Abstract
Purpose
The aims of this research were to (i) systematically investigate the soil organic carbon (SOC) and labile SOC fraction dynamics over a period of 3 years under biochar amendment, (ii) reveal the relations of labile SOC fractions to SOC, and (iii) evaluate the sensitivity of SOC to biochar added at different rates by determining C pool management index (CPMI).
Materials and methods
The SOC, labile SOC fractions, and the CPMI in the 0–20-cm layer were analyzed via a 3-year field experiment of maize. Four biochar treatments were studied, with application rates of 0, 15.75, 31.5, and 47.25 t ha−1 (CK, BC1, BC2, and BC3, respectively). Biochar was applied manually before sowing only in the first year of this experiment; an equal mineral NPK fertilizer was applied to each treatment annually.
Results and discussion
The average data of this 3-year field study demonstrated that biochar incorporation significantly increased SOC, particulate organic carbon (POC), easily oxidizable carbon (EOC), light fraction organic carbon (LFOC), and microbial biomass carbon (MBC) by 31.75–83.62, 92.72–323.30, 29.90–51.55, 194.30–437.37, and 31.13–93.12%, respectively, compared to the control; their concentrations increased with increasing biochar addition rates, except for MBC. In addition, EOC, POC, and LFOC were significantly positively related with SOC. Compared to the control, the DOC contents were reduced after biochar addition, but the specific reasons for this finding need to be further studied.
Conclusions
Biochar incorporation could not only significantly improve the soil quality via increasing the soil organic C fractions, but also increase C sequestration rates in the long term by increasing the non-labile C pool (NLC). The CPMI could be used as a representative index in evaluating the impacts of biochar on SOC content and soil quality.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Abiven S, Hund A, Martinsen V, Cornelissen G (2015) Biochar amendment increasesmaize root surface areas and branching: a shovelomics study in Zambia. Plant Soil 395(1):45–55. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-015-2533-2
An T, Schaeffer S, Li S, Fu S, Pei J, Li H, Zhuang J, Radosevich M, Wang J (2015) Carbon fluxes from plants to soil and dynamics of microbial immobilization under plastic film mulching and fertilizer application using 13C pulse-labeling. Soil Biol Biochem 80:53–61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2014.09.024
Blair GJ, Lefory RDB, Lise L (1995) Soil carbon fractions based on their degree of oxidationand the development of a carbon management index for agricultural system. Aust J Agric Res 46(7):1459–1466. https://doi.org/10.1071/AR9951459
Blair N, Faulkner RD, Till AR, Poulton PR (2006) Long-term managementimpactions on soil C:N and physical fertility. Part I: Broadbalk experiment. SoilTill Res 91(1-2):30–38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.still.2005.11.002
Brodowski S, Amelung W, Haumaier L, Zech W (2007) Black carbon contribution to stable humus in German arable soils. Geoderma 139(1/2):220–228. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2007.02.004
Burrell LD, Zehetner F, Rampazzo N, Wimmer B, Soja G (2016) Long-term effects of biochar on soil physical properties. Geoderma 282:96–102. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2016.07.019
Camberdella CA, Elliott ET (1992) Particulate soil organic matter across a grassland cultivation sequence. Soil Sci Soc Am J 56(3):777–783. https://doi.org/10.2136/sssaj1992.03615995005600030017x
Cao X, Harris W (2010) Properties of dairy-manure-derived biochar pertinentto its potential use in remediation. Bioresour Technol 101(14):5222–5228. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biortech.2010.02.052
Chan KY, Heenan DP, Oates A (2002) Soil carbon fractionsand relationship to soil quality under different tillage and stubblemanagement. Soil Till Res 63(3-4):133–139. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0167-1987(01)00239-2
