Biochar is often described as an ancient material finding new relevance.
In practice, understanding biochar in real-world applications means looking beyond theory. It requires examining how biochar performs once it is produced, specified, and used.
Carbon Gold has been working with biochar for almost two decades. During that time, the industry has expanded from niche soil use into construction, infrastructure, and industrial systems. As this has happened, expectations of biochar have increased. The material itself, however, has remained largely the same.
What has changed is the framework built around it.
Two application contexts
Through our work, biochar consistently sits across two main application contexts.
The first is soil and growing systems. In these uses, biochar is enriched and applied to support soil structure, biology, water management, and long-term resilience. Performance is judged by outcomes in soil and plant health. Carbon benefits are recognised, but they are rarely the primary driver.
The second is materials and industrial applications. These include asphalt, tarmac, concrete, plasterboard, aggregates, and other manufactured systems. In these contexts, biochar must perform predictably within defined specifications. Consistency and repeatability are essential.
Neither approach is wrong.
They are simply designed for different outcomes.
Why challenges appear
Many challenges in the biochar industry arise when the fundamental properties of biochar are not fully accounted for across different uses.
Biochar has not changed. The trade-offs involved in producing and using it have not changed either. One biochar does not fit all applications.
For example:
- Producing biochar at scale is not the same as producing it consistently
- Biochar that performs well in one use will not automatically perform well in another
At the centre of this is a long-standing principle: The quality of the input determines the quality of the output.
Feedstock choice, consistency, and processing conditions directly influence biochar performance. Low-cost or inconsistent inputs rarely produce biochar capable of meeting tight specifications, regardless of how robust the surrounding framework may appear.
Optimisation has limits
Problems tend to emerge when a single biochar is expected to meet multiple objectives at once. These often include high volume, low cost, tight specification, strong carbon metrics, and suitability across many end uses.
Biochar is versatile, but it is not unlimited.
Long-established applications have learned these realities through practice. Newer applications often encounter them once plans meet operational conditions.
Designing biochar for use
For biochar to function effectively at scale, it must be designed with its end use in mind. This means aligning feedstock selection, processing conditions, quality control, and logistics with the requirements of the final application.
Old materials can work well within new frameworks.
That only happens when the framework is shaped around the material, not when the material is expected to adapt afterwards.
