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Updated: Aug 13, 2025

Physical, Chemical and Biological Characterization of Six Biochars Produced for the Remediation of Contaminated Sites
Published on: November 28, 2014
The mechanism of p-nitrophenol degradation by dissolved organic matter derived from biochar
Peng Zhang1, Peng Jim Zhang1, Shihui Feng2
1Yunnan Provincial Key Laboratory of Soil Carbon Sequestration and Pollution Control, Faculty of Environmental Science & Engineering, Kunming University of Science & Technology, Kunming 650500, China.
Abstract:
Recently, p-nitrophenol (PNP), a common organic environmental pollutant, has been reported to be degraded by biochar. Although the degradation mechanism of PNP by biochar has been explored, the role of biochar-derived dissolved organic matter (BDOM) in PNP degradation remains unclear. Two BDOM samples were prepared in this study, and their PNP degradation performance was analyzed. BDOM5 (prepared at 500 °C) exhibited higher PNP degradation ratio than BDOM7 (prepared at 700 °C). The extent of PNP degradation per unit of BDOM5 and BDOM7 reached 9.54 and 4.19 mg/mg, respectively. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis showed that both oxidative and reductive processes contributed to the PNP degradation by BDOM. Compared with BDOM7, the higher PNP removal of BDOM5 was due to the higher electron exchange capacity. Furthermore, hydroxyl radicals (OH) played a critical role in the oxidative degradation process of PNP by BDOM. This study sheds light on the phenomenon of PNP degradation by BDOM and these results may be useful for accurately assessing the environmental impact of biochar application.
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