Magnetic Biochar From Minnesota Invasives

Smarter Stormwater Cleanup

Biochar – a charcoal-like material made from plant or wood waste – is already widely used in soil conditioning, remediation, carbon sequestration and water treatment. This material is relatively cheap and easy to make on site.

Unfortunately, biochar has some drawbacks, including waste management after use, potential release of pollutants taken up by the material and inadequate uptake of pollutants. Recent work has demonstrated that magnetic biochar, which is impregnated with iron-bearing magnetic materials, may perform better in remediating metals and organic chemicals. This team aims to incorporate magnetic, iron-bearing material into biochar for improved contaminant sorption.

This project’s goal is to develop a best management practice that recovers magnetic biochar prior to alteration using biochar made from invasive species like buckthorn and non-native bush honeysuckle. They will focus on remediating pollutants in stormwater and stormwater-fed streams because stormwater serves as a conduit for transporting pollutants to adjacent water bodies such as lakes and rivers.

Project Goals

• Conduct experiments to test the uptake of dissolved zinc, lead and di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate from aqueous solutions
• Characterize biochar and magnetic biochar before and after exposure to varying amounts of solution to identify which properties are predictive of efficacious uptake of target pollutants
• Develop and test a pilot scale system for testing at Pig’s Eye Regional Park, in collaboration with St. Paul Parks and Recreation and the Great River Passage Conservancy
• Submit manuscripts to the peer-reviewed literature, give presentations at both local and national meetings and train students at the graduate and undergraduate levels