Abstract
Biochar has a porous structure with high specific surface area and high adsorption. Moreover, it provides a suitable habitat for microorganisms that can reduce harmful gases. Adding biochar to a traditional landfill clay cover (i.e., biochar-amended clay cover) can increase soil porosity, improve soil air flow, and reduce landfill methane emissions which are an area of interest for many researchers. In the present research, the air permeability of biochar-clay is considered to be the main measure in evaluating the fluid-flow characteristic of the material. We discussed the influence of biochar content and particle size on air permeability of biochar-clay and its mechanism. The air permeability coefficient ka of biochar-clay mixture with different biochar content (0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%), dry densities (1.42 g/cm3, 1.56 g/cm3, and 1.65 g/cm3), and biochar particle size ranges (<74 μm, 20~40 μm, 40~74 μm, and >74 μm) were measured using a flexible wall air permeability testing device. Changes in soil pore structure were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). The results show that when dry density was 1.42 g/cm3, the air permeability coefficient decreased as the biochar content increased. For biochar-clay mixture of 1.56 g/cm3 and 1.65 g/cm3, when the biochar content was 15%, the air permeability coefficient of biochar-clay mixture reached its lowest value. Comparing the air permeability coefficient of biochar-clay mixture with non-intersecting particle size groups of biochar, it was revealed that the permeability coefficient decreased as the biochar particle size decreased. Based on the pore structure of biochar-clay mixture with different biochar content and particle size, the influence biochar content and particle size on the air permeability was evident.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Amoakwah E, Frimpong KA, Okae-Anti D, Arthur E (2017) Soil water retention, air flow and pore structure characteristics after corn cob biochar application to a tropical sandy loam. Geoderma 307:189–197
Atkinson CJ, Fitzgerald JD, Hipps NA (2010) Potential mechanisms for achieving agricultural benefits from biochar application to temperate soils: a review. Plant Soil 337(1-2):1–18
ASTM D1762-84 (2007) Standard test method for chemical analysis of wood charcoal. ASTM International, West Conshohocken PA
Blight GE (1971) Flow of air though soils. J Soil Mechan Found Div 97(SM4):607–624
Chen YM, Ke H (2005) Engineering characteristics of municipal solid wastes and geotechnical problems of landfills. Eng Mechan S1:119–126
Cai WL, Kumar H, Huang S, Bordoloi S, Garg A, Lin P, Gopal P (2020) ANN model development for air permeability in biochar amended unsaturated soil. Geotech Geol Eng 38(3):1295–1309
Chen M, Dai J, Liu X, Kang Y, Qin MJ, Wang ZT (2019) Contributions of pore-throat size distribution to reservoir quality and fluid distribution from NMR and MIP in tight sandy conglomerate reservoirs. Arab J Geosci 12(1):1–12
Chen Z, Chen C, Kamchoom V, Chen R (2020) Gas permeability and water retention of a repacked silty sand amended with different particle sizes of peanut shell biochar. Soil Sci Soc Am J 84:1630–1641
Coates GR, Xiao LL, Prammer MG (1999) NMR Logging principles and application. Halliburton Energy Services Publication, Houston
Delage P, Cui YJ, De Laure E (1998) Air flow through an unsaturated compacted silt. In: Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Unsaturated Soils UNSAT:563-568
Garg A, Huang H, Kushvaha V, Madhushri P, Kamchoom V, Wani I, Koshy N, Zhu HH (2020) Mechanism of biochar soil pore–gas–water interaction: gas properties of biochar-amended sandy soil at different degrees of compaction using KNN modeling. Acta Geophysica 68(1):207–217
Garg A, Bordoloi S, Ni JJ, Cai WL, Maddibiona PG, Mei GX, Poulsen TG, Lin P (2019) Influence of biochar addition on air permeability in unsaturated soil. Géotech Lett 9(1):1–20
Garg A, Ng CWW (2015) Investigation of soil density effect on suction induced due to root water uptake by Schefflera heptaphylla. J Plant Nutr Soil Sci 178(4):586–591
Gallé C (2001) Effect of drying on cement-based materials pore structure as identified by mercury intrusion porosimetry: a comparative study between oven-, vacuum-, and freeze-drying. Cem Concr Res 31(10):1467–1477
GB 51220 (2017) Technical code for municipal solid waste sanitary landfill closure. China Building Industry Press, Beijing
He Y, Cui YJ, Ye WM, Conil N (2017) Effects of wetting-drying cycles on the air permeability of compacted Téguline clay. Eng Geol 228:173–179
IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) (2007) Special report on renewable energy sources and climate change mitigation. Cambridge University Press, New York
