Skip to content
Research Article Open access CC BY 4.0

Biochar: A Black Carbon for Sustainable Agriculture

M. R. Fida Banu, B. Rani, S. R. Kavya, P. P. Nihala Jabin

International Journal of Environment and Climate Change · pp. 418–432 · Published 21 Apr 2023

10.9734/ijecc/2023/v13i61840

Abstract

Biochar refers to the black carbon that is produced by the process of slow pyrolysis and act as a vehicle of carbon sequestration from renewable and sustainable biomass. This review describes the ability of biochar to improve the physical, chemical and biological properties of soil and thus increase crop yield and productivity. Benefits of application of biochar also includes lowering of bulk density, improving porosity, aggregation, water infiltration and water holding capacity of soils. It also darkens the soil colour which affects soil surface reflectance and thus helps to moderate soil temperature. Biochar addition enhances cation exchange capacity, increases soil pH, improves the supply and uptake of nutrients, reduces nutrient leaching losses, captures NH3 and leads to reduction in volatilization loss of nitrogen thus improving nutrient availability in soils. Application of biochar can also remediate soils contaminated with heavy metals and organic pollutants. It can also facilitate microbial colonisation in soil, enhance soil microbial biomass carbon, enzyme activity and the activity of mycorrhizal fungi.

Biochar soil physical properties soil chemical properties soil biological properties abiotic stress and nano-biochar

Cited by 24

Biochar-based amendments reduce yield variability and enhance economic benefits in maize and cotton under smallholder farming in northern Benin

Marzouk Yorou, P. G. Tovihoudji, Waliou A. Abiola · Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems · 2026

Eucalyptus Bark Biochar: Production and Characterization

A. A. F. Pires, Rafaela S. Resende, João L. Barros · ACS Omega · 2026

Enhancing Nutrient Uptake and Growth Quality of Lowland Rice through the Application of AMF and Nutrient-Enriched Biochar

Jamilah, Rahmat Hidayat, W. Haryoko · IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environment · 2026

Coconut Shell Biochar and NPK Fertilizer Improve the Growth and Yield of Zucchini in Peat Soil

H. E. N. C. Chotimah, Siti Zubaidah, S. E. A. Rahayuningsih · Acta Agrobotanica · 2026

Biochar, Compost, and Effective Microorganisms: Evaluating the Recovery of Post-Clay Mining Soil

A. Varela, Juan Camilo Pineda Pineda Herrera, J. Vanegas · Sustainability · 2025

Environmental principles of using biocharol for wastewater treatment

Z. Lavrynyuk, O. Karaim, V. T. Dubenska · Visnyk of V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University series "Ecology" · 2025

Article metrics

Real usage data collected on this platform.

0

Page views

0

PDF downloads

0

Outbound clicks

24

Citations

Views by country

Approximate, from request IP at view time — not citizenship or institution. Countries with fewer than 5 views are grouped as "Other".

No views recorded yet.

Traffic sources

Referring site, by host.

No traffic recorded yet.

Views and downloads exclude known bots/crawlers. Citations combines this platform's own DOI-resolved index with each external source's own reported total — see Cited by above for individually listed citing works. Last refreshed 0 seconds ago.