressive generation during oxidation are expected to improve

cation exchange capacity. Numerous studies have shown that biochar increases crop

productivity, but to our knowledge no research has evaluated the inuence o soil

biochar applications on availability o trace elements to plants.

A pot experiment was conducted to investigate the inuence o biochar on As, Cd,

Cu, Pb and Zn uptake by maize (Zea mays L.). An activated wood biochar, synthesised

at 550C, was applied at three rates (0, 5 and 15 g kg-1) in actorial combination with

three rates (0, 10 and 50 mg kg-1) o As, Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn to a sandy soil (OrthicTenosol). Polythene-lined pots were lled with air-dried soil (1kg), and ertiliser was

applied to all pots at recommended rates. Six seeds were sown in each pot which were

thinned to three on germination to obtain uniorm plants. Shoots were harvested

ater 10 weeks o growth, and dry matter yield was recorded. The plant samples were

digested in perchloricnitric acid mixture and analysed or trace elements. The uptake

o trace elements was calculated rom the plant dry matter yield and trace element

concentrations. Data on plant dry matter yield, and concentration and uptake o trace

elements as aected by biochar will be presented.

ic bch h b a, C, C, Pb Z z Zea mays L.


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Rai S Kookana

CSIRO Land and Water, PMB No. 2, Glen Osmond SA 5064 Australia

[email protected]

Soil amendment with biochar is increasingly being recognised as an attractive

practice. Furthermore, charcoal can be a signicant component o soil organic matter

in many soils rom regions that experience requent res or receive input rom partial

combustion processes. For example, in some Australian soils, up to 40% o the totalorganic carbon has been ound to consist o charcoal. Facilitated by wind and water

movement, terrestrial biochar readily nds its way to marine or reshwater aquatic

ecosystems. Our recent research has shown that charcoal has a strong anity or

pesticides and other organic compounds, depending on their nature and properties.

Even when present as a small raction o the total organic carbon pool, charcoal can

largely govern the sorption-desorption behaviour o pesticides in both terrestrial

and aquatic ecosystems. We also noted that certain types o biochar are eective in

sequestration o pesticides and in reducing their bioavailability to organisms.

To evaluate the potential reduction in plant uptake o pesticides rom soil throughcharcoal amendment, we carried out an experiment by growing spring onion (Allium

cepa) in a sandy soil. The charcoal was prepared by burning redgum (Eucalyptus spp)

wood chips at 450C (BC450) and 850C (BC850) and was then incorporated into soil

at varying amounts (0, 0.1, 0.5 and 1% by soil weight). Charcoal amendment not only

stimulated the growth o spring onion (indicated by signicantly higher biomass than

the control soil), but also signicantly reduced the bioavailability o the pesticides in soil,

when amendments were >0.5%. The dissipation o both pesticides in soils decreased

signicantly with increasing amounts o biochar in the soil. Over 35 days, 86-88% o

the pesticides were lost rom the control soil, whereas only 51% o carbouran and 44%

o chlorpyrios dissipated rom the soil amended with 1.0% BC850. Despite greaterpersistence o the pesticide residues in biochar-amended soils, the plant uptake o

pesticides decreased markedly with increasing biochar content o the soil. With 1%

o BC850 soil amendment, the total plant residues or chlorpyrios and carbouran

decreased to 10% and 25% o that in the control treatment, respectively. The BC850 char

was particularly eective in reducing phytoavailability o both pesticides rom soil.

The strong anity o biochars to sorb and sequester pesticide molecules, thus rendering

them unavailable to biota, has potential implications or ecacy o pesticides and

herbicides. The application rates o pesticides are sometimes based on the organic

carbon content o soils. Given that biochar is particularly eective in rapid inactivation

o pesticides, it is likely that higher rates o application o pesticides may be needed

in soils amended with biochars. The long term ate and eects o pesticide residues

sequestered in biochar is not clear. This aspect deserves urther investigation in order to

ully appreciate the implications o biochar application to soils.

