Efficiency of biochar for reducing mobility of inorganic contaminants

Anthropogenic activities have produced numerous sites with extensive contamination close to residential areas.Several physicochemical and biological remediation methods exist for remediation of metal contaminated soilsand lands, such as soil washing, soil flushing, phytoremediation, and electrokinetics.Biochar (biologically derived charcoal) is produced by pyrolysis of biomasses under low oxygen conditions, andit can be applied for recycling organic waste in soils.The main objectives of the present study were to determine the possible use of biochar from forest ersidues (Populus nigra) in order to achieve a stabilization of inorganic contaminants by adsorption processes. Adsorption ofcopper by biochar from dilute solutions showed a closer agreement with the Langmuir isotherm in a concentrationrange 25-500 mM. The decontamination by biochar is very suitable because the treatment is passive and does notrequire specialized equipment or extensive labor as compared to other remediation methods. Moreover, biocharis also a possible carbon sink due to its long term storage in environment, thereby favouring mitigation of theanthropic impact on environment.