EGU21-4117
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-4117
EGU General Assembly 2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

The role of biochar particle size and hydrophobicity in improving soil hydraulic properties

Ifeoma Edeh and Ondřej Mašek
Ifeoma Edeh and Ondřej Mašek
  • University of Edinburgh, UK Biochar Research Center, School of Geosciences, United Kingdom of Great Britain – England, Scotland, Wales (ifeoma.edeh@ed.ac.uk)

The physical properties of biochar have been shown to dramatically influence its performance as a soil amendment. Biochar particle size is one of key parameters, as it controls its specific surface area, shape, and pore distribution. Therefore, this study assessed the role of biochar particle size and hydrophobicity in controlling soil water movement and retention. Softwood pellet biochar in five particle size ranges (>2 mm, 2 – 0.5 mm, 0.5 – 0.25 mm, 0.25 – 0.063mm and <0.063 mm) was used for the experiment. These particle sizes were tested on 2 soil types (sandy loam and loamy sand) at four different application rates (1, 2, 4 and 8%).  Our results showed that biochar hydrophobicity increased with decreasing biochar particle size, leading to a reduction in its water retention capacity. The effect of biochar on soil hydraulic properties varied with different rate of application and particle sizes. With increasing rate of application, water retention increased while hydraulic conductivity decreased. Water content at field capacity, permanent wilting point, and the available water content increased with increasing biochar particle size. The soil hydraulic conductivity increased with decreasing particle sizes apart from biochar particles <0.063mm which showed a significant (p≤0.05) decrease compared to the larger particle sizes. The results clearly showed that both biochar intra-porosity and inter-porosity are important factors affecting soil hydraulic properties. Biochar interpores affected mainly hydraulic conductivity, both interpores and intrapores controlled soil water retention properties. Our results suggest that for a more effective increase in soil water retention in sandy loam and loamy sand, the use of hydrophilic biochar with high intra-porosity is recommended.

How to cite: Edeh, I. and Mašek, O.: The role of biochar particle size and hydrophobicity in improving soil hydraulic properties, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-4117, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-4117, 2021.

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