PREPARATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF COW DUNG BIOCHAR CARBONIZED AT 3000C

ABSTRACT

This study was conducted to examine the properties of cow dung biochar carbonized at 300⁰C. The properties evaluated includes, pH, bulk density, mineral content, heavy metals and surface acidity. The biochar was found to have a slightly high pH (8.81 ±0.06) with a low bulk density (0.490 ± 0.3). The alkaline pH of the cow dung biochar can contribute to the increase in pH of soil when applied to acidic soil. The concentration of the selected heavy metals (Cu=2.0, Pb=BDL, Zn=233.0 and Cd=1.0mg/kg) analyzed were below the threshold value of the European Biochar Certificate and the International Biochar Initiative guidelines. In addition, the carboxylic group tend to possess the highest percent (52.6%) of the total surface acidic functional groups.