Short-term effects of rice straw biochar on hydraulic properties and aggregate stability of an Acrisol
Nathaniel Parker
A B * , Wim M. Cornelis B , Kwame Agyei Frimpong C , Eric Oppong Danso D , Enoch Bessah E and Emmanuel Arthur F
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Department of Agronomy, Kansas State University, 1708 Throckmorton Plant Sciences Center, 1712 Claflin Road, Manhattan, KS 66506, USA.
B Department of Environment, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium.
C Department of Soil Science, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana.
D Forest and Horticultural Crops Research Centre, School of Agriculture, University of Ghana, PO Box LG 1195, Legon, Accra, Ghana.
E Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, PMB, Kumasi, Ghana.
F Department of Agroecology, Aarhus University, PO Box 50, DK-8830 Tjele, Denmark.
Soil Research 59(8) 854-862 https://doi.org/10.1071/SR20250
Submitted: 29 August 2020 Accepted: 10 May 2021 Published: 29 September 2021
© 2021 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing
Abstract
Biochar application to a structurally poor tropical soil could potentially alter the soil’s aggregate strength and hydraulic properties. However, very few field studies have investigated the impact of biochar on the aggregate strength and hydraulic properties of tropical soils. A field experiment was therefore conducted to investigate the short-term effects of rice straw biochar on soil hydraulic properties and aggregate stability of an Acrisol in Ghana. The biochar was broadcast at rates of 10 t ha−1 and 20 t ha−1 as single applications that were incorporated into the top 20 cm of the soil using a spade and then the soil was levelled using a rake. Field saturated hydraulic conductivity and laboratory-measured soil water retention, aggregate stability and water-repellency were determined 10 months after the biochar application. Biochar increased aggregate stability against fast wetting by up to 33% compared to the control. This implies that biochar might improve the stability of aggregate of an Acrisol against slaking and erosivity of heavy rainfall. However, aggregate stability against slow wetting and mechanical breakdown after pre-wetting were unaffected by the biochar. Biochar did not affect field saturated hydraulic conductivity, water retention characteristics and water-repellency. Further field studies on weathered tropical soils with low native soil organic matter is recommended to elucidate the effect of repeated biochar addition on soil hydraulic and aggregate characteristics.
Keywords: aggregate stability, biochar, carbon sequestration, hydraulic conductivity, hydrophobicity, organic amendment, pyrolysis, soil water retention, tropical soils, water repellency.
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