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Nikolaus Foidl (1), SD Joseph (2), Paul Munroe (2), Y Lin (2), L Van Zwieten (3),

Steve Kimber (3)

1. Venearth Group

2. School o Material Science and Engineering, University o NSW, NSW 2052 Australia

3. NSW Department o Primary Industries, Wollongbar NSW 2477 Australia

[email protected]

Approximately 20 years ago, an area o some 800,000 ha orest in the lowlands o Bolivia,

160 km outside Santa Cruz, was cleared and converted to crop production. The leaves,

twigs, bark and branches, covered in red earth, were stacked into rows 10 to 12 metres

wide and, ater several month o drying, were ignited.

The short but intensive combustion period resulted in the production o ash, torreed

woody biomass, probably produced at temperatures below 250C, biochar, produced

over a range o temperatures, and baked clayish soil. These products were then

incorporated into the elds to a depth o approximately 20 cm. Over a period o 20

years, a number o dierent crops were planted on these soils (0-tillage). Application

rates, edac and oliar, to areas with added biochar and those with no biochar were the

same.

In 2007-08 a detailed program o sampling and analysis o the soils was undertaken.

Detailed extraction o torreed and carbon biomass rom several areas (500 ha)

indicated concentrations ranging rom 136 t/ha to over 150 t/ha in a prole up to

50 cm deep. Soils with biochar and torreed biomass show signicant increases in

the concentration o Ca, K, Na, Mn and minor improvements in CEC. Yield increases

or maize grown in the soils with biochar were in the order o 250%, in soy 27%, in

sunower 39%, in wheat 37% and in sorghum around 180%.

To try to understand why the application o torreed and carbonised biomass resulted

in improved productivity, detailed chemical and physical analysis o selected samples

was undertaken using a range o spectroscopic, microscopic and chemical analytical

techniques. It will be shown that the oxidation o the biochar suraces and their reaction

with minerals and soil biology resulted in the ormation o organo-mineral complexes

with similar morphology, chemical and agronomic properties to Terra Preta soils. It

will be shown that root hairs rom the plants penetrated these complexes to reduce

energy required to adsorb nutrients and water. It will be hypothesised that the biochar

enhances microbial growth which in turn assists in nutrient uptake.

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Ronald J Smernik, Anna V McBeath

Soil and Land Systems, School o Earth and Environmental Sciences,

The University o Adelaide, Waite Campus, Urrbrae 5064 SA, Australia

[email protected]

One o the challenges o biochar research is that biochar is not a single material, but

a term that describes a wide range o dierent materials. By way o analogy, the term

biochar is more like the general term ood than the specic description such as a largeBig Mac meal with a Diet Coke instead o a Coke. One pretty much knows what one is

getting with the latter, but the ormer could be chicken soup, ried egg, ham sandwich

or wedding cake, none o which are terribly interchangeable. The same goes or biochar,

and as a consequence it is dicult to draw general conclusions rom specic studies on

biochar, at least not unless you know what type o biochar was used. So how can you tell

i a biochar is (metaphorically) chicken soup, ried egg, ham sandwich or wedding cake?

As it stands, biochars are usually described in terms o the starting material (eg

greenwaste, chicken manure, rice husk etc) and the production conditions (eg ast

pyrolysis at 450C). While it is true that many o the important properties o biochar willvary with these parameters, how does one compare the results or a greenwaste biochar

produced at 450C to those or a chicken manure biochar produced at 550C? To do so

one needs chemical analyses, but which ones?

Elemental analyses are a good starting point: they can tell you how much ash there is

and what it consists o. Elemental analyses also reveal the total nutrient content (but

oten not its availability). Elemental analyses may also reveal something about the

composition o the organic raction (C:N ratio, extent o charring), especially or low-ash

biochars. However, elemental analysis is a pretty blunt instrument or characterising

organic matter.

Decades o research have identied nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR)

as perhaps the sharpest tool or characterising organic matter as diverse as resh plant

material, peat, soil organic matter, coal and kerogen. NMR is very good at dierentiating

biochar (virtually all aromatic) rom other types o organic matter (which contains a range

o dierent C types). However, standard NMR methods are not great at dierentiating

between dierent types o biochar (and neither is any other method I know).

continued >

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So what is it about biochar chemistry that we need to identiy? Well, we think a key

parameter is the degree o aromatic condensation or graphiticness. All biochar is mostly

aromatic, consisting o extensive sheets o hexagonal arrays o carbon atoms (a bit like

chicken wire), but as it is heated to higher temperatures, these sheets become bigger and

purer. This changes its physical properties (eg its surace area increases) and we believe it

also makes it more resistant to degradation (which is the key property o biochar).

