Biochar offers climate-smart path to restore dryland soils and fight desertification
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Biochar as a climate-smart strategy for restoring dryland soils and mitigating desertification
view moreCredit: Abdul Waheed, Qiao Xu, Dong Cui, Murad Muhammad, Hailiang Xu, Aishajiang Aili, Amannisa Kuerban & Sajjad Ali
A new review highlights how a carbon-rich material made from agricultural waste could help reverse land degradation, boost food production, and strengthen climate resilience in some of the world’s most vulnerable regions.
“Biochar provides a powerful, nature-based solution that can simultaneously improve soil health, enhance water retention, and support sustainable agriculture in drylands,” the authors note, emphasizing its potential as a scalable strategy for climate adaptation.
Arid and semi-arid regions cover nearly 40 percent of the Earth’s land surface and face mounting pressure from desertification, water scarcity, and declining soil fertility. These challenges threaten global food security and ecosystem stability. Traditional approaches such as intensive fertilization or irrigation often provide only short-term benefits and may even worsen soil degradation over time.
The new study, published in Biochar, examines how biochar can address these issues through a combination of physical, chemical, and biological mechanisms. Biochar is produced by heating organic materials such as crop residues or wood waste in low-oxygen conditions, creating a stable form of carbon with a highly porous structure.
According to the review, biochar can improve soil water retention by 15 to 35 percent and increase microbial biomass by up to 50 percent. Its porous structure helps soils retain moisture in water-limited environments, while also creating habitats for beneficial microorganisms that support nutrient cycling.
The authors explain that these properties are especially valuable in dryland soils, which often contain very low organic matter and are prone to erosion and nutrient loss. By enhancing soil aggregation and reducing evaporation, biochar can stabilize soils and improve their capacity to support plant growth.
Field studies reviewed in the paper show that biochar application can increase crop yields, reduce erosion risks, and improve overall soil resilience. In some cases, vegetation biomass increased by as much as 30 to 50 percent in degraded landscapes following biochar amendment.
Beyond improving soil fertility, biochar also plays a role in climate mitigation. Because it is composed of stable carbon structures, it can store carbon in soils for decades to centuries. The study estimates that biochar systems could contribute significantly to global carbon sequestration efforts, helping offset greenhouse gas emissions.
The review also highlights emerging innovations that could enhance biochar’s impact. These include precision agriculture techniques such as drone-assisted application, co-composting biochar with organic waste to create nutrient-rich fertilizers, and integrating biochar production with renewable energy systems like solar-powered pyrolysis.
Despite its promise, the authors caution that biochar is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Its effectiveness depends on factors such as feedstock type, production conditions, and local soil characteristics. In some cases, inappropriate biochar formulations could even limit nutrient availability or worsen salinity issues.
Economic challenges also remain. Biochar production costs can range from hundreds of dollars per ton, with feedstock collection and processing accounting for a large share of expenses. The authors stress that developing cost-effective supply chains and aligning biochar systems with local conditions will be essential for large-scale adoption.
Looking ahead, the researchers call for coordinated efforts across science, policy, and industry to optimize biochar technologies and evaluate their long-term impacts. They argue that integrating biochar into broader land management strategies could unlock significant benefits for both agriculture and the environment.
As climate change accelerates and land degradation intensifies, solutions that can restore soils while capturing carbon are gaining urgency. This review positions biochar as a promising tool at the intersection of sustainable agriculture and climate action, offering a pathway toward more resilient dryland ecosystems.
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Journal Reference: Waheed, A., Xu, Q., Cui, D. et al. Biochar as a climate-smart strategy for restoring dryland soils and mitigating desertification. Biochar 8, 59 (2026).
https://doi.org/10.1007/s42773-025-00537-0
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About Biochar
Biochar (e-ISSN: 2524-7867) is the first journal dedicated exclusively to biochar research, spanning agronomy, environmental science, and materials science. It publishes original studies on biochar production, processing, and applications—such as bioenergy, environmental remediation, soil enhancement, climate mitigation, water treatment, and sustainability analysis. The journal serves as an innovative and professional platform for global researchers to share advances in this rapidly expanding field.
