Abstract
Thermochemical processing of biowaste generates renewable carbon-rich materials with potential agronomic uses, contributing to waste valorization. This study evaluates the application of hydrochar obtained from hydrothermal carbonization of food waste, those obtained by different post-treatments (washing, aging, and thermal treatment), as well as biochar obtained by pyrolysis as soil amendments. For this purpose, the effect of char addition (1 - 10 wt% d.b.) on a marginal agricultural soil on germination and growth of Solanum lycopersicum (tomato) plants was assessed. All the hydrochars exhibited a chemical composition suitable for agronomic use, characterized by high nutrient content, abundant organic matter, and low concentration of phytotoxic metals. In contrast, biochar exceeded the permissible limits for Cr, Cu, and Ni concentrations rendering it unsuitable for application to agronomic crops. The high temperature of thermal post-treatment and pyrolysis favored mineral and heavy metal concentration while washing significantly reduced nutrient content (N, S, P, K, Mg) along with the electrical conductivity. The addition of biochar or both washed and thermally post-treated hydrochar negatively affected tomato growth. Reduced chlorophyll content was associated with the decreased expression of genes encoding enzymes involved in antioxidant metabolism. This led to photosynthetic membrane damage, as evidenced by chlorophyll fluorescence-related parameters. Conversely, the addition of aged (≤ 5 wt%) and fresh (1 - 10 wt%) hydrochars increased both germination and plant growth compared to unamended soil, indicating that hydrochar from food waste does not require additional post-treatments to be used as a soil amendment.
Abstract from the paper’s OpenAlex record; open copy licensed cc-by-nc. Read at the source ↗
The text the model read, with the source record’s inline markup (italics, sub- and superscripts) rendered and its character entities decoded; quote offsets refer to the raw text.
Claims 12
Claim · model-written summary
All hydrochars had high nutrients and organic matter and low phytotoxic metal concentrations suitable for agronomic use.
- Outcome
- chemical composition suitable for agronomic usee0
Not reportedTaxon
Verbatim
e0“All the hydrochars exhibited a chemical composition suitable for agronomic use, characterized by high nutrient content, abundant organic matter, and low concentration of phytotoxic metals.”
Claim · model-written summary
Biochar exceeded permitted chromium, copper and nickel limits and was unsuitable for crops.
Not reportedTaxon
Verbatim
e0“biochar exceeded the permissible limits for Cr, Cu, and Ni concentrations rendering it unsuitable for application to agronomic crops.”
Claim · model-written summary
Thermal post-treatment and pyrolysis concentrated minerals and heavy metals.
- Treatment
- thermal post-treatment and pyrolysise0
- Outcome
- mineral and heavy metal concentratione0
- Direction
- favorede0
Not reportedTaxonComparator
Verbatim
e0“The high temperature of thermal post-treatment and pyrolysis favored mineral and heavy metal concentration”
Claim · model-written summary
Washing reduced nutrient content and electrical conductivity.
- Treatment
- washinge0
- Outcome
- nutrient content (N, S, P, K, Mg) along with the electrical conductivitye0
- Direction
- reducede0
Not reportedTaxonComparator
Verbatim
e0“while washing significantly reduced nutrient content (N, S, P, K, Mg) along with the electrical conductivity.”
Claim · model-written summary
biochar negatively affected tomato growth.
- Taxon
- tomato
Solanum lycopersicume0 - Treatment
- biochare0
- Outcome
- tomato growthe0
- Direction
- negatively affectede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim
e0“The addition of biochar or both washed and thermally post-treated hydrochar negatively affected tomato growth.”
Claim · model-written summary
washed negatively affected tomato growth.
- Taxon
- tomato
Solanum lycopersicume0 - Treatment
- washede0
- Outcome
- tomato growthe0
- Direction
- negatively affectede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim
e0“The addition of biochar or both washed and thermally post-treated hydrochar negatively affected tomato growth.”
Claim · model-written summary
thermally post-treated hydrochar negatively affected tomato growth.
- Taxon
- tomato
Solanum lycopersicume0 - Treatment
- thermally post-treated hydrochare0
- Outcome
- tomato growthe0
- Direction
- negatively affectede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim
e0“The addition of biochar or both washed and thermally post-treated hydrochar negatively affected tomato growth.”
Claim · model-written summary
Reduced chlorophyll content was associated with lower expression of antioxidant metabolism enzyme genes.
- Taxon
- tomato
Solanum lycopersicumt0 - Gene
- genes encoding enzymes involved in antioxidant metabolisme0
- Outcome
- chlorophyll contente0
- Direction
- Reducede0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim
e0“Reduced chlorophyll content was associated with the decreased expression of genes encoding enzymes involved in antioxidant metabolism.”
t0“Solanum lycopersicum (tomato) plants”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors linked lower chlorophyll and gene expression to photosynthetic membrane damage.
- Taxon
- tomato
Solanum lycopersicumt0 - Outcome
- photosynthetic membrane damagee0
- Qualifier
- chlorophyll fluorescence-related parameterse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim
e0“This led to photosynthetic membrane damage, as evidenced by chlorophyll fluorescence-related parameters.”
t0“Solanum lycopersicum (tomato) plants”
Claim · model-written summary
aged (≤ 5 wt%) hydrochar increased tomato germination and growth compared with unamended soil.
- Taxon
- tomato
Solanum lycopersicumt0 - Treatment
- aged (≤ 5 wt%)e0
- Outcome
- germination and plant growthe0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Comparator
- unamended soile0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim
e0“Conversely, the addition of aged (≤ 5 wt%) and fresh (1 - 10 wt%) hydrochars increased both germination and plant growth compared to unamended soil, indicating that hydrochar from food waste does not require additional post-treatments to be used as a soil amendment.”
t0“Solanum lycopersicum (tomato) plants”
Claim · model-written summary
fresh (1 - 10 wt%) hydrochar increased tomato germination and growth compared with unamended soil.
- Taxon
- tomato
Solanum lycopersicumt0 - Treatment
- fresh (1 - 10 wt%)e0
- Outcome
- germination and plant growthe0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Comparator
- unamended soile0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim
e0“Conversely, the addition of aged (≤ 5 wt%) and fresh (1 - 10 wt%) hydrochars increased both germination and plant growth compared to unamended soil, indicating that hydrochar from food waste does not require additional post-treatments to be used as a soil amendment.”
t0“Solanum lycopersicum (tomato) plants”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors conclude that food waste hydrochar needs no additional post-treatment for soil amendment use.
- Taxon
- tomato
Solanum lycopersicumt0 - Outcome
- does not require additional post-treatments to be used as a soil amendmente0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim
e0“Conversely, the addition of aged (≤ 5 wt%) and fresh (1 - 10 wt%) hydrochars increased both germination and plant growth compared to unamended soil, indicating that hydrochar from food waste does not require additional post-treatments to be used as a soil amendment.”
t0“Solanum lycopersicum (tomato) plants”
The same questions in other papers
biochar · growth · Solanum lycopersicum (tomato)Results differ
8 papers in the same direction as this paper · 71 in the opposite direction
- positive
- positive
- positive
76 papers more in this group
See all 80 papers →Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.