Chantigny MH (2003) Dissolved and water-extractable organic matter in soils: areview on the influence of land use and management practices. Geoderma 113(3-4):357–380. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0016-7061(02)00370-1
Chen HL, Zhou JM, Xiao BH (2010) Characterization of dissolved organic matter derived from rice straw at different stages of decay. J Soils Sediments 10(5):915–922. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-010-0210-x
Christensen BT (2001) Physical fractionation of soil andstructural and functional complexity in organic matterturnover. Eur J Soil Sci 52(3):345–353. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2389.2001.00417.x
Davidson EA, Janssens IA (2006) Temperature sensitivity of soil carbon decompositionand feedbacks to climate change. Nature 440(7081):165–173. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature04514
Dempster DN, Gleeson DB, Solaiman ZM, Jones DL, Murphy DV (2012) Decreased soil microbial biomass and nitrogen mineralisation with eucalyptusbiochar addition to a coarse textured soil. Plant Soil 354(1-2):311–324. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-011-1067-5
Ding Y, Liu YX, Wu WX, Shi DZ, Yang M, Zhong ZK (2010) Evaluation of biochareffects on nitrogen retention and leaching in multi-layered soil columns. WaterAir Soil Poll 213(1-4):47–55. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-010-0366-4
Downie A, Munrow P, Crosky A (2009) Characteristics of biochar physical andstructural properties. In: Lehmann J, Joseph S (eds) Biochar for environmentalmanagement: science and technology, Earthscan, London, pp 13–29
Fowles M (2007) Black carbon sequestration as an alternative to bioenergy. Biomass Bioenergy 31(6):426–432. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biombioe.2007.01.012
Graham MH, Haynes RJ, Meyer JH (2002) Soil organic matter content and quality: effects of fertilizer applications, burning and trash retention on a long-term sugarcane experiment in South Africa. Soil Biol Biochem 34(1):93–102
Gregorich EG, Janzen HH (1996) Storage of soil carbon in the light fraction and macroorganic matter. In: Carter MR, Stewart BA (eds) Advances in soil science. Structure and organic matter storage in agricultural soils. CRC Lewis, Boca Raton, pp 167–190
Hale L, Luth M, Crowley D (2015) Biochar characteristics relate to its utility as an alternativesoil inoculum carrier to peat and vermiculite. Soil BiolBiochem 81:228–235. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2014.11.023
Jones DL, Willett VB (2006) Experimental evaluation of methods to quantify dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in soil. Soil Biol Biochem 38(5):991–999. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2005.08.012
Jones DL, Rousk J, Edwards-Jones G, Deluca TH, Murphy DV (2012) Biochar-mediatedchanges in soil quality and plant growth in a three year field trial. SoilBiolBiochem 45:113–124. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2011.10.012
Knicker H, González-Vila FJ, González-Vázquez R (2013) Biodegradability of organic matter in fire-affected mineral soils of southern Spain. Soil Biol Biochem 56:31–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2012.02.021
Kolb SE, Fermanich KJ, Dornbush ME (2008) Effect of charcoal quantity onmicrobial biomass and activity in temperate soils. Soil Sci Soc Am J 73:1173–1181
Kundu S, Bhattacharyya R, Prakash V, Ghosh V, Gupta HS (2007) Carbon sequestrationand relationship between carbon addition and storage under rainfed soybean-wheat rotation in a sandy loam soil of Indian Himalayas. Soil Till Res 92(1-2):87–95. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.still.2006.01.009
Lal R (2004) Soil carbon sequestration impacts on global climate change and food security. Science 304(5677):1623–1627. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1097396
Lehmann J (2007) A handful of carbon. Nature 447(7141):143–144. https://doi.org/10.1038/447143a
Lehmann J, Joseph S (2009) Biochar for environmental management: anintroduction. In: Lehmann J, Joseph S (eds) Biochar for environmentalmanagement: science and technology. Earthscan, London, pp 1–12
