Effects of sheep bone biochar on soil quality, maize growth, and fractionation and phytoavailability of Cd and Zn in a mining-contaminated soil

Muhammad Azeem; Amjad Ali; Parimala G S Arockiam Jeyasundar; Saqib Bashir; Qaiser Hussain; Fazli Wahid; Esmat F Ali; Hamada Abdelrahman; Ronghua Li; Vasileios Antoniadis; Jörg Rinklebe; Saby M Shaheen; Gang Li; Zenqqiang Zhang

doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2021.131016

Effects of sheep bone biochar on soil quality, maize growth, and fractionation and phytoavailability of Cd and Zn in a mining-contaminated soil

Chemosphere. 2021 Nov:282:131016. doi: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2021.131016. Epub 2021 May 28.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen, 361021, China; Key Lab of Urban Environmental Processes and Pollution Control, Ningbo Urban Environment Observatory and Monitoring Station, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo, 315830, China; College of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712100, Shaanxi, China.
² School of Environmental and Municipal Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an, 710055, China.
³ College of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712100, Shaanxi, China.
⁴ Department of Soil and Environmental Science, Ghazi University, Dera Ghazi Khan, 32200, Punjab, Pakistan.
⁵ Institute of Soil Science, Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi, 46300, Punjab, Pakistan.
⁶ Department of Agriculture, University of Swabi, Swabi, 23340, Pakistan.
⁷ Department of Biology, College of Science, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif, 21944, Saudi Arabia.
⁸ Cairo University, Faculty of Agriculture, Soil Science Department, Giza, 12613, Egypt.
⁹ Department of Agriculture Crop Production and Rural Environment, University of Thessaly, Greece.
¹⁰ University of Wuppertal, School of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Laboratory of Soil and Groundwater-Management, Pauluskirchstraße 7, 42285, Wuppertal, Germany; University of Sejong, Department of Environment, Energy and Geoinformatics, Guangjin-Gu, Seoul, 05006, Republic of Korea; International Research Centre of Nanotechnology for Himalayan Sustainability (IRCNHS), Shoolini University, Solan, 173212, Himachal Pradesh, India. Electronic address: rinklebe@uni-wuppertal.de.
¹¹ University of Wuppertal, School of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Laboratory of Soil and Groundwater-Management, Pauluskirchstraße 7, 42285, Wuppertal, Germany; King Abdulaziz University, Faculty of Meteorology, Environment, and Arid Land Agriculture, Department of Arid Land Agriculture, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi Arabia; University of Kafrelsheikh, Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Soil and Water Sciences, 33 516, Kafr El-Sheikh, Egypt. Electronic address: shaheen@uni-wuppertal.de.
¹² Key Laboratory of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen, 361021, China; Key Lab of Urban Environmental Processes and Pollution Control, Ningbo Urban Environment Observatory and Monitoring Station, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo, 315830, China. Electronic address: gli@iue.ac.cn.
¹³ College of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712100, Shaanxi, China. Electronic address: zhangzq58@126.com.

PMID: 34090005
DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2021.131016

Abstract

Biochar prepared from various feedstock materials has been utilized in recent years as a potential stabilizing agent for heavy metals in smelter-contaminated soils. However, the effectiveness of animal bone-derived biochar and its potential for the stabilization of contaminants remains unclear. In the present study, sheep bone-derived biochar (SB) was prepared at low (500 °C; SBL) and high temperatures (800 °C; SBH) and amended a smelter-contaminated soil at 2, 5, and 10% (w/w). The effects of SB on soil properties, bioavailable Zn and Cd and their geochemical fractions, bacterial community composition and activity, and the response of plant attributes (pigments and antioxidant activity) were assessed. Results showed that the SBH added at 10% (SBH₁₀) increased soil organic carbon, total nitrogen, and phosphorus, and also increased the oxidizable and residual Zn and Cd fractions at the expense of the bioavailable fractions. The SBH₁₀ lowered the Zn and Cd contents in maize roots (by 57 and 60%) and shoot (by 42 and 61%), respectively, compared to unamended control. Additionally, SBH₁₀ enhanced urease (98%) and phosphates (107%) activities, but reduced dehydrogenase (58%) and β-glucosidase (30%) activities. Regarding the effect of the pyrolysis temperature, SBH enhanced the activity of Acidobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, Nitrospirae, Verrucomicrobia, Chlorobi, and Microgenomates, but reduced Actinobacteria and Parcubacteria in comparison to SBL. However, only the SBL₁₀ reduced the Proteobacteria community (by 9%). In conclusion, SB immobilized Zn and Cd in smelter-affected soils, enhanced the bacterial abundance and microbial function (urease, phosphates), and improved plant growth. However, validation of the results, obtained from the pot experiment, under field conditions is suggested.

Keywords: Animal derived biomass; Bone char; Clean production; Environmental applications; Mining soils; Toxic metals.

MeSH terms

Animals
Cadmium / analysis
Carbon
Charcoal
Sheep
Soil Pollutants* / analysis
Soil*
Zea mays
Zinc / analysis

Substances

Soil
Soil Pollutants
biochar
Cadmium
Charcoal
Carbon
Zinc