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Journal
Biochar
Method of Research
Literature review
Article Title
Biochar as a climate-smart strategy for restoring dryland soils and mitigating desertification
New biochar design enables stable and long-lasting oxygen release for environmental applications
Biochar Editorial Office, Shenyang Agricultural University
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Chemical anchoring of CaO2 on phosphate-modified rice husk biochar for stabilized oxygen release
view moreCredit: Wenke Zhang, Shaojun Jiang, Yanhong Wang, Yufen Huang & Zhongzhen Liu
Researchers have developed a new type of engineered biochar that can deliver oxygen in a controlled and stable way, offering a promising solution for environmental remediation and sustainable water and soil management.
“Oxygen supply is critical for maintaining healthy ecosystems, but current materials often release oxygen too quickly or unpredictably,” said the study’s corresponding author. “Our work shows how biochar can be precisely designed to overcome these limitations and provide reliable oxygen delivery under real-world conditions.”
Slow-release oxygen materials such as calcium peroxide are widely used to improve oxygen levels in aquaculture systems and contaminated soils. However, their performance is highly sensitive to environmental factors such as pH, ionic strength, and existing oxygen levels. Under unfavorable conditions, these materials can release oxygen too rapidly or inefficiently, limiting their effectiveness.
To address this challenge, the research team designed a series of modified biochars derived from rice husks, an abundant agricultural waste. By combining chemical modification and structural engineering, they created biochar materials capable of stabilizing calcium peroxide and controlling how oxygen is released over time.
The study compared three modification strategies: nitric acid oxidation, potassium hydroxide activation, and phosphate loading. Each approach altered the surface chemistry and pore structure of the biochar in different ways.
Among them, phosphate-modified biochar emerged as the most effective. It achieved a high loading of calcium peroxide while enabling a slow and sustained release of oxygen. This improved performance was linked to the formation of stable calcium–phosphorus bonds, which helped anchor the oxygen-releasing compound and regulate its behavior.
In contrast, biochar treated with nitric acid showed poor performance due to damage to its pore structure and increased acidity, which reduced its ability to hold calcium peroxide. Meanwhile, potassium hydroxide activation produced extremely high surface area biochar with rapid oxygen release, but less control over release stability.
The researchers also found that both chemical and physical properties of biochar play key roles in determining performance. Phosphorus content and pore size distribution were critical for loading capacity, while surface functional groups and material composition influenced how quickly oxygen was released.
Importantly, the phosphate-modified biochar demonstrated strong environmental adaptability. Its oxygen release remained stable across a range of pH levels, ionic strengths, and initial oxygen concentrations. This robustness makes it particularly suitable for complex natural environments where conditions can vary widely.
“Our findings highlight that the interaction between material structure and environmental conditions is dynamic,” the authors explained. “By tuning biochar properties, we can design oxygen-releasing materials that perform reliably in diverse settings.”
This research provides new insights into how biochar can be engineered as a functional carrier for controlled-release systems. Beyond oxygen delivery, the design principles identified in this study could be applied to other environmental technologies, including pollutant removal and nutrient management.
As global demand grows for sustainable and efficient environmental solutions, advanced biochar materials like these could play an important role in improving ecosystem health while making use of renewable biomass resources.
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Journal Reference: Zhang, W., Jiang, S., Wang, Y. et al. Chemical anchoring of CaO2 on phosphate-modified rice husk biochar for stabilized oxygen release. Biochar 8, 58 (2026).
https://doi.org/10.1007/s42773-026-00574-3
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About Biochar
Biochar (e-ISSN: 2524-7867) is the first journal dedicated exclusively to biochar research, spanning agronomy, environmental science, and materials science. It publishes original studies on biochar production, processing, and applications—such as bioenergy, environmental remediation, soil enhancement, climate mitigation, water treatment, and sustainability analysis. The journal serves as an innovative and professional platform for global researchers to share advances in this rapidly expanding field.
