Effects of Poultry Manure Biochar on Salicornia herbacea L. Growth and Carbon Sequestration

Abstract

In order to explore the potential of biochar produced from poultry manure for sustainable waste utilization, carbon sequestration, and agricultural development, this study examines the impact of biochar on the growth of the halophyte plant Salicornia herbacea L., or glasswort. Because of their properties of morphological and chemical properties, biochar has been gaining interest as a potential solution to addressing both the concerns of climate change and unsustainable agriculture. In this study, the characteristics of biochar were analyzed and its impact on plant growth by stem length was measured over 15 weeks. Poultry-based biochar was created through pyrolysis at the temperatures of 400, 500, and 700 °C. Various amounts of biochar produced from pyrolysis at 500 °C were put to soil. However, the average surface area and average pore size values of poultry manure biochar produced from temperatures 400, 500, and 700 °C were similar enough to be negligible. The biochar sample produced from the pyrolysis temperature of 500 °C had an average pore size of 17.18 nm and a surface area of 18.06 m2/g. From weeks 4 to 15, all groups exhibited increased stem length, with the most significant differences observed between the biochar 0% (control) and biochar 10% groups, with biochar 0% and biochar 10% denoting 0% and 10% weight concentrations of biochar, respectively. While biochar 5% and biochar 7% groups showed minimal differences in stem length, biochar 10% demonstrated a significant increase, suggesting an optimal biochar percentage for enhancing plant growth. Carbon credit estimations have suggested that 1 ton of poultry manure biochar produced from pyrolysis at 500 C° equates to an estimate of 0.5248 ± 0.0580 carbon credits, the highest of all three biochar samples. All three samples (biochar produced from 400, 500, and 700 °C pyrolysis temperatures) had increased heavy metal contents and a wider range of functional groups. The findings indicate that biochar can effectively improve soil health and plant performance overall, with biochar 10% showing the most significant impact on Salicornia growth.