We have developed an easy method to measure the degree o aromatic condensation

o biochar, and have used it to compare over two dozen biochars and natural eld chars

(rom a recent bushre). The results are interesting and in some cases surprising. Id love

to tell you what we ound, but Ive run out o space, so youll just have to come to nd

out.

a p h g bchc

Ronald J Smernik

Anna V McBeath


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CH Chia (1), SD Joseph (1), P Munroe (1), Y Lin (1), J Hook (2), A Shasha (2),

L van Zwieten (3), S Kimber (3), A Cowie (4), Bhupinderpal Singh (4), J Lehmann (5),

K Hanley (5), P Blackwell (6), E Carter (7), D Manning (8), C Philips, Elisa Lopez Capel

1. School o Material Science and Engineering, University o NSW, NSW 2052

2. NMR Facility, Analytical Centre, UNSW, Sydney 2052

3. NSW Department o Primary Industries, Wollongbar NSW 2477

4. NSW Department o Primary Industries, Sydney NSW 2000

5. Department o Crop and Soil Sciences, College o Agriculture and Lie Sciences,

Cornell University, Ithaca NY 14853 USA

6. Department o Agriculture, Geraldton WA

7. Vibrational Spectroscopy Facility, School o Chemistry, University o Sydney, NSW 2006

8. School o Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Drummond Building,

Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU UK

[email protected]

Amazonian Dark Earths (Terra Preta) are unique soils that exhibit outstanding ertility by

promoting and sustaining plant growth, as well as eectively sequestering atmospheric

carbon dioxide. They have high organic carbon content and are rich in the key elements,

N, P, Mg, Zn, and Mn. They have higher water-holding capacity than the surrounding

soil, higher pH, and greater cation exchange capacity (CEC) through which they sustain

higher ertility compared to the intensely weathered, acidic and leached adjacent soils

(Sombroek 1966; Lehmann et al 2001). Examination o Terra Preta soils has revealed that

they are composed o microaggregates ormed by the interaction o organic matter, clay

particles, residual red clay, sand, microorganisms and human input o decomposing/

cooked ood. These microagglomerates comprise areas o high amorphous carbon

surrounded by phases that are high in aluminium, silica, iron, calcium and phosphorus.

Inspired by these extraordinary soils, an exploratory program aimed at producing

materials mimicking the properties o the Terra Preta has now been completed. Thissynthetic Terra Preta (STP) is manuactured by combining biomass, clay, crushed brick,

and high calcium and iron waste products and then heating at low temperatures (220-

240C) in an oxidising environment. This process is known as torreaction.

Detailed chemical, physical and agronomic examination o these STPs shows that they

have microstructure and characteristics similar to the microagglomerates ound in

Terra Preta soils , and parallel properties to biochar produced under cool re conditions.

Possible reasons or the similar structures, based on an understanding o the interaction

o clays and soil biota and minerals, will be outlined. Pot and eld trials o the STPs are

reported in an accompanying paper.

dp hc t P stP:Chc ch g


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William Aitkenhead (1), Jason Hindmarsh (2), Marta Camps-Arbestain (1),

Mike Hedley (1)

1. New Zealand Biochar Research Centre, Massey University, Palmerston North,

New Zealand

2. Institute o Food, Nutrition and Human Health, Massey University, Palmerston North,

New Zealand

[email protected]

Producing chars through the pyrolysis o biomass and incorporation into soils is

proposed as a method or long term sequestration o carbon dioxide into soils

(Swit 2001, Lal 2003, Lehmann et al 2006). The long term goals are the reduction o

atmospheric CO2

concentration and slowing o global warming. Biochar has been

reported to have benecial eects on soil properties, increasing the water holding

capacity in sandy soils (Rasool et al 2008), improving soil structure (Chan et al 2008),

and enhancing the chemical ertility (Lehmann, 2007). Chars are already widely present

in soils due to natural events (eg orest res) (Skjemstad 1999) and anthropogenic

processes (eg Amazonian Terra Preta soils).

