ABSTRACT
Despite the relatively new concept of biochar, which utilizes chemical-thermal alterations of biomass to achieve carbon sequestration (Goldberg 1985, Kuhlbusch and Crutzen 1995), the purposeful addition of biochar-like materials to soils can be traced back to the beginning of our modern science record (Kirwan 1793, Ogawa and Okimori 2010). In addition, there is archaeological evidence of biomass pyrolysis residues and products being used in earlier civilizations (Rapp 2009). The process of pyrolysis converts the biomass into a carbon form that is more resistant to degradation than the parent biomass (Okimori et al. 2003, Lehmann 2007, Belanger and Pinno 2008).
