What is biochar?

Biochar is activated charcoal that is made from biomass (any carbon-based material like wood, agricultural waste, municipal solid waste, etc.) by applying high heat (450 to 900 degrees Celsius) in the absence of oxygen. This process is known as pyrolysis.

The pyrolysis process utilized by the Scotts Valley Energy Corporation (SVEC) is a green, clean process that produces zero emissions while creating green fuel and biochar.

By technology, pyrolysis contributed to the largest market share of Biochar production at approximately 75.0% in 2019. It is the most commonly used method for the production of biochar. Pyrolysis is used to produce all of SVEC’s biochar.

Although biochar creation technology is considered a recent strategy for carbon sequestration, the practice of adding charred biomass to improve soil quality is not new. This process is modeled after a 2,000-year-old practice in the Amazonian basin, where people created areas of rich, fertile soils called "terra preta" (or “dark earth”).

The fertility of terra preta is significantly higher than the otherwise famously infertile soils of the Amazon, which helps to explain how biochar-amended soil allows plants to grow faster, are more nutrient-dense, and the soils hold more nutrients for plant growth than plants grown in neighboring soils. In fact, terra preta soils continue to hold carbon today.

Biochar is primarily used as an additive to livestock feed and as a soil amendment for agriculture and viticulture, but it also can be further processed to create activated charcoal.

The Clean Carbon Corporation (TC3) will take in biochar produced by SVEC and use a water processing method to create activated charcoal which can be used for drinking water filtration as well as being a key component in the production of N-95 respirators.