Interest in the production o commercial pyrolysis units has been expressed by severalparties in New Zealand. These groups wish to create chars rom a wide range o

eedstocks, rom grasses to sewage sludge. There is an urgent need or inormation

about the characteristics o such chars beore they are added to soil to increase soil

carbon stocks and /or improve the chemical and physical properties o the soil. Studies

have shown that chars vary according the type o eedstock and to slight adjustments

in pyrolysis conditions. Changing the heating rate has been shown to aect the

morphology o the char (DallOra et al 2008). Heating to dierent temperatures

inuences the CEC and ash content o the char, the latter aecting the chars liming

ability. In this study we report the production o chars in a gas-red rotating drum

kiln rom a range o eedstocks (sewage sludge, woods and crop residues) using twodierent pyrolysis heating regimes (nal temperatures 400 and 550C). Each char

was analysed or yield, bulk density, lime equivalence, and elemental composition.

The carbon chemistry o each char was studied using solid state 13C NMR using a

combination o cross polarisation and direct polarisation coupled with magic angle

spinning. Fourier Transorm Inrared (FT-IR) spectra, using an ATR attachment, were

also obtained or each char. The combination o these studies has provided a basis or

relating the desired char properties to the eedstock type operating conditions o the

pyrolysis kiln. Char chemical characteristics will also be used to explain the behaviour o

these chars ater incorporation into soils or agronomic experimentation.

continued >

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Reerences

Swit R 2001. Sequestration o carbon by soil. Soil Science 166, 858-871

Lal R 2003. Global potential o soil carbon sequestration to mitigate the greenhouse

eect. Critical Reviews in Plant Science 22, 155-184

Lehmann J, Gaunt J, Rondon M 2006. Biochar sequestration in terrestrial ecosystems

A review. Mitigation and adaption strategies or global change 11, 403-427

Rasool R, Kukal S, Hira G 2008. Soil organic carbon and physical properties as aected

by long term application o FYM and inorganic ertilisers in maizewheat system. Soil &Tillage Research 101, 31-36

Chan K, Van Zweiten L, Meszaros I, Downie A, Joseph S 2008. Using poultry litter

biochars as soil amendments.Australian Journal o Soil Research 46, 437-444

Lehmann J 2007. Bioenergy in the black. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment5,

381-387

Skjemstad JO, Taylor JA, Smernik RJ 1999. Estimation o charcoal (char) in soils.

Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis 30, 2283-2298

DallOra M, Jensen P, Jensen A 2008. Suspension combustion o wood: Inuence o

pyrolysis conditions on char yield, morphology, and reactivity. Energy & Fuels 22, 2955-

2962

dchc bch b nw Z

c f pp

William Aitkenhead,

Jason Hindmarsh,

Marta Camps-

Arbestain,

Mike Hedley


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Balwant Singh (1), Bhupinderpal Singh (2), Annette L Cowie (2)

1. Faculty o Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources, The University o Sydney, NSW 2006

2. Forest Science Centre, NSW Department o Primary Industries, PO Box 100

Beecrot NSW 2119

[email protected]

There is considerable interest in using biochar as a soil amendment to improve soil

ertility and increase carbon sequestration. Biochar can be produced rom various

organic waste materials including orestry residues, crop residues, paper sludge and

poultry waste. The properties o biochar vary signicantly depending on the organic

waste and pyrolysis conditions such as temperature and activation treatment. Standard

soil characterisation procedures can be applied to characterise biochar, but these

procedures need to be optimised or this purpose.

We determined chemical properties o 11 biochars using standard and modied

laboratory procedures. The biochars used in the study were synthesised rom bluegum

wood and leaves, paper sludge, poultry manure on rice hulls, and cow manure, at

dierent temperatures (400C or 550C) and activation level (activated or non-activated).

The biochars were analysed or pH, electrical conductivity, cation exchange capacity,exchangeable cations, total C and N, total concentration o major and trace elements,

surace unctional groups, and some other properties.

