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Volume 16
Issue 7
10.3390/f16071077
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Article

Characterization of Biochar from Hovenia dulcis Thunb. and Mimosa scabrella Benth. Species from the Mixed Ombrophyllous Forest

by
Florian Empl
1,*,
Miriam Schatzl
1,
Sonja Kleucker
1,
Alexandre Techy de Almeida Garrett
2,
Fernando Augusto Ferraz
3,
Luiz Henrique Natalli
1,2,
Dimas Agostinho da Silva
3,
Eduardo da Silva Lopes
2,
Afonso Figueiredo Filho
2 and
Stefan Pelz
1
1
Hochschule für Forstwirtschaft Rottenburg (HFR), University of Applied Forest Sciences Rottenburg, Schadenweiler Hof, 72108 Rottenburg, Germany
2
Department of Foresty (UNICENTRO), Universidade Estadual do Centro-Oeste, Paraná 84505-677, Brazil
3
Departamento de Engenharia e Tecnologia Florestal, Curitiba (UFPR), Universidade Federal do Paraná, Paraná 80060-000, Brazil
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Forests 2025, 16(7), 1077; https://doi.org/10.3390/f16071077 (registering DOI)
Submission received: 16 May 2025 / Revised: 16 June 2025 / Accepted: 25 June 2025 / Published: 27 June 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in the Cultivation, Protection and High-Value Utilization of Forest Resources)
Versions Notes

Abstract

The Mixed Ombrophyllous Forest (MOF), inserted in the Atlantic Forest biome, is of great ecological value, with deficient management strategies. In this context, sustainable management helps to promote the regeneration and growth of individual trees and control others, while maintaining the natural forest structure. This study therefore aimed to discuss opportunities and limitations of biochar, produced from two species from the MOF, which are currently only utilized to a limited extent in the study area in southern Brazil. A slow pyrolysis process at a lab scale was designed, biochar was produced, and key properties were analyzed from Hovenia dulcis Thunb. (chosen as an invasive species) and Mimosa scabrella Benth. (chosen as a native, fast-growing species), including branches and stems. The results showed that branches of Mimosa scabrella (BMS) had the highest biochar yield (30.32 ± 0.3%) and the highest electrical conductivity (415.08 ± 24.75 mS cm−1). Stems of Mimosa scabrella (SMS) showed the highest higher heating value (HHV—31.76 ± 0.01 MJ kg−1), lower heating value (LHV—31.03 ± 0.01 MJ kg−1), and energy yield (49.1%), while the branches of Hovenia dulcis (BHD) showed the lowest values. For the elemental analysis, SMS showed the best results, with the highest amount of fixed carbon (78.62 ± 0.22%) and carbon content (85.87 ± 0.083%), and consequently the lowest amount of ash (3.52 ± 0.08%). BHD showed a better water-holding capacity (303.26 ± 15.21%) and higher pH value (7.65 ± 0.14). The investigations conducted on the biochar from both species indicate a strong suitability of these woods for producing high-quality biochar.
Keywords: slow pyrolysis; biochar; Atlantic Forest; organic carbon; Hovenia dulcis; Mimosa scabrella slow pyrolysis; biochar; Atlantic Forest; organic carbon; Hovenia dulcis; Mimosa scabrella

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MDPI and ACS Style

Empl, F.; Schatzl, M.; Kleucker, S.; Garrett, A.T.d.A.; Ferraz, F.A.; Natalli, L.H.; da Silva, D.A.; Lopes, E.d.S.; Filho, A.F.; Pelz, S. Characterization of Biochar from Hovenia dulcis Thunb. and Mimosa scabrella Benth. Species from the Mixed Ombrophyllous Forest. Forests 2025, 16, 1077. https://doi.org/10.3390/f16071077

AMA Style

Empl F, Schatzl M, Kleucker S, Garrett ATdA, Ferraz FA, Natalli LH, da Silva DA, Lopes EdS, Filho AF, Pelz S. Characterization of Biochar from Hovenia dulcis Thunb. and Mimosa scabrella Benth. Species from the Mixed Ombrophyllous Forest. Forests. 2025; 16(7):1077. https://doi.org/10.3390/f16071077

Chicago/Turabian Style

Empl, Florian, Miriam Schatzl, Sonja Kleucker, Alexandre Techy de Almeida Garrett, Fernando Augusto Ferraz, Luiz Henrique Natalli, Dimas Agostinho da Silva, Eduardo da Silva Lopes, Afonso Figueiredo Filho, and Stefan Pelz. 2025. "Characterization of Biochar from Hovenia dulcis Thunb. and Mimosa scabrella Benth. Species from the Mixed Ombrophyllous Forest" Forests 16, no. 7: 1077. https://doi.org/10.3390/f16071077

APA Style

Empl, F., Schatzl, M., Kleucker, S., Garrett, A. T. d. A., Ferraz, F. A., Natalli, L. H., da Silva, D. A., Lopes, E. d. S., Filho, A. F., & Pelz, S. (2025). Characterization of Biochar from Hovenia dulcis Thunb. and Mimosa scabrella Benth. Species from the Mixed Ombrophyllous Forest. Forests, 16(7), 1077. https://doi.org/10.3390/f16071077

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