Improvement of Chemical Properties of Nickel Mine Soil and Growth of Mucuna sp. With Additions Biochar Empty Sign of Palm Oil and CaCO3
Kadar Wahid, Rismaneswati and Muh Jayadi

Department of Soil Science, Agrotechnology Study Program, Faculty of Agriculture, Hasanuddin University, Makassar, Indonesia

Abstract

Laterite nickel is a metal mineral resulting from the chemical weathering process of ultramafic rock which results in the enrichment of elements Ni, Fe, Mn, and Co. Utilization of nickel can be done using an open mining system. The problems that arise in minig are the mixing of the soil layers, the soil solum becomes shallow, the dredging process makes the soil unstable, the soil texture and structure becomes poor, mixing and compaction with heavy equipment. Re-management of post-mining land in its recovery requires a long process and renewable innovation. One of them is by utilizing empty sign of palm oil (TKKS) to become biochar and Calcium Carbonate (CaCO3). Biochar is a porous wood charcoal substance, which called charcoal. Biochar is proven to be effective in increasing soil fertility because biochar is able to hold air, reduce soil acidity, and maintain carbon-nitrogen balance in the soil. To increase the effectiveness of using biochar, the addition of Calcium Carbonate (CaCO3) is carried out to increase the elements of Ca, Mg and also to make the availability of P and Mo, reducing Fe, Mn and Al poisoning. This reserach aims to determine the effect of oil palm empty sign (TKKS) and calcium carbonate (CaCO3) biochar on the chemical properties of nickel mining after-mining. The method used in this research was a randomized block design with 2 factor factorial (F2F). The first factor consists of the Biochar Factor as B with Levels of B1 = 2.5, B2 = 5, and B3 = 7.5% of soil weight. The second factor consists of calcite as K with a level of K1 = 1.5, K2 = 3, K3 = 4.5 tons / ha. The results of this research showed that the addition of biochar and calcium carbonate (CaCO3) had a very significant effect on plant height, number of leaves, plant growth and dry weight.

Keywords: Nickel, mining, biochar, CaCO3

Topic: Crop Production and Environment