Biochar Increases Diuron Sorption and Reduces the Potential Contamination of Subsurface Water with Diuron in a Sandy Soil

yy The herbicide diuron is widely used in agricultural areas in Brazil, whereas it has high potential for subsurface water contamination due to its physicochemical characteristics. Recent studies have demonstrated the potential of biochar as a sorbent and possible pesticide leaching mitigation. The objective of this study was to investigate the long-term effect of biochar application on the kinetics of sorption and desorption of diuron in a Cerrado Haplic Plinthosol. Samples were collected in an experiment conducted in the field in a randomized block design consisting of the combination of two levels of fertilizer application (0 and 300 kg ha(-1) of 5-25-15 formula of NPK fertilizers) and three doses of biochar (0, 16, and 32 Mg ha(-1)). The Freundlich isotherm accurately described the sorption of diuron in all treatments. Biochar application increased the sorption and reduced the desorption of diuron. This effect was attributed to the contribution of biochar to total organic carbon (C) and C in the humin fraction and to the increase in the reactivity of the humic acid and humin fractions, which was significantly highly correlated with the sorption coefficient (K-f). A positive correlation between the partition coefficient of organic C and K-f confirmed the importance of the soil organic compartment for the sorption of diuron. The higher diuron sorption and lower diuron desorption capacities of sandy soils after biochar application could reduce the potential risk of diuron leaching and contamination of subsurface water.