Li YF, Jiang PK, Chang SX, Wu JS, Lin L (2010) Organic mulch andfertilization affect soil carbon pools and forms under intensivelymanaged bamboo (Phyllostachys praecox) forests in southeastChina. J Soils Sediments 10(4):739–747. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-010-0188-4
Li M, Zhang A, Wu H, Liu H, Lv J (2017) Predicting potential release of dissolved organic matter from biochars derived from agricultural residues using fluorescence and ultraviolet absorbance. J Hazard Mater 334:86–92. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2017.03.064
Lin Y, Munroe P, Joseph S, Henderson R, Ziolkowski A (2012) Water extractable organiccarbon in untreated and chemical treated biochars. Chemosphere 87(2):151–157. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2011.12.007
Liu E, Teclemariam SG, Yan C, Yu J, Gu R, Liu S, He W, Liu Q (2014) Long-term effects of no-tillage management practice on soil organic carbon and its fractions in thenorthern China. Geoderma 213:379–384. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2013.08.021
Llorente M, Glaser B, Turrión MB (2010) Storage of organic carbon and black carbon in density fractions of calcareous soils under different land uses. Geoderma 159(1/2):31–38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2010.06.011
Loveland P, Webb J (2003) Is there a critical level of organic matter in the agricultural soils of temperate regions: a review. Soil Till Res 70(1):1–18. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0167-1987(02)00139-3
Malhi SS, Nyborg M, Goddard T, Puurveen D (2011) Long-term tillage, straw management and N fertilization effects on quantity and quality of organic C and N in a black Chernozem soil. NutrCycl Agroecosyst 90(2):227–241. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10705-011-9424-6
Morrissey EM, Berrier DJ, Neubauer SC, Franklin RB (2014) Using microbial communities and extracellular enzymes to link soil organic matter characteristics to greenhouse gas production in a tidal freshwater wetland. Biogeochemistry 117(2-3):473–490. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-013-9894-5
Pietikäinen J, Kiikkilä O, Fritze H (2000) Charcoal as a habitat for microbesand its effect on the microbial community of the underlyinghumus. Oikos 89(2):231–242. https://doi.org/10.1034/j.1600-0706.2000.890203.x
Plaza-Bonilla D, Álvaro-Fuentes J, Cantero-Martínez C (2014) Identifying soilorganic carbon fractions sensitive to agricultural management practices. SoilTill Res 139:19–22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.still.2014.01.006
Post WM, Kwon KC (2000) Soil carbon sequestration and land-use change: processes and potential. Glob Chang Biol 6(3):317–327. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2486.2000.00308.x
Purakayastha TJ, Rudrappa L, Singh D, Swarup A, Bhadraray S (2008) Long-term impact of fertilizers on soil organic carbon pools and sequestration rates in maize-wheat-cowpea cropping system. Geoderma 144(1-2):370–378. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2007.12.006
Römkens PF, Bril J, Salomons W (1996) Interaction between Ca2+ and dissolvedorganic carbon: implications for metal mobilization. ApplGeochem 11(1/2):109–115. https://doi.org/10.1016/0883-2927(95)00051-8
Shang J, Geng ZC, Chen XX, Zhao J, Geng R, Wang S (2015) Effects of biochar on soil organic carbon and nitrogen and their fractions in a Rainfed farmland. J Agro-EnvironSci 34(3):509–517
Sohi SP, Krull E, Lopez-Capel E, Bol R (2010) A review of biochar andits use and function in soil. Adv Agron 105:47–82. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0065-2113(10)05002-9
Steinbeiss S, Gleixner G, Antonietti M (2009) Effect of biochar amendment onsoil carbon balance and soil microbial activity. Soil Biol Biochem 41(6):1301–1310. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2009.03.016
Sun B, Roberts D, Dennis P, Caul S, Daniell T, Hallett P, Hopkins D (2014) Microbialproperties and nitrogen contents of arable soils under different tillage regimes. SoilUse Manage 30(1):152–159. https://doi.org/10.1111/sum.12089
