GHG-R Flagship Destination

Scaling Biochar
Converting agricultural waste into a gigaton-scale industry

Postdoctoral Fellow: Divya Chalise

Conversion of agricultural waste biomass into stable carbon materials for gigaton scale carbon storage - Every year, approximately 10 billion metric tons of crop residue are generated from agricultural waste primarily from wheat, rice, corn, and sugarcane production (Shafer, Sustainable Earth Reviews, 2020, 3:18). Through photosynthesis, this residue stores around 15 billion tons of carbon dioxide, equivalent to a third of the total annual atmospheric carbon dioxide emissions. However, after harvesting, the residue is typically burned or left to decompose, releasing the stored carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere. If converted into a stable, non- decomposing carbon form, this carbon could be permanently stored for hundreds of years. This process, called carbonization, produces biochar, a high-carbon content material. We have invented an entirely new process of carbonization that brings the processing cost down by a factor of 10 and the overall cost of production by a factor of 5, making biochar cost competitive with coal, at a price lower than coal.