Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-gbm5v Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-27T07:07:33.715Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Optimal biochar application rates for mitigating global warming and increasing rice yield in a subtropical paddy field

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 January 2022

Xiang Yang ,
Tony Vancov ,
Josep Peñuelas ,
Jordi Sardans Open the ORCID record for Jordi Sardans [Opens in a new window] ,
Ankit Singla ,
Abdulwahed Fahad Alrefaei ,
Xu Song ,
Yunying Fang  and
Weiqi Wang
Xiang Yang
Affiliation:
Key Laboratory of Humid Subtropical Eco-geographical Process, Ministry of Education, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou350007, China Institute of Geography, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou350007, China
Tony Vancov
Affiliation:
NSW Department of Primary Industries, Elizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute, Menangle, NSW2568, Australia
Josep Peñuelas
Affiliation:
CSIC, Global Ecology Unit, CREAF-CSIC-UAB, Bellaterra, 08193Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain CREAF, Cerdanyola del Vallès 08193Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
Jordi Sardans*
Affiliation:
CSIC, Global Ecology Unit, CREAF-CSIC-UAB, Bellaterra, 08193Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain CREAF, Cerdanyola del Vallès 08193Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
Ankit Singla
Affiliation:
Regional Centre of Organic Farming (HQ), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India, Ghaziabad201002, India
Abdulwahed Fahad Alrefaei
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, College of Science, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh11451, Saudi Arabia
Xu Song
Affiliation:
Key Laboratory of Humid Subtropical Eco-geographical Process, Ministry of Education, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou350007, China Institute of Geography, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou350007, China
Yunying Fang
Affiliation:
NSW Department of Primary Industries, Elizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute, Menangle, NSW2568, Australia
Weiqi Wang*
Affiliation:
Key Laboratory of Humid Subtropical Eco-geographical Process, Ministry of Education, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou350007, China Institute of Geography, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou350007, China CSIC, Global Ecology Unit, CREAF-CSIC-UAB, Bellaterra, 08193Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain CREAF, Cerdanyola del Vallès 08193Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
*
*Corresponding authors. E-mails: j.sardans@creaf.uab.cat; wangweiqi15@163.com
*Corresponding authors. E-mails: j.sardans@creaf.uab.cat; wangweiqi15@163.com
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

Application of biochar to rice has shown to elicit positive environmental and agricultural impacts due to its physicochemical properties. However, the relationship between greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, rice yield, and soil nutrient status under biochar amendment remains unclear. In this study, rice yield and methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions were quantified in response to biochar application rate (0, 10, 20, and 40 t ha−1) to early and late subtropical rice cropping systems. We found that application of 10 t of biochar ha−1 to early rice reduced average CH4 emission fluxes, while all biochar application rates diminished average emissions in late rice paddy. Total global warming potential (GWP) and GHG intensity (GHGI) were inherently greater in late rice than early rice cropping. In early rice, GWP and GHGI were found to be similar between soil control, 10 and 20 t of biochar ha−1 treatments, although the largest occurred in the 40 t of biochar ha−1 treatment, whereas in late rice cropping, they were not affected by biochar application rates. Compared to the nil-biochar application, biochar application at varied rates did not affect rice yield. However, compared to 10 t biochar ha−1, increasing biochar application rate to 40 t ha−1 significantly decreased total rice yield (sum of early and late cropping). Generally, application of biochar increased soil salinity and total Fe and Fe2+ content while reducing soil bulk density. Temporal effects of biochar application were noted on CH4 emission flux, soil temperature, and soil Fe2+ and Fe3+ in early rice; and soil temperature, salinity, NH4+-N, NO3−-N, and soil Fe2+ and Fe3+ in late rice. This study confirms that the application of biochar at the lower rate of 10 t ha−1 is optimal for maintaining rice yield while reducing GHG emissions. Moreover, the study demonstrates the potential benefit of biochar in sustainable subtropical rice production.