Sun JN, He FH, Zhang ZH, Shao HB, Xu G (2016) Temperature and moisture responsesto carbon mineralization in the biochar-amended saline soil. Sci Total Environ 569:390–394. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.06.082
Tammeorg P, Simojoki A, Makela P, Stoddard FL, Alakukku L, Helenius J (2014) Biochar application to a fertile sandy clay loam in borealconditions: effects on soil properties and yield formation of wheat,turnip rape and faba bean. Plant Soil 374(1-2):89–107. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-013-1851-5
Verhoeven E, Pereira E, Decock C, Suddick E, Angst T, Six J (2017) Toward a better assessment of biochar–nitrous oxide mitigation potential at the field scale. J Environ Qual 46(2):237–246. https://doi.org/10.2134/jeq2016.10.0396
Von Lutzow M, Leifeld J, Kainz M, Kogel-Knabner I, Munch JC (2000) Indications for soil organic matter quality in soilsunder different management. Geoderma 105:243–258
Wang J, Liu S, Li S (2006) Effect of long-term plastic film mulching and fertilizationon inorganic N distribution and organic N mineralization in brownearth. J Soil Water Conserv 20:107–110
Wu J, Joergensen RG, Pommerening B, Chaussod R, Brookes PC (1990) Measurement of soil microbial biomass C by fumigation extraction — an automated procedure. Soil Biol Biochem 22(8):1167–1169. https://doi.org/10.1016/0038-0717(90)90046-3
Xu Y, Chen B (2013) Investigation of thermodynamic parameters in the pyrolysisconversion of biomass and manure to biochars using thermogravimetric analysis. Bioresour Technol 146:485–493. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biortech.2013.07.086
Yang CM, Yang LZ, Ouyang Z (2005) Organic carbon and its fractions in paddy soil as affected bydifferent nutrient and water regimes. Geoderma 124(1-2):133–142. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2004.04.008
Yang X, Meng J, Lan Y, Chen WF, Yang TX, Yuan J, Liu SN, Han J (2017a) Effects of maize stover and its biochar on soil CO2 emissions and labile organic carbon fractions in Northeast China. Agric Ecosyst Environ 240:24–31. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2017.02.001
Yang X, Lan Y, Meng J, Chen WF, Huang YW, Cheng XY, He TY, Cao T, Liu ZQ, Jiang LL, Gao JP (2017b) Effects of maize stover and its derived biochar on greenhouse gases emissions and C-budget of brown earth in Northeast China. Environ Sci Pollut Res 24(9):8200–8209. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-8500-0
Zhang AF, Zhou X, Li M, Wu HM (2017) Impacts of biochar addition on soil dissolved organic matter characteristics in a wheat-maize rotation system in loess plateau of China. Chemosphere 186:986–993. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2017.08.074
Zhu LX, Xiao Q, Shen YF, Li SQ (2017) Effects of biochar and maize straw on the short-term carbon and nitrogen dynamics in a cultivated silty loam in China. Environ Sci Pollut Res 24(1):1019–1029. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-016-7829-0
Zimmerman AR, Gao B, Ahn MY (2011) Positive and negative carbon mineralizationpriming effects among a variety of biochar-amended soils. Soil Biol Biochem 43(6):1169–1179. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2011.02.005
Acknowledgements
This study was funded by the Special Fund for Agro-scientific Research in the Public Interest of China (No. 201503136 and No. 201303095), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41401325), Program for Science and technology plan of Shenyang (17-182-9-00). We would like to thank the anonymous reviewers and the editor for their constructive comments to improve the manuscript.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Responsible editor: Yong Sik Ok
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Yang, X., Wang, D., Lan, Y. et al. Labile organic carbon fractions and carbon pool management index in a 3-year field study with biochar amendment. J Soils Sediments 18, 1569–1578 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-017-1874-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-017-1874-2