The available literary data suggest the general applicability and benefits of different biochar products in various soil–plant–environment systems. Due to its high porosity, biochar might generally improve the physicochemical and biological properties of supplemented soils. Among the direct and indirect effects are (i) improved water-retention capacity, (ii) enhanced soil organic matter content, (iii) pH increase, (iv) better N and P availability, and (v) greater potential uptake of meso- and micronutrients. These are connected to the advantage of an enhanced soil oxygen content. The large porous surface area of biochar might indirectly protect the survival of microorganisms, while the adsorbed organic materials may improve the growth of both bacteria and fungi. On the other hand, N2-fixing Rhizobium bacteria and P-mobilizing mycorrhiza fungi might respond negatively to biochar’s application. In arid circumstances with limited water and nutrient availability, a synergistic positive effect was found in biochar–microbial combined applications. Biochar seems to be a valuable soil supplement if its application is connected with optimized soil–plant–environment conditions. This work aims to give a general review of the potential benefits and drawbacks of biochar application to soil, highlighting its impacts on the soil–plant–microbe system.
The available literary data suggest the general applicability and benefits of the Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometry (MS) in the field of microbiological identification. Due to its high reliability, MALDI-TOF might generally be the alternative to the the16s-rRNA sequence-based and serological-based methods. The essence of the technique is to map the unique protein pattern of microbes that contributes to characterizing a wide variety of microorganisms, including bacteria, fungi, and viruses. With its application, the well-known bacterial and fungal species can be quickly identified, thus saving time in clinical diagnostics. In recent years, new protocols have appeared for directly identifying pathogenic strains from patient samples (blood, urine, feces), a major milestone in healthcare applications. On the other hand, these applications only have reliable results under certain conditions (homogeneous infection, adequate cell count, appropriate separation technique). This review aims to introduce and summarize those developments that have been enabled for routine application in the field of clinical diagnosis.
Biochar refers to any material that has transformed into an amorphous, graphite-like structure as a result of the thermochemical conversion of organic materials. Incorporating biochar into soil contributes to mitigating the effects of climate change through the sequestration and storage of carbon. There are numerous methods for producing biochar, including pyrolysis, gasification, hydrothermal carbonization, and flash carbonization. The choice of technology largely depends on the intended use of the biochar and the type of biomass available. However, traditional production processes often face environmental challenges, especially in developing countries. This study introduces several traditional charcoal-burning techniques used around the world and provides an overview of modern industrial biochar production methods. International organizations have developed standards for determining the quality parameters of biochar and have proposed guidelines for its application in soil. According to the available literature, biochar presents a promising opportunity for advancing sustainable agriculture and mitigating climate change.
Purpose: The aim of this work was to determine the characteristics of SOM decomposition under forest vegetation and to investigate the influence of soil mineralogy on SOM turnover. Methods: Thirteen Hungarian forest topsoil samples amended with maize residues were incubated at 20 °C for 163 days. The CO2 evolved was measured and the fast and slow decomposition rate constants (k1 and k2, respectively) of SOM were quantified using a first-order two pools model. Linear regression analysis was applied between the quantity of total mineralized carbon (TMC), k1 and k2 values and the mineralogical parameters of the soils. Results: The illite (R2 = 0.797, p < 0.001) and non-swelling clay mineral (R2 = 0.767, p < 0.001) content and the dithionite–citrate–bicarbonate-extractable Al (AlDCB, R2 = 0.708, p < 0.001) and ammonium-oxalate-extractable Al concentration (AlOX, R2 = 0.627, p < 0.01) reduced the TMC to the greatest extent. The AlDCB (R2 = 0.681, p < 0.001), AlOX (R2 = 0.583, p < 0.01) and illite (R2 = 0.545, p < 0.01) contents had strong negative relationship with the k1 value. The k2 value was only affected by the non-swelling clay mineral (R2 = 0.467, p < 0.05) and illite (R2 = 0.574, p < 0.01) contents. Conclusion: These results confirm that the mineral composition of the soil, including the Al oxide, non-swelling clay mineral and illite contents, may significantly inhibit the decomposition of SOM, showing that illite minerals may provide binding surfaces for SOM over a longer timescale.
22 July 2023 in Journal of Environmental Geography
The available literary sources suggest the general applicability and benefits of the Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometry (MS) in the field of microbiological identification including food quality and safety, and the clinical field. Due to its high reliability, MALDI-TOF might generally be the alternative to the sequence-based and serological-based methods. The essence of the technique is to map the unique protein pattern of microbes that contributes to characterizing a wide variety of microorganisms, including bacteria, fungi, and viruses. On the other hand, these applications only have reliable results under certain conditions (homogeneous infection, adequate cell count, appropriate separation technique). In this review, we focused on the application of MALDI-TOF MS for the environmental field where it has significant potential in the identification, differentiation, and categorization of environmental samples which includes (soil, water, and air), furthermore, some challenges, especially in case of the extreme conditions environment and summarize developments that have been enabled for routine application in the field of environment.