Keywords

BiocharCH4Crop yieldGHGIN2ORice paddy fields
Type
Research Article
Information
Experimental Agriculture , Volume 57 , Issue 5-6 , December 2021 , pp. 283 - 299
Check for updates
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Antonangelo, J.A., Zhang, H.L., Sun, X. and Kumar, A. (2019). Physicochemical properties and morphology of biochars as affected by feedstock sources and pyrolysis temperatures. Biochar 1, 325–336.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
APHA. (2005). Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater. Washington, DC, Baltimore, MD: American Public Health Association, pp. 3576–3578.Google Scholar
Behnke, G.D., Pittelkow, C.M., Nafziger, E.D. and Villamil, M.B. (2018). Exploring the Relationships between Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Yields, and Soil Properties in Cropping Systems. Agriculture 8, 62.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bhattacharyya, P., Nayak, A.K., Mohanty, S., Tripathi, R., Shahid, M. and Kumar, A. (2013). Greenhouse gas emission in relation to labile soil C, N pools and functional microbial diversity as influenced by 39 years long-term fertilizer management in tropical rice. Soil and Tillage Research 129, 93–105.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Biederman, L. and Harpole, W. (2012). Biochar and its effects on plant productivity and nutrient cycling: A meta-analysis. GCB Bioenergy 5, 202–214.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cai, Z.C. (2012). Greenhouse gas budget for terrestrial ecosystems in China. Science China: Earth Science 55, 173–182.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Case, S.D.C., Uno, H., Nakajima, Y., Jensen, L.S. and Akiyama, H. (2018). Bamboo biochar does not affect paddy soil N2O emissions or source following slurry or mineral fertilizer amendment-a 15N tracer study. Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science 181, 90–98.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Castaldi, S. (2000). Responses of nitrous oxide, dinitrogen and carbon dioxide production and oxygen consumption to temperature in forest and agricultural light-textured soils determined by model experiment. Biology and Fertility of Soils 32, 67–72.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cayuela, M.L., Sánchez-Monedero, M.A., Roig, A., Hanley, K., Enders, A. and Lehmann, J. (2013). Biochar and denitrification in soils: When, how much and why does biochar reduce N2O emissions? Science Reports 3, 1732.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chen, G.Q. and Zhang, B. (2010). Greenhouse gas emissions in China 2007: inventory and input–output analysis. Energy Policy 38, 6180–6193.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chen, W.F., Meng, J., Han, X.R., Lan, Y. and Zhang, W.M. (2019). Past, present, and future of biochar. Biochar 1, 75–87.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chen, X., Yang, S., Ding, J., Jiang, Z. and Sun, X. (2021). Effects of biochar addition on rice growth and yield under water-saving irrigation. Water 13, 209.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chidthaisong, A. and Conrad, R. (2000). Turnover of glucose and acetate coupled to reduction of nitrate, ferric iron and sulfate and to methanogenesis in anoxic rice field soil. FEMS Microbiology Ecology 31, 73–86.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chung, H., Ngo, K.J., Plante, A. and Six, J. (2010). Evidence for Carbon Saturation in a Highly Structured and Organic-Matter-Rich Soil. Soil Science Society of America Journal 74, 130–138.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Datta, A., Yeluripati, J.B., Nayak, D.R., Mahata, K.R., Santra, S.C. and Adhya, T.K. (2013). Seasonal variation of methane flux from coastal saline rice field with the application of different organic manures. Atmosphere Environment 66, 114–122.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Deng, W.G., Van Zwieten, L., Lin, Z.M., Liu, X.Y., Sarmah, A.K. and Wang, H.L. (2017). Sugarcane bagasse biochars impact respiration and greenhouse gas emissions from a latosol. Journal of Soils Sediments 17, 632–640.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
El-Naggar, A., Lee, S.S., Rinklebe, J., Farooq, M., Song, H. and Sarmah, A.K. (2019). Biochar application to low fertility soils: A review of current status, and future prospects. Geoderma 337, 536–554.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fang, Y., Singh, B. and Singh, B.P. (2015). Effect of temperature on biochar priming effects and its stability in soils. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 80, 136–145.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
FAO. (2016). Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security. Roman: Food and Agriculture Organization of United Nations.Google Scholar
Galvez, A., Sinicco, T., Cayuela, M.L., Mingorance, M.D., Fornasier, F. and Mondini, C. (2012). Short term effects of bioenergy by-products on soil C and N dynamics, nutrient availability and biochemical properties. Agriculture, Ecosystem and Environment 160, 3–14.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gul, S., Whalen, J.K., Thomas, B.W., Sachdeva, V. and Deng, H.Y. (2015). Physico-chemical properties and microbial responses in biochar-amended soils: mechanisms and future directions. Agriculture, Ecosystem and Environment 206, 46–59.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
