Preparation, production, characterization and the use of biochar
In the Research Group of Waste Management and Sustainable Technologies, the production of high-temperature biochar as an energy by-product is being addressed by a team led by Associate Professor Pohořelý. One of the main results was a Patent for a gasification unit that enables combined heat, power, and biochar production, based on which an industrial unit was put into operation in the town Zlatá Olešnice. Simultaneously, the team participated in the commissioning of other gasification units in the Czech Republic to produce low-tar generator gas. As a result of the cooperation and adjustments to the operating parameters of these gasification units, very low tar levels in the generator gas of 5-50 mg/m3 were achieved. The energy by-product (solid residue) met the European Biochar Certificate (EBC) quality standards for use as biochar. The biochar had a specific surface area of 350-700 m2/g and very low volatile content, H/C molar ratio, and PAH content (Fuel (2020)).
Our expertise in the production of high-temperature biochar led to the establishment of collaborations with other research groups from institutions such as the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, the University of Chemistry and Technology in Prague, and Foshan University. These institutions have used our expertise in the preparation, production, and characterization of biochar properties for research work in the fields of sustainable agriculture (Soil Tillage Res (2018), Sci Total Environ (2022a), Chemosphere (2022), Sci Total Environ (2022b), Soil Use Manag (2024)), removal of heavy metals and metalloids from contaminated soil and water (J Hazard Mater (2021), Chemosphere (2020), Environ Sci Pollut Res (2022), Bioresour Technol (2014), Sci Total Environ (2019), J Hazard Mater (2022a), J Hazard Mater (2022b)), or using biochar as feed component (Anim Feed Sci Technol (2022)). The above research has been supported by the following projects: Processing of residual biomass by combined thermolysis on advanced energy carriers and soil additives (MoA, QK1820175) and Long-term test of the biochar application produced from waste biomass to solve drought in intensively farmed areas of the Czech Republic (MoA, QK1910056)
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- Fuel 281, 118637, 2020. DOI
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- Anim. Feed Sci. Technol. 285, 115242, 2022. DOI
- Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. 29, 37435–37444, 2022. DOI
- Chemosphere 293, 133586, 2022. DOI
- J. Hazard. Mater. 424, 127136, 2022a. DOI
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- Sci. Total Environ. 814, 152772, 2022a. DOI
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- Energies 16, 1202, 2023. DOI
- Soil Use. Manag. 40, e12997, 2024. DOI