Jeffery S, Verheijen FGA, Veldt MVD, Bostos AC (2011) A quantitative review of the effects of biochar application to soils on crop productivity using meta-analysis. Agric Ecosyst Environ 144(1):175–187
Kallel A, Tanaka N, Matsuto T (2004) Gas permeability and tortuosity for packed layers of processed municipal solid wastes and incinerator residue. Waste Manag Res 22(3):186–194
Kallel A, Tanaka N, Tojo Y, Matsuto T, Hanada S (2006) Oxygen intrusion into waste in old landfills of low organic content. Waste Manag Res 24(3):242–249
Lehmann J (2007) Bio-energy in the black. Front Ecol Environ 5(7):381–387
Lehmann J, Czimczik C, Laird D, Sohi S (2009) Stability of biochar in the soil. Chapter 11. In: Lehmann J, Joseph S (eds) Biochar for Environmental Management Science and Technology. Earthscan, London, pp 183–205
Mchenry MP (2011) Soil organic carbon, biochar, and applicable research results for increasing farm productivity under Australian agricultural conditions. Commun Soil Sci Plant Anal 42(10):1187–1199
Omari GH, Thomas JC, Brown KW (1996) Effect of desiccation racking on the hydraulic conductivity of a compacted clay pollution liner. Water Air Soil 89(1):91–103
Oguntunde PG, Abiodun BJ, Ajayi AE, Giesen NVD (2010) Effects of charcoal production on soil physical properties in Ghana. J Plant Nutr Soil Sci 171(4):591–596
Obia A, Mulder J, Martinsen V, Cornelissed G, Borresen T (2016) In situ effects of biochar on aggregation, water retention and porosity in light-textured tropical soils. Soil Tillage Res 155:35–44
Obour PB, Danso EO, Yakubu A, Abenney-Mickson S, Sabi EB, Darrah YK, Arthur E (2019) Water retention, air exchange and pore structure characteristics after three years of rice straw biochar application to an acriso soil. Sci Soc Am J 83(6):1664–1671
Olumide T, Saif A, Stefan I, Blunt MJ (2009) Pore-scale simulation of NMR response. J Pet Sci Eng 67(3):168–178
Reddy KR, Yargicoglu E, Yue D (2015) Enhanced microbial methane oxidation in landfill cover soil amended with biochar. J Geotech Geoenviron 140(9):194–198
Sadasivam BY, Reddy KR (2015) Adsorption and transport of methane in landfill cover soil amended with waste-wood biochars. J Environ Manag 158:11–23
Sun WJ, Cui YJ (2020) Determining the soil-water retention curve using mercury intrusion porosimetry test in consideration of soil volume change. J Rock Mech Geotech Eng 12(5):1070–1079
Sun WJ, Li MY, Zhang WJ, Tan YZ (2020) Saturated permeability behavior of biochar-amended clay. J Soils Sediments 20(1):3875–3883
Sun Z, Moldrup P, Elsgaard L, Arthur E, Bruun EW, Nielsed HH, Jonge LWD (2013) Direct and indirect short-term effects of biochar on physical characteristics of an arable sandy loam. Soil Sci 178(9):465–473
Sun F, Lu S (2014) Biochars improve aggregate stability, water retention, and pore-space properties of clayey soil. J Plant Nutr Soil Sci 177(1):26–33
Tian HH, Wei CF, Lai YM, Chen P (2018) Quantification of water content during freeze-thaw cycles: a nuclear magnetic resonance based method. Vadose Zone J 17(1):1–12
US-EPA (United States Environmental Protection Agency) (2011) Available and emerging technologies for reducing greenhouse air emissions from municipal solid waste landfills. Office of Air and Radiation U.S. EPA. June
US-EPA (United States Environmental Protection Agency) (1989) Technical guidance document: final covers on hazardous waste landfills and surface impoundments. US Environmental Protection Agency Washington
Wang YJ, Cui YJ, Tang AM, Benahmed N, Duc M (2017) Effects of aggregate size on the compressibility and air permeability of lime-treated fine-grained soil. Eng Geol 228:167–172
Wong JTF, Chen Z, Ng CWW, Wang MH (2016) Gas permeability of biochar-amended clay: potential alternative landfill final cover material. Environ Sci Pollut Res 23(8):7126–7131
Wong JTF, Chen Z, Ng CWW, Wang MH (2017) Soil-water retention behavior of compacted biochar-amended clay: a novel landfill final cover material. J Soils Sediments 17(3):590–598
Wong JTF, Chen Z, Wong AYY, Ng CWW, Wong MH (2018) Effects of biochar on hydraulic conductivity of compacted kaolin clay. Environ Pollut 234:468–472
Yu L, Tang J, Zhang R, Wu QH, Gong MM (2013) Effects of biochar application on soil methane emission at different soil moisture levels. Biol Fertil Soils 49(2):119–128
Yoshimi Y, Osterberg JO (1963) Compression of partially saturated cohesive soils. J Soil Mechan Foundat Div 89(4):1–24
Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful to the National Sciences Foundation of China (Grant No. 41977214, 41572284) for the financial supports.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Additional information
Responsible Editor: Amjad Kallel
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Li, MY., Sun, WJ., Wang, YJ. et al. Air permeability of biochar-amended clay cover. Arab J Geosci 14, 732 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-021-06988-6
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-021-06988-6