IPCC. (2014) Climate Change 2014: Synthesis Report. Contribution of working groups I, II and III to the fifth assessment report of the intergovernmental panel on climate change. In: Core Writing Team, Pachauri R.K., Meyer L.A. (Eds.), IPCC, Geneva, Switzerland.Google Scholar
Islam, S.M.M., Gaihre, Y.K., Islam, M.R., Akter, M., Al Mahmud, A., Singh, U. and Sander, B.O. (2020). Effects of water management on greenhouse gas emissions from farmersapos; rice fields in Bangladesh. Science of Total Environment 734, 139382.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Knoblauch, C., Maarifat, A.A., Pfeiffer, E.M. and Haefele, S.M. (2011). Degradability of black carbon and its impact on trace gas fluxes and carbon turnover in paddy soils. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 43, 1768–1778.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Linquist, B.A., Adviento-Borbe, M.A., Pittelkow, C.M., Kessel, C.V. and Van Groenigen, K.J. (2012). Fertilizer management practices and greenhouse gas emissions from rice systems: A quantitative review and analysis. Field Crops Research 135, 10–21.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Liu, J.Y., Shen, J.L., Li, Y., Su, Y.R., Ge, T.D., Jones, D.L. and Wu, J.S. (2014). Effects of biochar amendment on the net greenhouse gas emission and greenhouse gas intensity in a Chinese double rice cropping system. European Journal of Soil Biology 65, 30–39.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Liu, Y.X., Yang, M., Wu, Y.M., Wang, H.L., Chen, Y.X. and Wu, W.X. (2011). Reducing CH4 and CO2 emissions from waterlogged paddy soil with biochar. Journal of Soils and Sediments 11, 930–939.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mukome, F.N.D., Six, J. and Parikh, S.J. (2013). The effects of walnut shell and wood feedstock biochar amendments on greenhouse gas emissions from a fertile soil. Geoderma 200–201, 90–98.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Myhre, G., Shindell, D., Bréon, F.M., Collins, W., Fuglestvedt, J. and Huang, J. (2013). Anthropogenic and natural radiative forcing. In Stocker, T.F., Qin, D., Plattner, G.K., Tignor, M., Allen, S.K., Boschung, J., Nauels, A., Xia, Y., Bex, V. amd Midgley, P.M. (eds), Climate Change 2013: the Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA, p. 714.Google Scholar
Pokharel, P., Ma, Z. and Chang, S. X. (2020). Biochar increases soil microbial biomass with changes in extra- and intracellular enzyme activities: a global meta-analysis. Biochar 2, 65–79.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shen, J.L., Tang, H., Liu, J.Y., Wang, C., Li, Y. and Ge, T.D. (2014). Contrasting effects of straw and straw-derived biochar amendments on greenhouse gas emissions within double rice cropping systems. Agriculture, Ecosystem and Environment 188, 264–274.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Singh, C., Tiwari, S., Gupta, V.K. and Singh, J.S. (2018). The effect of rice husk biochar on soil nutrient status, microbial biomass and paddy productivity of nutrient poor agriculture soils. Catena 171, 485–493.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Singla, A. and Inubushi, K. (2013). CO2, CH4 and N2O production potential of paddy soil after biogas byproducts application under waterlogged condition. International Journal of Agriculture, Environment and Biotechnology 6, 233–239.Google Scholar
Singla, A. and Inubushi, K. (2014). Effect of biochar on CH4 and N2O emission from soils vegetated with paddy. Paddy Water Environment 12, 239–243.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Singla, A., Dubey, S.K., Singh, A. and Inubushi, K. (2014). Effect of biogas digested slurry-based biochar on methane flux and methanogenic archaeal diversity in paddy soil. Agriculture, Ecosystem and Environment 197, 278–287.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, P., Martino, D., Cai, Z.C., Gwary, D., Janzen, H., Kumar, P. and Smith, J. (2008). Greenhouse gas mitigation in agriculture. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society London. Series B, Biological Sciences 363, 789–813.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stewart, C.E., Zheng, J., Botte, J. and Cotrufo, M.F. (2013). Co-generated fast pyrolysis biochar mitigates green-house gas emissions and increases carbon sequestration in temperate soils. GCB Bioenergy 5, 153–164.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Van Zwieten, L., Kammann, C., Cayuela, M.L., Singh, B.P., Joseph, S. and Kimber, S. (2015). Biochar effects emissions of non-CO2 GHGs from soil. pp. 489–520.Google Scholar
