A novel bioremediation strategy for petroleum hydrocarbon pollutants using salt tolerant Corynebacterium variabile HRJ4 and biochar

The present work aimed to develop a novel strategy to bioremediate the petroleum hydrocarbon contaminants in the environment. Salt tolerant bacterium was isolated from Dagang oilfield, China and identified as Corynebacterium variabile HRJ4 based on 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. The bacterium had a high salt tolerant capability and biochar was developed as carrier for the bacterium. The bacteria with biochar were most effective in degradation of n-alkanes (C16, C18, C19, C26, C28) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (NAP, PYR) mixture. The result demonstrated that immobilization of C. variabile HRJ4 with biochar showed higher degradation of total petroleum hydrocarbons (THPs) up to 78.9% after 7-day of incubation as compared to the free leaving bacteria. The approach of this study will be helpful in clean-up of petroleum-contamination in the environments through bioremediation process using eco-friendly and cost effective materials like biochar.     

Roles of soluble minerals in Cd sorption onto rice straw biochar

Transforming to biochar provides an environmentally friendly approach for crop residue reutilization, which are usually applied as sorbent for heavy metal removal. As typical siliconrich material, the specific sorptive mechanisms of rice straw derived biochar(RSBC) are concerned, especially at the low concentration range which is more environmentally relevant. In the present study, Cd sorption onto RSBCs at the concentration of ≤ 5 mg/L was investigated. The sorptive capacity was positively corr...     

Biochar affects methylmercury production and bioaccumulation in paddy soils: Insights from soil-derived dissolved organic matter

Biochar has been used increasingly as a soil additive to control mercury (Hg) pollution in paddy rice fields. As the most active component of soil organic matter, soil dissolved organic matter (DOM) plays a vital role in the environmental fate of contaminants. However, there are very few studies to determine the impact of biochar on the Hg cycle in rice paddies using insights from DOM. This study used original and modified biochar to investigate their effect on DOM dynamics and their potential impact on methylmercury (MeHg) production and bioaccumulation in rice plants. Porewater DOM was collected to analyze the variations in soil-derived DOM in paddy soils. The results showed that the addition of biochar, whether in original or modified form, significantly reduced the bioaccumulation of MeHg in rice plants, especially in hulls and grains (p<0.05). However, MeHg production in soils was only inhibited by the modified biochar. Biochar addition induced a significant increase in DOM's aromaticity and molecular weight (p<0.05), which decreased Hg bioavailability. Furthermore, enhanced microbial activity was also observed in DOM (p<0.05), further increasing MeHg production in the soil. Thus, the effect of biochar on the fate of Hg cycle involves competition between the two different roles of DOM. This study identified a specific mechanism by which biochar affects Hg behavior in rice paddy soil and contributes to understanding the more general influence of biochar in agriculture and contaminant remediation.     

Thermochemical characteristics of dairy manure and its derived biochars from a fixed-bed pyrolysis

Based on the data on the thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), oven-dried dairy manure was performed at moderate temperatures (673–1,073 K) with proper residence time of 60 min by a vertical fixed-bed pyrolyzer. The thermochemical properties of the dairy manure and its biochar products, such as elemental analysis and calorific value (higher heating value), were investigated to evaluate their potential use as biomass fuel. Furthermore, the true densities of the manure-derived biochars were also obtained to relate the property with their thermochemical properties. It showed that the calorific value of the dairy manure-derived biochar (denoted as DMBC) was on increasing trend with temperature, while its maximal increase occurred at around 873 K. This result was in high agreement with the data on the yields and carbon contents of DMBC products. By contrast, their contents of H, N, and O decreased slightly due to the devolatilization because of thermal decomposition reactions like depolymerization and carbonization. The optimal manure-derived biochar revealed an excellent characterization with high content of carbon (60 wt%) and calorific value (22.3 MJ/kg), low contents of nitrogen (0.5 wt%), and no traces of sulfur and heavy metals, suggesting that DMBC can be used as a solid fuel for energy use.     

Enhanced microbial reduction of aqueous hexavalent chromium by Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 with biochar as electron shuttle

Biochar, carbonaceous material produced from biomass pyrolysis, has been demonstrated to have electron transfer property(associated with redox active groups and multi condensed aromatic moiety), and to be also involved in biogeochemical redox reactions. In this study, the enhanced removal of Cr(VI) by Shewanella oneidensis MR-1(MR-1) in the presence of biochars with different pyrolysis temperatures(300 to 800 °C) was investigated to understand how biochar interacts with Cr(VI) reducing bacteria ...     

Responses of ammonia-oxidizing microorganisms to biochar and compost amendments of heavy metals-polluted soil

Heavy metal pollution affects soil ecological function. Biochar and compost can effectively remediate heavy metals and increase soil nutrients. The effects and mechanisms of biochar and compost amendments on soil nitrogen cycle function in heavy-metal contaminated soils are not fully understood. This study examined how biochar, compost, and their integrated use affected ammonia-oxidizing microorganisms in heavy metal polluted soil. Quantitative PCR was used to determine the abundance of ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) and bacteria (AOB). Ammonia monooxygenase (AMO) activity was evaluated by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results showed that compost rather than biochar improved nitrogen conversion in soil. Biochar, compost, or their integrated application significantly reduced the effective Zn and Cd speciation. Adding compost obviously increased As and Cu effective speciation, bacterial 16S rRNA abundance, and AMO activity. AOB, stimulated by compost addition, was significantly more abundant than AOA throughout remediation. Correlation analysis showed that AOB abundance positively correlated with NO₃^?-N (r = 0.830, P < 0.01), and that AMO activity had significant correlation with EC (r = -0.908, P < 0.01) and water-soluble carbon (r = -0.868, P < 0.01). Those seem to be the most vital factors affecting AOB community and their function in heavy metal-polluted soil remediated by biochar and compost.     

