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Biochar: A Sustainable Approach Towards Environmental Remediation

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Tailored Functional Materials

Part of the book series: Springer Proceedings in Materials ((SPM,volume 15))

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Abstract

Development of materials to serve as a sustainable solution to solve the present crisis of environment-related issues is the need of the hour. A myriad of nanomaterials are being investigated and explored for their application in environment-related problems, but these nanomaterials are either expensive or involve complex preparation methods. We, as researchers, look forward to develop low-cost, facile, biowaste-based materials. Biochar, a carbon-based material, derived from biowaste is a one-step solution to the existing environmental issues, like degraded water quality, air pollution, soil pollution and global warming. Biochar is a sustainable, carbon-rich, low-cost, solid by-product of biomass. In the present study, we intend to review the different aspects of biochar such as its sources, synthetic methods and applications. Biochar has an advantage that is derived from waste materials and has widely available feedstock which include crop residues, forestry and food waste, agricultural, forestry and municipal biomass. Biomass can be produced through torrefaction, gasification, hydrothermal carbonization and slow pyrolysis. Among all the slow pyrolysis is the most adapted and feasible method. It is an exceptional adsorbent owing to its unique properties like high porosity, large surface area, unique chemical structure and hydrophobicity. It is a greener alternative to other methods implemented for soil improvement, waste management, climate mitigation, gas storage, etc. The sorption capacity of biochar can be enhanced through several modification techniques by treating the feedstock physically, chemically or biologically. Although many research studies have been carried out with an aim to explore biochar, there are still certain gaps that need to be filled. The effect on biochar production due to the pyrolysis temperature, feedstock type, adsorption temperature and combined biochar treatment methods require more in-depth investigation and hold a lot of scope for research.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, School of Technology, Pandit Deendayal Energy University, Knowledge Corridor, Raisan, Gujarat, 382426, India

    Stuti Jha, Jinal Patel, Syed Shahabuddin & Rama Gaur

Authors
  1. Stuti Jha
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  2. Jinal Patel
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  3. Syed Shahabuddin
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  4. Rama Gaur
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rama Gaur .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Pandit Deendayal Energy University, Gandhinagar, India

    Kalisadhan Mukherjee

  2. School of Engineering Science, Department of Separation Science, LUT University, Lahti, Finland

    Rama Kanta Layek

  3. RGIPT - Energy Institute Bengaluru (Centre of Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Petroleum Technology), Bengaluru, India

    Debasis De

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Jha, S., Patel, J., Shahabuddin, S., Gaur, R. (2022). Biochar: A Sustainable Approach Towards Environmental Remediation. In: Mukherjee, K., Layek, R.K., De, D. (eds) Tailored Functional Materials. Springer Proceedings in Materials, vol 15. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-2572-6_24

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