Vance, E.D., Brookes, P.C. and Jenkinson, D.S. (1987). An extraction method for measuring soil microbial biomass C. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 19, 703–707.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wang, C., Lai, D.Y.F., Sardans, J., Wang, W.Q., Zeng, C.S. and Penuelas, J. (2017). Factors Related with CH4 and N2O Emissions from a Paddy Field: Clues for Management implications. PLoS ONE 12, e0169254.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wang, C., Wang, W.Q., Sardans, J., Singla, A., Zeng, C.S. and Lai, D.Y.F. (2019a). Effects of steel slag and biochar amendments on CO2, CH4, and N2O flux, and rice productivity in a subtropical Chinese paddy field. Environment Geochemistry Health 41, 1419–1431.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wang, S.W., Ma, S.T., Shan, J., Xia, Y.Q., Lin, J.H. and Yan, X.Y. (2019b). A 2-year study on the effect of biochar on methane and nitrous oxide emissions in an intensive rice-wheat cropping system. Biochar 1, 177–186.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wang, J.Y., Zhang, M., Xiong, Z.Q., Liu, P.L. and Pan, G.X. (2011). Effects of biochar addition on N2O and CO2 emissions from two paddy soils. Biology and Fertility of Soils 47, 887–896.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wang, W.Q., Lai, D.Y.F., Li, S., Kim, P.J., Zeng, C.S. and Li, P. (2014). Steel slag amendment reduces methane emission and increases rice productivity in subtropical paddy fields in China. Wetlands Ecology and Management 22, 683–691.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wang, W.Q., Sardans, J., Lai, D.Y.F., Wang, C., Zeng, C. and Tong, C. (2015). Effects of steel slag application on greenhouse gas emissions and crop yield over multiple growing seasons in a subtropical paddy field in China. Field Crops Research 171, 146–156.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wang, W.Q., Wang, C., Sardans, J., Fang, Y.Y., Singh, B.P. and Wang, H.R. (2020). Multiple trade-offs between maximizing yield and minimizing greenhouse gas production in Chinese rice croplands. Land Degradation and Development 31, 1287–1299.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Woolf, D., Amonette, J.E., Street-Perrott, F.A., Lehmann, J. and Joseph, S. (2010). Sustainable biochar to mitigate global climate change. Nature Communications 1, 56.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wu, P., Ata-Ul-Karim, S.T., Singh, B.P., Wang, H.L., Wu, T.L. and Liu, C. (2019). A scientometric review of biochar research in the past 20 years (1998–2018). Biochar 1, 23–43.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Xu, M.G., Lou, Y.L., Sun, X.L., Wang, W., Baniyamuddin, M. and Zhao, K. (2011). Soil organic carbon active fractions as early indicators for total carbon change under straw incorporation. Biology and Fertility of Soils 47, 745–752.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Yan, X.Y., Akiyama, H., Yagi, K. and Akimoto, H. (2009). Global estimations of the inventory and mitigation potential of methane emissions from rice cultivation conducted using the 2006 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Guidelines. Global Biogeochemistry Cycles 23, GB2002.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Yin, X.H., Chen, J.N., Cao, F.B., Tao, Z. and Huang, M. (2020). Short-term application of biochar improves post-heading crop growth but reduces pre-heading biomass translocation in rice. Plant Production Science 23, 522–528.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Yin, X.L., Peñuelas, J., Sardans, J., Xu, X.P., Chen, Y.Y., Fang, Y.Y., Wu, L.Q., Singh, B.P, Tavakkoli, E. and Wang, W.Q. (2021). Effects of nitrogen-enriched biochar on rice growth and yield, iron dynamics, and soil carbon storage and emissions: A tool to improve sustainable rice cultivation. Environment Pollution 287, 117565.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Zhang, A.F., Bian, R.J., Hussain, Q., Li, L.Q., Pan, G.X. and Zheng, J.W. (2013). Change in net global warming potential of a rice–wheat cropping system with biochar soil amendment in a rice paddy from China. Agriculture, Ecosystem and Environment 173, 37–45.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zhang, A.F., Bian, R.J., Pan, G.X., Cui, L.Q., Hussain, Q. and Li, L.Q. (2012). Effects of biochar amendment on soil quality, crop yield and greenhouse gas emission in a Chinese rice paddy: A field study of 2 consecutive rice growing cycles. Field Crops Research 127, 153–160.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zhang, A.F., Cui, L.Q., Pan, G.X., Li, L.Q., Hussain, Q. and Zhang, X.H. (2010). Effect of biochar amendment on yield and methane and nitrous oxide emissions from a rice paddy from Tai Lake plain, China. Agriculture, Ecosystem and Environment 139, 469–475.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zhang, Q.Z., Dijkstra, F.A., Liu, X.R., Wang, Y.D., Jian, H. and Lu, N. (2014). Effects of Biochar on Soil Microbial Biomass after Four Years of Consecutive Application in the North China Plain. PloS one 9, e102062.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Zhong, Y.M., Wang, X.P., Yang, J.P., Zhao, X. and Ye, X.Y. (2016). Exploring a suitable nitrogen fertilizer rate to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and ensure rice yields in paddy fields. Science of Total Environment 565, 420–426.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Supplementary material: File

Yang et al. supplementary material

Tables S1-S3 and Figures S1-S3

Download Yang et al. supplementary material(File)
File 497.3 KB