生物黑炭还田对晚稻CH4和N2O综合减排影响研究

利用静态箱法测定了稻草直接还田和生物黑炭还田对湖南晚稻CH4和N2O排放的影响。结果表明,与单施化肥处理相比,添加稻草和生物黑炭处理的CH4排放量分别增加了24.70%（P〈0.05）和6.32%,而N2O的排放量分别降低了37.08%（P〈0.05）和37.61%（P〈0.05）;生物黑炭CH4排放量较稻草还田减少了14.74%（P〈0.05）。按100年统计稻田CH4和N2O的综合增温潜势（GWP）表明,单位产量的GWP由大到小顺序为稻草（RS）,不施肥（CK）,黑炭（BC）,化肥（CF）。综上说明,生物黑炭还田能保持晚稻产量稳定,减少了当季晚稻CH4和N2O的排放,具有一定的生态环境效益。     

Combination of rhamnolipid and biochar in assisting phytoremediation of petroleum hydrocarbon contaminated soil using Spartina anglica

Biochar(BC) and rhamnolipid(RL) is used in bioremediation of petroleum hydrocarbons,however, the combined effect of BC and RL in phytoremediation has not been studied until now. In this paper, the phytoremediation of petroleum hydrocarbon-contaminated soil using novel plant Spartina anglica was enhanced by the combination of biochar(BC) and rhamnolipid(RL). Samples of petroleum-contaminated soil(10, 30 and 50 g/kg) were amended by BC, BC+ RL and rhamnolipid modified biochar(RMB), respectively. After 60 day's cultivation, the removal rate of total petroleum hydrocarbons(TPHs) for unplanted soil(UP), planted soil(P), planted soil with BC addition(P-BC), planted soil with BC and RL addition(P-BC + RL) and planted soil with addition of RMB(P-RMB) were 8.6%, 19.1%, 27.7%,32.4% and 35.1% in soil with TPHs concentration of 30 g/kg, respectively. Compared with UP,the plantation of Spartina anglica significantly decreased the concentration of C_(8–14) and tricyclic PAHs. Furthermore, the application of BC and RMB alleviated the toxicity of petroleum hydrocarbons to Spartina anglica via improving plant growth with increasing plant height, root vitality and total chlorophyll content. High-throughput sequencing result indicated that rhizosphere microbial community of Spartina anglica was regulated by the application of BC and RMB, with increase of bacteria and plant mycorrhizal symbiotic fungus in biochar and RMB amended soil.     

Reactivity of Pyrogenic Carbonaceous Matter (PCM) in mediating environmental reactions: Current knowledge and future trends

• Pyrogenic Carbonaceous Matter (PCM) promote both chemical and microbial synergies. • Discussion of PCM-enhanced abiotic transformation pathways of organic pollutants. • Conjugated microporous polymers (CMPs) can mimic the performance of PCM. • CMPs offer a platform that allows for systematic variation of individual properties. Pyrogenic Carbonaceous matter (PCM; e.g., black carbon, biochar, and activated carbon) are solid residues from incomplete combustion of fossil fuel or biomass. They are traditionally viewed as inert adsorbents for sequestering contaminants from the aqueous phase or providing surfaces for microbes to grow. In this account, we reviewed the recently discovered reactivity of PCM in promoting both chemical and microbial synergies that are important in pollutant transformation, biogeochemical processes of redox-active elements, and climate change mitigation with respect to the interaction between biochar and nitrous oxide (N₂O). Moreover, we focused on our group’s work in the PCM-enhanced abiotic transformation of nitrogenous and halogenated pollutants and conducted in-depth analysis of the reaction pathways. To understand what properties of PCM confer its reactivity, our group pioneered the use of PCM-like polymers, namely conjugated microporous polymers (CMPs), to mimic the performance of PCM. This approach allows for the controlled incorporation of specific surface properties (e.g., quinones) into the polymer network during the polymer synthesis. As a result, the relationship between specific characteristics of PCM and its reactivity in facilitating the decay of a model pollutant was systematically studied in our group’s work. The findings summarized in this account help us to better understand an overlooked environmental process where PCM synergistically interacts with various environmental reagents such as hydrogen sulfide and water. Moreover, the knowledge gained in these studies could inform the design of a new generation of reactive carbonaceous materials with tailored properties that are highly efficient in contaminant removal.     

Biosorption of Co(II) ions from aqueous solution using Chrysanthemum indicum: Kinetics,equilibrium and thermodynamics

The present study investigates the adsorption potential of Chrysanthemum indicum flower in its raw (CIF-R) and biochar (CIF-BC) form for the removal of cobalt ions from aqueous solution. The adsorbents were characterized for their surface area using BET analysis, surface morphology and elemental composition with SEM-EDAX and for the presence of functional groups by FTIR analysis. Batch adsorption experiments were carried out to evaluate the effect of process parameters, viz. pH, adsorbent dosage, initial metal ion concentration, contact time, stirring speed, presence of interfering ions and temperature on the adsorption of Co(II) ion using both the adsorbents. The optimum conditions for maximum removal of Co(II) ion was ascertained to be pH 5 for both adsorbents, adsorbent dose of 4 g/L and 3 g/L, equilibrium time of 60 min and 45 min, respectively, for CIF-R and CIF-BC. The maximum adsorption capacity of CIF-R and CIF-BC was found to be 14.84 mg/g and 45.44 mg/g, respectively, for the removal of Co(II) ion. The mechanism of adsorption was studied using different models of adsorption kinetics, isotherms and thermodynamics. It was inferred that Co(II) adsorption on both CIF-R and CIF-BC followed pseudo-second order kinetics and Langmuir isotherm model with the process being spontaneous and endothermic in nature.