Biochar on acidic agricultural lands: Sequestering carbon and improving crop yield

Biochar is charcoal from pyrolysis of organic waste. Dug into soil, biochar is stable, so its carbon is removed from the carbon cycle. This mitigates climate change. Biochar also increases soil quality, among others by reducing soil acidity, which is very relevant for degraded, acidic agricultural lands. I would like to investigate the potential of organic waste biochar to sequester carbon and improve soil quality. During a 12-month research stay at the foremost biochar research group in the world, the Le hmann group at Cornell University in upstate New York, a chemical screening of soil-biochar combinations is planned, followed by mechanistic lab studies aimed at understanding reversal of soil acidification, nutrient availability, crop growth, long-term s tability (C sequestration) and organic matter degradation.