Center Study Finds Biochar Amendment Can Enhance N Removal by NRBs

Biochar has been widely used as an ideal soil amendment in agriculture due to its persistence, superior nutrient-retention properties, low cost, and readily availability. However, few studies have explored its use and impact on domestic wastewater treatment at residential scale. The Center for Clean Water Technology’s long-term column work demonstrated proper biochar amendment ratio (30%) could enhance the nitrification performance of sand filters treating septic tank effluent (STE) by increasing the system hydraulic retention time, providing additional alkalinity for nitrification, and serving as a growth media for enhanced biomass growth. Biochar surface characteristics changed little after 8-month wastewater filtration. The Center’s research has been published in the Journal of Environmental Quality and can be found here.