Follow us on Facebook, X, and Bluesky.
Journal
Biochar
Method of Research
Experimental study
Article Title
Chemical anchoring of CaO2 on phosphate-modified rice husk biochar for stabilized oxygen release
Microbes hold the key to unlocking biochar’s carbon storage potential in soils
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Microbial regulation mechanisms of soil organic carbon sequestration by biochar application
view moreCredit: Gehao Zhang, Lei Deng, Yang Liao, Jianzhao Wu, Xining Zhao & Zhouping Shangguan
A new global analysis reveals that tiny soil microbes play a decisive role in determining whether biochar can effectively lock carbon into agricultural soils, offering new insights for climate change mitigation.
“Biochar has long been recognized as a promising tool for storing carbon in soils, but our study shows that microbes ultimately decide how effective it is,” said the study’s corresponding author. “Understanding these biological mechanisms allows us to better predict where and how biochar will work.”
Biochar, a carbon-rich material produced from biomass, has gained attention as a negative emission technology. When added to soil, it can increase soil organic carbon and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, its performance varies widely across environments, and the reasons behind this variability have remained unclear.
To address this gap, researchers conducted a large-scale meta-analysis of 76 peer-reviewed studies, covering 221 experimental comparisons worldwide. Their results show that biochar increases soil organic carbon by an average of 52.4 percent, confirming its strong potential for carbon sequestration.
But the study goes further by uncovering the biological drivers behind this effect. The researchers found that the composition of soil microbial communities plays a central role in determining how much carbon is stored.
Certain microbial groups, such as Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria, were associated with significantly greater carbon gains. These microbes are considered “broad-niche” organisms that can rapidly utilize available nutrients and convert them into stable soil carbon. In systems where these microbes dominated, carbon increases exceeded the global average.
In contrast, soils dominated by oligotrophic microbes such as Acidobacteria and Chloroflexi showed much smaller gains. These organisms are adapted to low-nutrient environments and tend to use carbon less efficiently, sometimes even accelerating its loss from soil.
The findings suggest that microbial community structure can serve as a powerful indicator of whether biochar will succeed in a given environment.
Environmental conditions also played an important role. The study found that biochar was most effective in dry regions with lower rainfall and in soils with higher pH. In wetter climates, excess moisture can limit oxygen availability, shift microbial communities toward less efficient carbon users, and increase carbon loss through leaching.
Additionally, the benefits of biochar were strongest shortly after application and tended to decline over time, highlighting the importance of long-term management strategies.
“These results show that biochar is not a one-size-fits-all solution,” the authors noted. “Its effectiveness depends on the interaction between soil conditions, climate, and especially microbial communities.”
The study provides a new framework for optimizing biochar use in agriculture. By considering microbial indicators alongside soil and climate factors, farmers and land managers may be able to identify where biochar applications will deliver the greatest climate benefits.
As global efforts to reduce atmospheric carbon intensify, this research highlights the importance of looking below ground. The invisible world of soil microbes may hold the key to turning biochar into a more reliable and scalable climate solution.
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Journal Reference: Zhang, G., Deng, L., Liao, Y. et al. Microbial regulation mechanisms of soil organic carbon sequestration by biochar application. Biochar 8, 57 (2026).
https://doi.org/10.1007/s42773-026-00575-2
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About Biochar
Biochar (e-ISSN: 2524-7867) is the first journal dedicated exclusively to biochar research, spanning agronomy, environmental science, and materials science. It publishes original studies on biochar production, processing, and applications—such as bioenergy, environmental remediation, soil enhancement, climate mitigation, water treatment, and sustainability analysis. The journal serves as an innovative and professional platform for global researchers to share advances in this rapidly expanding field.
Follow us on Facebook, X, and Bluesky.
Journal
Biochar
Method of Research
Experimental study
Article Title
Microbial regulation mechanisms of soil organic carbon sequestration by biochar application
