[Terrapreta] scored

[Brian Hans]

David, you are a wise guy. Lets have lunch together and figure out solutions to the worlds problems... when you coming to Wisconsin?

David Yarrow <dyarrow at nycap.rr.com> wrote:
   
   
  you are about to discover the power of char to hold substances inside its 
micropore matrix. danny day showed this at EPRIDA trying to flush ammonium 
nitrate out of biochar where it had been embedded by vapor deposition. even 
after a dozen washings, ammonium nitrate was still being tenaciously held 
deep inside the char's micropore sponge -- slowly leaching out in each 
successive rinsing.
   
  Absolutely agree. I have washed char material for weeks, even with EtOH and it still holds onto some of it, hence the power of the Activated Carbon. 

ever try to wash a table with a sink sponge that someone has saturated with 
liquid soap concentrate? leaves behind a trail of streaks and bubbles. and 
then repeatedly wash and squeeze the sponge to rinse the soap out?

so, similarly -- worse, actually -- your free char is fully saturated with 
alcohol and other highly concentrated -- and thus toxic -- residues of 
whiskey making. just the alcohol will do. at parts per billion, alcohol is 
high energy food for cellular fuel cycles. at parts per thousand, it's 
poisonous.

and it will take time and persistence to get those innermost pore spaces 
flushed of their toxic excesses. soaking, washing and rinsing will only get 
you so far. heating will help, but it will take sustained heating for a 
long time with adequate air flow.

ultimately, you'll have to rely on microbes to get inside the micropores and 
eat stuff up and transform it. which means inoculation and rest time for 
mold hyphae to grow and penetrate the char's micro-structure. someone 
suggested mycorrhyzae as a proven biotool for such a job, and widely 
available for commercial purchase.
   
  I think everyone will eventually find out that 1 yr of 'curing' charcoal is for best results. I agree with David, let the fungi do its job. Its going to do it either under your eye or in the soil, but one way or another, its how the 'stuff' will be removed, by the fungi. I would rather have it done above ground than to suck the life out of your soil for a year. 

molds and fungi like warmer temperatures, but lying in direct sunlight is 
likely too hot -- to far beyond their optimum 80-90 degrees. good quality 
compost, EM, BD preps, or compost tea are other possible inoculation 
strategies. instead of full sun, light shade under some trees seems a wiser 
site to let your char sit and mellow out for a few weeks. a thinner wider 
bed will be more effective than a heap.
   
  I am thinking that this is a good job for a compost pile. Dark, wet, cool, loose cations... its as close to soil as your going to get. Adding char to the compost pile will innoculate and solve the above issues and will also give you a way to apply the material. 
   
  
Brian
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