Effect of biochar aging in agricultural soil on its wetting properties and surface structure

Biochar wettability and ability to accumulate moisture inside the porous space are crucial for improving soil fertility, regulating soil water balance, and regulating nutrients. However, a long-term interaction of biochar with agricultural soils may drastically alter the wetting properties and, eventually, influence water holding capacity and the structure of soils. In this work, the structure and wetting properties of biochar samples after 6-year long exposure to a sandy loam Spodosol with a crop rotation and mineral fertilizers application were studied. It was found that the elemental composition of the aged biochars was richer and more "soil-like", which is explained by the presence of the mineral crust on the biochar surface. The temporal evolution of biochar in the soil without any mineral fertilizer application resulted in significant improvement of its surface wettability due to the effects of various environmental factors. The lateral surface of biochar after 6-year interaction with the soil changes into a loose porous layer in a form of grooved base filled with adherent mineral soil and clay particles. Contrary, the application of the mineral fertilizer to the soil resulted in decreased wettability of the biochar lateral surfaces due to a decrease in the polar component of surface energy and the crusting of the surface with fine material, which blocks the pore space of the biochar. As a result, water capacity of the biochar from the treatment with the fertilizer decreased compared to the biochar samples collected from the soil without the fertilizer application. The radial biochar surfaces of both types of samples collected from the soil were open vessels filled with soil particles that slow down complete wetting and water absorption. The treatment of the biochar samples with surfactants drastically increased wettability of lateral surface and water absorption capacity of control samples as compared to the samples collected from the soil. The obtained results support the idea that the hydrophilisation of biochar caused by the adhesion of soil particles and treatment of its pore surface with surfactants, can improve the water-holding capacity of the sandy loam Spodosol in the plant-available range of soil water.

Graphical Abstract