Current Trends and Future Prospects of Biochar Use to Improve Anaerobic Digestion : An Up-to-Date Critical Review
García Prats, Marta (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Biològica i Ambiental)
González Alé, Daniel (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Biològica i Ambiental)
Sanchez, Antoni (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Biològica i Ambiental)

Date:	2026
Description:	31 pàg.
Abstract:	Biochar supplementation has gained a lot of interest in recent years as a strategy to improve anaerobic digestion. As a result, research on the field has expanded in diverse directions, yet a clear pathway is not being followed, which can lead to unexpected or contradictory results. This review analyzed the most recent literature (2020-2024) on this topic and identified three major research trends: (i) investigating the mechanisms behind biochar enhancement of anaerobic digestion (analysis of microbial communities, interspecies electron transfer, metabolic pathways, enzymatic activity, gene expression, extracellular polymeric substances, quorum sensing, and antibiotic resistance genes); (ii) maximizing biochar applications in anaerobic digestion through the use of novel tools (biochar engineering, modeling and optimization, and integration of anaerobic digestion and other technologies); (iii) advancing towards the large-scale implementation of biochar addition to anaerobic digestion (continuous operation, biochar effects on digestate, techno-economic analysis, and life cycle assessment). By investigating these topics, key knowledge gaps and challenges to be addressed in future research were defined and discussed. This review aims to provide a clear and insightful picture of the current state and future prospects of scientific research in this field, which may be of great relevance given the current rise in this technology.
Grants:	Generalitat de Catalunya 2024/FISDU_00001
Rights:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, fins i tot amb finalitats comercials, sempre i quan es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Language:	Anglès
Document:	Article de revisió ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Subject:	Trends ; Biochar engineering ; Mechanisms ; Modelling ; Semi-continuous ; Life cycle assessment ; Techno-economic analysis ; SDG 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy ; SDG 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production
Published in:	Molecules, Vol. 31, Num. 3 (February 2026) , art. 503, ISSN 1420-3049

DOI: 10.3390/molecules31030503

31 p, 1.3 MB

The record appears in these collections:
Research literature > UAB research groups literature > Research Centres and Groups (research output) > Engineering > Composting Research Group (GICOM)
Articles > Research articles
Articles > Published articles