Performing Department
Microbiology
Non Technical Summary
The goal of this proposal is to develop biochar based fabrics that can adsorb pollutants and eventual be incorporated into personal protective equipment. Biochar is basically charcoal and is obtained by pyrolysis, which means heating without sufficient oxygen to actually burn the starting materials. Pyrolysis liberates gases and liquids that can be used to power internal combustion engines and generators. The main byproduct of pyrolysis, however, is biochar. This charcoal-like material has unique properties such as being very resistant to microbial degradation, having a large surface area, and being water repellant (hydrophobic). These properties make it an excellent soil additive, helping to improve soil quality. Since biochar typically gets buried in the ground where it is stable, pyrolysis is typically considered a carbon negative energy solution. Despite these benefits, the adoption of pyrolysis has been slow in North America. One way to make pyrolysis more attractive to potential investors and producers is to look for additional uses and markets for pyrolysis byproducts such as biochar. We will determine if low cost, low value biochar can effectively be incorporated into high value, highly adsorbent fabrics that eventually might be used in personal protective equipment.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
We will develop sustainable, super-sorptive fabric that can eventually be used in personal protective equipment and geotextiles. The specic goals of this effort is to produce biochar fabrics that sorb a wide variety of volatile organic chemicals. We will assess the impacts of biochar characteristics on the sorption of 4 model pollutants by biochar-containing fabrics. Specifically, we will assess the impact of 3 different production temperatures (300, 450, and 600 C), and 3 different size fractions (<100nm, 1-10um, and 10-100um) of biochars produced from 2 locally grown feedstocks (switch grass and willow) in 2 different materials (cellulose acetate and nylon). The feedstocks are locally grown: it is our intention to strengthen local agriculture by helping to create value added products from low cost commodities such as willow and switch grass. Development of new biochar-based products will increase interest in sustainable biochar processes and speed their adoption which will also benefit the environment. Eventually, this fabric will be produced and marketed by Ithaca based iFyber which will contribute to local job creation. This project addresses 3 of the 6 CUARE FY12-16 priorities including 1) increasing sustainable practices resulting in improved fiber. By finding additional markets for biochar it will, in a modest way, contribute to 2) climate change mitigation and reduce the human carbon footprint. It should also 3) enhance economic well-being through the use of locally produced energy sources and increase the use of sustainable agricultural resources.
Project Methods
Feedstocks of willow and switch grass are being provided by stakeholders Drs. Larry Smart, Director of the Applied Willow Breading Program and Larry Walker, Director of the Biofuels Research Laboratory respectively. We will produce the biochar in Pilot Plant Pyrolysis facility of Dr. Johannes Lehmann. We will initially grind the biochar in a Wiley Mill then dry sieve it to get the fraction smaller than 100um. Further size reductions will be achieved using the Cryo Mill at the Cornell Center for Materials Research (CCMR) followed by wet sieving and filtration for the smaller size fragments. The size fractionated biochar will be analyzed for total surface area via nitrogen adsorption at CCMR, visualized using Transmission Electron Microscopy, and then incorporated into fabric via Electrospinning in a new prototype spinner developed specifically for this purpose by our collaborator Dr. Juan Hinestrosa. The fibers will be spun onto aluminum foil for ease of handling and triplicate subsamples will be placed in 40ml vials containing 14C labeled volatile and semivolatile organic compounds (Trichloroethylene, styrene, biphenyl, and chlorophenol) to assess sorption under passive diffusion conditions. The amount of radioactivity that sorbs to the biochar containing fabric will be determine by scintillation counting and compared to that which is sorbed by the control fabric with no biochar. We will determine the effect of different biochars on the rate of pollutant sorption and maximal loading.