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Title of Proposal: Nanocharacterization of Biochar Nature of Proposal: New Collaboration Funding Date: January, 2011 PI: Richard Hailstone, Associate Professor, CIS Co-PI: David Muller, Professor, Dept of Applied Engineering and Physics, Cornell University Abstract Biochar is a material whose primary use is carbon sequestration as a way to mitigate global warming induced by CO2 buildup in the earth’s atmosphere. Biochar, produced from biomass and buried in the soil, is known to survive for 100s or 1000s of years. Exactly what properties of biochar allow it survive in soil for such long periods is not well known, but it must be tied to the chemistry occurring at the nanoscale. We propose to characterize this material at the nanoscale using a scanning transmission electron microscope at Cornell University. Specimens will be prepared here at RIT using a cryoultramicrotome. Final Report We were able to revive the cryo stage of the ultramicrotome. This enabled us to develop a technique in which biochar embedded in ice could be reproducibly thin-sectioned (~30 nm) for examination in the transmission electron microscope (TEM). Currently, we are examining biochar to understand its nanostructure (see example images below). Future work will look at the nanostructure of biochar as a function of the temperature at which it is created. We expect there to be important structural differences as a function of process temperature.

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To fully understand its nanostructure the biochar samples must be examined using the UltraSTEM at Cornell. This tool has higher spatial resolution than the RIT TEM, and also allows for spatially resolved elemental composition. Unfortunately, the UltraSTEM has been down for modifications since Sept 1 and it looks like we will not have access for our sample until early 2012. All the granted funds have been spent and the project is currently being supported by Prof Hailstone’s discretionary funds.