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Spectral induced polarization for the characterisation of biochar in sand
Author(s) -
Gao Zhan,
Haegel Franz-Hubert,
Huisman Johan A.,
Esser Odilia,
Zimmermann Egon,
Vereecken Harry
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
near surface geophysics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.639
H-Index - 39
eISSN - 1873-0604
pISSN - 1569-4445
DOI - 10.3997/1873-0604.2017045
Subject(s) - biochar , pyrolysis , polarization (electrochemistry) , chemistry , materials science , organic chemistry
The use of biochar as a soil amendment attracts increasing research interest. However, the lack of methods to detect and monitor biochar in situ limits the validation of the field‐scale application of biochar. Spectral induced polarization is a potential tool to characterise biochar in soil. The aim of this study is to investigate the sensitivity of spectral induced polarization to biochar in sand and to understand how the physicochemical properties of both the biochar and the surrounding matrix influence the spectral induced polarization response. To this end, spectral induced polarization measurements were conducted on four types of biochar with different mass fractions disseminated in saturated sand as a host media with changing electrical conductivity. In addition, it was investigated how the spectral induced polarization response depends on the particle size of biochar. The measured SIP data were interpreted by Debye decomposition to obtain values for the peak relaxation time,τ peak; total chargeability, M ; and normalised total chargeability,M n . Spectral induced polarization showed a clear and specifically differentiated response to the presence of all four types of biochars. M was found to be proportional to the mass fraction of biochars, although relationships varied for each type of biochars.τ peakof biochars increased with increasing particle size. Increased electrolyte concentration enhancedM nfor all biochars, although again, the specific response was different for each biochar. In addition, higher electrolyte concentrations decreasedτ peakfor biochars derived from wood through pyrolysis but did not affectτ peakof biochar derived from miscanthus through hydrothermal carbonisation. It was concluded that the spectral induced polarization response of pyrolytic biochars resembled that of conductors or semiconductors, whereas the spectral induced polarization response of hydrothermal carbonisation biochar more closely resembled that of clay. Overall, the findings in this study suggest that spectral induced polarization is a promising method for the detection and characterisation of biochar in soil.