Message from the Guest Editors:
Biochar is a solid carbonaceous product resulting from biomass carbonization. The chemical and physical structure and properties of biochar are fundamental to the entire scope of environmental applications. Biochar is determined by the operative variables of carbonization or slow pyrolysis, concerning, e.g., operative temperature, residence time, or the configuration of production reactors. The potential for biochar for uses in environmental management is very significant and hard to evaluate. For example, considering carbon sequestration, one estimation is that sustainable global implementation of biochar with effects lasting for centuries can annually offset about 12% of 1.8 Gton of CO2-Ce of the anthropogenic emitted 15.4 Gton of CO2-Ce. Also, the relative climate-mitigation impact of biochar compared with that of biomass combustion is greatest in regions where poor soils growing biomass crops benefit most from biochar additions. In addition, there are benefits concerning the avoidance/compensation of fossil carbon emissions. Biochar in soil also helps with improving the soil’s physical, chemical, and biological fertility, which lead to potential increases in sustainable agricultural productivity. Biochar in soil can also contribute to the increase in soil water retention, mitigating drought effects. These soil effects are due to the recalcitrant and porous structure of the carbonaceous feedstock, with a direct impact on the increase in soil bulk density and water retention and in microbial activity, along with a progressive interaction of aging biochar with soil dynamics, e.g., in soil nutrient transformations, cationic exchange, or soil carbon turnover. In all this context, this Special Issue of Applied Sciences aims to call for manuscripts regarding the assessment of topics related to the optimization of biochar production and structure, the environmental impacts of biochar concerning carbon sequestration and soil fertility, and its possible effects in agricultural productivity.
Guest Editors:
Dr. Abel Rodrigues (INIAV)
Dr. Miguel Mendes
Dr. Sofia Isabel Almeida Pereira
Dr. Ana Ferreira
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 August 2026
Mais informações: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/applsci/special_issues/S9L454C0K6
