Abstract:
Soil nutrients (NO3- and NH4+) are essential for crop growth. However, the presence of excess nutrients poses a significant environmental threat. Pyrogenic carbon materials, such as biochar, have gained attention in recent studies as fertilizer aids which can potentially mitigate nutrients from agricultural runoffs. Understanding interactions of NO3- and NH4+ with biochar’s surface chemistry is critical in evaluating effectiveness of biochar in mitigating risks of nutrient leaching. Surface chemical properties of biochar such as surface functional groups, pH, and elemental and mineral composition have been found to influence NO3- and NH4+ chemisorption mechanisms. The paper summarises the pertinent literature in this domain.
