Sustainable use of croplands is facing a challenge to maintain organic carbon (C) in soil. Pyrolyzed coal or coal char (CC) is a porous C material produced from the pyrolysis of coal containing high organic C, large surface area, and low bulk density like biochar (BC). This study evaluates corn (Zea mays L.) grain yield and selected soil properties in soil amended with CC and BC at two rates (22 and 44 Mg ha−1) with farmyard manure (FM) (66 Mg ha−1) and without FM addition.
A greenhouse study to test the use of coal char (CC) as a soil amendment. CC is a solid, porous activated carbon material resulting from high-temperature pyrolysis of coal. The objectives of this preliminary trial were to evaluate the impacts of different concentrations of CC added to the soil (0% (control), 1, 5, and 10% (v/v)) on plant biomass yield and soil water holding capacity (WHC).
Using Coal Char and Biochar as a Soil Amendment
In this study, three-year field observations were carried out on use of coal char (CC) and biochar (BC) as soil amendments in unirrigated semiarid rangeland soil to study their effects on soil health, crop yield and nutrient holding capacity.
Soil degradation due to loss of soil organic carbon is a serious concern in semiarid agroecosystems. Agricultural use of CC has the potential to put the coal back into the ground as a stable carbon, which is expected to improve soil properties and increase agricultural productivity, and turning coal into CC for soil amendment instead of burning coal at power plants could reduce atmospheric CO2 while continuing to utilize the vast natural resource.