This study will highlight the dierences in the properties o biochars as aected by

the biomass sources and pyrolysis conditions, as well as the laboratory procedures

employed or the analyses. The results will be used to make suggestions about

appropriate procedures or the characterisation o biochars.

e b pc hchc bch


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Binh Thanh Nguyen (1), Johannes Lehmann (1), Stephen Joseph (2),

Bill Hockaday (3)

1. Department o Crop and Soil Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 USA

2. University o New South Wales, Sydney NSW, Australia

3. Department o Earth Science, Rice University, Houston TX USA

[email protected]

Global warming accelerates decomposition o soil organic carbon (SOC) with dierent

rates and sensitivity, depending on the quality o the material. However little is known

about the eect o increasing temperature on decomposition o black carbon (BC)

materials with dierent structures and properties. Four BC materials produced by

carbonising corn residue and oak wood at 350 and 600C (corn-350-BC, corn-600-BC,

oak-350-BC and oak-600-BC) were mixed with pure sand and incubated at 4, 10, 20,

30, 45 and 60C or one year to investigate the eect o structure and temperature on

decomposition. Corn-BC was more porous than oak-BC as determined by scanning

electron microscopy (SEM). Increased charring temperature led to better orientation o

graphene layers as observed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Decomposition

increased rapidly with increased incubation temperature, and depended signicantly

on the type o BC. As temperature increased rom 4 to 60C, decomposition o corn-350-

BC increased rom 10 to 20% o initial C content, corn-600-BC rom 4 to 20%, oak-350-

BC rom 2.3 to 15%, and oak-600-BC rom 1.5 to 14%. Temperature sensitivity (Q10)

decreased with increasing temperature and was highest in oak-600-BC, ollowed by oak-

350-BC, corn-600-BC and corn-350-BC, indicating that decomposition o more stable

BC was more sensitive to increased temperature than less stable materials. Carbon loss

and potential cation exchange capacity (CECp) correlated signicantly with O/C ratios

and change in O/C ratios, indicating that oxidative processes were the most important

mechanism controlling BC decomposition in this study.

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Philippa Ascough (1), Michael Bird (2), William Meredith (3), Colin Snape (3)

1. AMS Laboratory, Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre, East Kilbride

2. Earth and Environmental Science, James Cook University, Queensland

3. SChEME, University Park, University o Nottingham, Nottingham, UK

[email protected]

Although it is evident that a raction o pyrolysed biomass is highly recalcitrant, and

can survive or thousands o years in sediments or the dissolved organic carbon pool

prior to its ultimate burial in the deep ocean, it is also clear that other components do

undergo environmental degradation on comparatively short timescales, apparently

as a unction o both starting material and environmental conditions. Thus there are

undamental concerns about quantiying the stability o material such as biochar in a

range o environments, and understanding the mechanisms by which alteration can

occur in natural environments. Natural charcoal samples exposed to the environment

or varying periods o 50 to 50,000 years show ar greater overall susceptibility to

oxidative degradation than reshly produced charcoal rom both hard and sotwood

species. However, there is a wide range in the behaviour o 13 charcoal samples rom

a range o depositional environments, which appears strongly dependent on relative

proportions o dierent carbon ractions within the materials. A key problem is that o

reliably separating and quantiying these dierent labile and recalcitrant components in

carbonaceous samples, in order to answer the concerns outlined above.

A new approach which holds great promise in this regard is hydropyrolysis (hypy), in

which pyrolysis assisted by high hydrogen pressures (>10 MPa) acilitates reductive

removal o labile organic matter. Hypy has been demonstrated to reliably separate

unctionally dierent carbonaceous sample components or engineering and geological

applications, but its potential in biogeochemical applications remains unexplored. Here,

we present results concerning the potential o hypy to quantiy and isolate dierent

carbon ractions within a variety o sample types, including ancient charcoals romdeposits o geological and archaeological signicance. The results presented show that

it is possible to identiy a set o conditions or hypy analysis under which lignocellulosic

and other easily convertible organic carbon material (eg lipids, proteins) are ully

removed, but degradation o the resistant black carbon (BC) component o the sample

has not yet commenced. Operating conditions or up to 100% conversion to volatile

products and quantication o BC content (c.5000C) are consistent with other hypy

studies or lignocellulosic material. In addition, hypy appears to provide an eective

means o removing trace contamination rom samples or age determination close to

the 14C dating limit and allows retention o the non-BC component o a sample, which

may then be subject to urther analysis and measurement. This suggests that hypy

represents a promising new approach not only or BC quantication as an end in itsel,

but also or 14C dating where puried BC is the target material or dating.

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Prakash Srinivasan (1,

Documents

1st Asia Pacific Biochar ConferenceAP BioChar Conference-May09