The Biochar Factory

Biochar production      Biochar made from bamboo was used to produce the biochars applied in this test. Bamboo biochar was generated at different temperatures: 240ºC, 300ºC, 600ºC and 700ºC. All biochars were obtained by pyrolysis with a temperature raising rate of 5oC/min; biochars were sieved using a 4 mm sieve before use for the bioassays. Characterization of the material was made applying various test and analyses. Biochar characterization Characterization of the material was made applying various test and analyses. FTIR Raw Bamboo 240ºC 300ºC 600ºC  700ºC Germination and plant growth in net house      For this assessment, a net house was adapted and other bamboo based mediums were also prepared and tested.      Two different crops were evaluated, (glutinous corn and Chinese cabbage) addition of biochar at 100% (pure biochar without soil – test 1) and 50% biochar (50-50 soil-biochar relation – test

Biochar preparation and characterization     Four rice husk biochars were used in this study; biochar from International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), biochar from Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI), Shui-biochar from Shui-known Company and biochar from National Pingtung University of Science and Technology (NPUST).      IRRI biochar was prepared by the International Rice Research Institute in Philippines by drum method.  This process takes about 4 to 8 hours depending on the amount of rice husk to be processed. ITRI biochar was prepared by the Industrial Technology Research Institute in a specialized biochar reactor; Shui-known biochar was obtained from Shui-Known Company made in fast pyrolysis reactor. NPUST biochar was produced at National Pingtung University of Science and Technology in a laboratory scale reactor with a process period of 1 hour (see table 1). IRRI ITRI Experimental design      A net house experiment was set up to study