Douglas fir biochar enriched with plant nutrients as a controlled release fertilizer

Numerous agricultural soils may lack essential macronutrients crucial for plant growth. Utilizing highly water-soluble commercial fertilizers over extended periods can be both expensive and ecologically unfavorable. Herein, we developed nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), and magnesium (Mg)...

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Main Authors: Prashan M. Rodrigo, Jac J. Varco, Beatrice Arwenyo, Mary G. Paganucci, Hashani P. Abeysinghe, Joshua A. Hartley, Allie C. Davis, Chanaka M. Navarathna, Rooban V.K.G. Thirumalai, Xuefeng Zhang, Charles U. Pittman, Jr., Todd E. Mlsna
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-06-01
Series:Soil Advances
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S295028962500020X
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author Prashan M. Rodrigo
Jac J. Varco
Beatrice Arwenyo
Mary G. Paganucci
Hashani P. Abeysinghe
Joshua A. Hartley
Allie C. Davis
Chanaka M. Navarathna
Rooban V.K.G. Thirumalai
Xuefeng Zhang
Charles U. Pittman, Jr.
Todd E. Mlsna
author_facet Prashan M. Rodrigo
Jac J. Varco
Beatrice Arwenyo
Mary G. Paganucci
Hashani P. Abeysinghe
Joshua A. Hartley
Allie C. Davis
Chanaka M. Navarathna
Rooban V.K.G. Thirumalai
Xuefeng Zhang
Charles U. Pittman, Jr.
Todd E. Mlsna
author_sort Prashan M. Rodrigo
collection DOAJ
description Numerous agricultural soils may lack essential macronutrients crucial for plant growth. Utilizing highly water-soluble commercial fertilizers over extended periods can be both expensive and ecologically unfavorable. Herein, we developed nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), and magnesium (Mg)-enriched Douglas fir biochar (BCF) as an eco-friendly and cost-effective fertilizer for plants. The BCF was synthesized by precipitating MgNH4PO4.6 H2O and MgKPO4.6 H2O on the biochar surface, which was characterized using XRD, XPS, SEM, and elemental analysis. BCF contained 43.76 ± 3.26 mg g−1 of NH4+ (3.40 ± 0.25 as N%), 120.14 ± 5.95 mg g−1 of PO43- (8.98 ± 0.31 as P2O5%), 3.79 ± 0.58 mg g−1 of K+ (0.41 ± 0.01 as K2O%), and 34.05 mg g−1 of Mg2+. The releasing behaviors of NH4+, PO43-, K+, and Mg2+ were investigated through a series of batch leaching experiments at different pHs (1−13), different water matrices, and three different temperatures (5, 25, and 40 °C), as well as fixed-bed continuous flow column experiments. Finally, greenhouse studies were carried out to study the performance of BCF fertilizer as a slow-release P fertilizer for corn growth. In comparison with conventional P fertilizer and the simple blends biochar (BC) and P fertilizer, the use of BCF yielded ∼23 % higher plant heights on the 35th day, ∼64 % higher plant dry weight, and ∼111 % higher P uptake compared to triple superphosphate fertilizer at 29.70 kg (P2O5) ha−1 nutrient rate for corn growth.
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spelling doaj-art-bf95f8df9d3a46cba46ce717f00cd60f2025-08-20T02:39:38ZengElsevierSoil Advances2950-28962025-06-01310005210.1016/j.soilad.2025.100052Douglas fir biochar enriched with plant nutrients as a controlled release fertilizerPrashan M. Rodrigo0Jac J. Varco1Beatrice Arwenyo2Mary G. Paganucci3Hashani P. Abeysinghe4Joshua A. Hartley5Allie C. Davis6Chanaka M. Navarathna7Rooban V.K.G. Thirumalai8Xuefeng Zhang9Charles U. Pittman, Jr.10Todd E. Mlsna11Department of Chemistry, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, MS 39762, USADepartment of Plant and Soil Sciences, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, MS 39762, USADepartment of Chemistry, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, MS 39762, USADepartment of Chemistry, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, MS 39762, USADepartment of Chemistry, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, MS 39762, USADepartment of Chemistry, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, MS 39762, USADepartment of Chemistry, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, MS 39762, USADepartment of Chemistry, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, MS 39762, USAInstitute for Imaging & Analytical Technologies, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, MS 39762, USAAdvanced Structures and Composites Center, The University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469, USADepartment of Chemistry, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, MS 39762, USADepartment of Chemistry, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, MS 39762, USA; Corresponding author.Numerous agricultural soils may lack essential macronutrients crucial for plant growth. Utilizing highly water-soluble commercial fertilizers over extended periods can be both expensive and ecologically unfavorable. Herein, we developed nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), and magnesium (Mg)-enriched Douglas fir biochar (BCF) as an eco-friendly and cost-effective fertilizer for plants. The BCF was synthesized by precipitating MgNH4PO4.6 H2O and MgKPO4.6 H2O on the biochar surface, which was characterized using XRD, XPS, SEM, and elemental analysis. BCF contained 43.76 ± 3.26 mg g−1 of NH4+ (3.40 ± 0.25 as N%), 120.14 ± 5.95 mg g−1 of PO43- (8.98 ± 0.31 as P2O5%), 3.79 ± 0.58 mg g−1 of K+ (0.41 ± 0.01 as K2O%), and 34.05 mg g−1 of Mg2+. The releasing behaviors of NH4+, PO43-, K+, and Mg2+ were investigated through a series of batch leaching experiments at different pHs (1−13), different water matrices, and three different temperatures (5, 25, and 40 °C), as well as fixed-bed continuous flow column experiments. Finally, greenhouse studies were carried out to study the performance of BCF fertilizer as a slow-release P fertilizer for corn growth. In comparison with conventional P fertilizer and the simple blends biochar (BC) and P fertilizer, the use of BCF yielded ∼23 % higher plant heights on the 35th day, ∼64 % higher plant dry weight, and ∼111 % higher P uptake compared to triple superphosphate fertilizer at 29.70 kg (P2O5) ha−1 nutrient rate for corn growth.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S295028962500020XBiocharStruviteStruvite-KControlled releaseFertilizerCorn
spellingShingle Prashan M. Rodrigo
Jac J. Varco
Beatrice Arwenyo
Mary G. Paganucci
Hashani P. Abeysinghe
Joshua A. Hartley
Allie C. Davis
Chanaka M. Navarathna
Rooban V.K.G. Thirumalai
Xuefeng Zhang
Charles U. Pittman, Jr.
Todd E. Mlsna
Douglas fir biochar enriched with plant nutrients as a controlled release fertilizer
Soil Advances
Biochar
Struvite
Struvite-K
Controlled release
Fertilizer
Corn
title Douglas fir biochar enriched with plant nutrients as a controlled release fertilizer
title_full Douglas fir biochar enriched with plant nutrients as a controlled release fertilizer
title_fullStr Douglas fir biochar enriched with plant nutrients as a controlled release fertilizer
title_full_unstemmed Douglas fir biochar enriched with plant nutrients as a controlled release fertilizer
title_short Douglas fir biochar enriched with plant nutrients as a controlled release fertilizer
title_sort douglas fir biochar enriched with plant nutrients as a controlled release fertilizer
topic Biochar
Struvite
Struvite-K
Controlled release
Fertilizer
Corn
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S295028962500020X
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