1. Introduction
Biomass is one of the most important sources of renewable energy. It is projected that biomass combustion could provide between 33% and 50% of global energy demand by 2050 [
1]. Currently, in Europe, the majority of biomass for bioenergy production comes from wood and forests, but it is predicted that the use of agricultural biomass and residues and waste will grow strongly in the future. It is expected that by 2050 more than half of the total biomass used for bioenergy could be agricultural biomass [
2].
Wood usually has a relatively low ash content of between 0.3 and 5% by weight depending on the tree species, growing area or part of the tree, while bark, agricultural waste and other herbaceous fuels have higher ash content of up to 10% [
3].
Calculating that 7 billion tons of biomass with an average ash yield on dry matter of 6.8% is burned annually for energy production, the amount of ash produced is around 476 million tons [
4]. Large amounts of ash generated as a residue from the incineration process are considered a challenging solid waste worldwide. Ash production causes various environmental problems due to the large area required for its proper disposal and the toxic elements it contains. However, if a few decades ago fly ash was considered solid waste and the main cause of air, soil and water pollution, now it is increasingly recognized as a valuable material for various purposes [
5].
During the biomass-combustion process, nitrogen (N) is mainly released in the flue gas, but other plant nutrients are present in high concentrations [
6]. The main ash-forming elements are aluminium (Al), silicon (Si), calcium (Ca), iron (Fe), phosphorus (P), magnesium (Mg), sodium (Na) and potassium (K) [
3]. Modern incinerators burn biomass to produce ash with low concentrations of heavy metals, making it suitable for agricultural use. Agricultural residue ash is rich in K and beneficial phosphates and could be suitable for fertilizer applications [
7]. Biomass ash (BA) from biomass burning can be applied to soil as a sustainable recycling strategy for this waste, contributing to sustainable biomass production [
8].
BA is free of pathogenic micro-organisms and has a number of comparative advantages compared to other potentially hazardous wastes (e.g., domestic sewage or sewage sludge) or by-products of agriculture or industry (manure, saturated sludge, digestate), which are either disposed of in a landfill site or spread on the soil without any prior conditioning [
9].
BA is increasingly used in agriculture to improve soil properties. Ash improves soil electrical conductivity, water retention, organic carbon content and soil porosity and provides plants with essential nutrients. BA acts as a soil conditioner, improving the physical, chemical and biological properties of soil [
5]. The use of untreated biomass fly ash as a soil improver or fertilizer is limited due to its high chemical reactivity and potentially toxic elements. Therefore, ash-based materials must be treated and stabilized before use. This not only reduces health and environmental risks, but also improves the function of BA as a soil conditioner [
10]. The leaching of harmful elements from the ash is reduced by the natural ageing of the ash over a short period of time (1 month to 1 year). Environmental influences such as pH, redox potential, temperature, atmospheric humidity and CO
2 can cause mineralogical, chemical and physical changes in ash [
11].
When evaluating the properties of ash as a fertilizer, several aspects are taken into account, primarily with respect to nutrients with a mass fraction greater than 1%, to nutrient release rates and to total toxic elements [
12].
When preparing ash for use as a fertilizer, it is important to consider not only the elemental composition of the ash, but also the soil in which it is to be applied. For example, low soil pH increases the availability of cadmium (Cd). The organic matter content is the second most important factor in determining Cd availability. High levels of organic matter can reduce Cd availability. In addition, organic matter improves the quality of ash as a fertilizer due to its potential mineralization and N availability. It is therefore recommended to choose soils with a high organic matter content [
13].
Many studies have shown the positive effects of BA on soil and plants. Schönegger et al. [
14] found that the application of fly ash had a positive effect on the chemical and microbiological properties of the soil, while no detrimental effects were recorded. The addition of fly ash resulted in an increase in soil pH, indicating that alkaline fly ash (pH = 12.5) can replace lime to reduce soil acidity to a level suitable for agriculture. Stanek-Tarkowska et al. [
15] found that the addition of willow (
Salix viminalis L.) biomass ash (K
2O, 200 to 500 kg ha
−1) to spring and black soil resulted in an increase in micro-organisms. A total of 44 bacterial species from 5 genera were identified. Ondrasek et al. [
16] found that soil amendment with wood fly ash (0–10% w/w) resulted in a significant change in soil pHKCl (up to 9.1), an increase in salinity (>8.2-fold) and an increase in the content of most of the nutrients (up to 5.4-fold), but that the application of fly ash at a rate of more than 1.25% resulted in a reduction in the growth of the maize root and shoot, probably due to the effects of alkali stress. Boros-Lajszner et al. [
17] found that maize (
Zea mays L.) for energy purposes can be successfully grown in soil incorporated with ash from
Salix viminalis biomass. It was found that even higher doses of ash did not deteriorate the calorific properties of corn. An ash rate of 5–10 g kg
−1 soil dry weight did not impair either the growth or development of
Zea mays L. However, a higher rate (20 g kg
−1) of soil dry mass reduced the above-ground biomass of maize. It was also found that ash inhibited the activity of all analyzed soil enzymes, but increased soil pH and sorption capacity. Wang et al. [
18] found that doses of 1%, 2.5% and 5% fly ash can increase the biomass and chlorophyll content of Chinese cabbage. Buneviciene et al. [
19] found that fertilization with BA significantly increased grain and straw yields in spring barley. Ikeura et al. [
20] found that ash from burning tomato pellets can be an effective fertilizer for growing vegetables, because the P, K, Ca and Mg content of this pellet ash is higher than that obtained from burning wood biofuel pellets.
Despite the wealth of research, the use of BA in agriculture still raises many questions. The physical and chemical properties of ash can vary considerably depending on the form of the feedstock, the type of feedstock, the type of boiler and the firing temperature. Although biomass ash is used in agricultural and some forest soils, particularly in Europe, its use is limited by a number of barriers, including legal regulation, the cost of use, the variable quality of the ash and the uncertainty of the long-term effects on ecosystems [
21]. Whether BA can be used as fertilizer in agriculture must be assessed on a case-by-case basis, depending on the origin of the biomass [
22].
There is no single legal framework for the use of BA worldwide. Different countries have different legislation regulating the use of ash for fertilization. In Lithuania, only the use of wood biomass ash is defined. Some countries have not only maximum but also minimum concentrations for certain chemical elements. For example, Finland sets minimum concentrations for Ca, P and K in biomass ash used as fertilizer. The concentration of Ca in fly ash used in agriculture must be at least 10% and the total concentration of phosphorus and potassium must be at least 2% [
23].
As biomass feedstocks have a wide variety of characteristics, and the properties of the ash from the combustion of different feedstocks also vary considerably, the potential for ash utilization needs to be investigated on a case-by-case basis.
The authors have already carried out several studies supporting the suitability of multi-crop biomass for solid biofuel production [
24,
25,
26]. This paper presents the results of a study to evaluate the suitability of ash obtained from the burning of biomass pellets of multi-crop plants (field beans, maize and fibrous hemp grown in the same field) for plant fertilization.
The aim of this study was to establish the effect of burned multi-crop biomass pellet ash rates on faba bean germination and sprout development.