Clean burn for charcoal in a new design of kiln
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 22 มิ.ย. 2024
- After meeting Connor Lascelles, I decided to buy one of the kilns he recently designed, still somewhat prototype. I am intrigued by the clean burn technology and then the potential uses of resulting charcoal.
I'm still unclear in my mind about use of the term biochar. For me it's about charging the charcoal with microbes, hence my desire to add it in small quantities to our compost heaps, where it fills it's crystalline lattice structure with life.
As I understand it, the charcoal made with this burn process has a very open and crystalline structure, which enables more of other materials to be held inside.
If fresh charcoal like this is spread on the ground, initially it will absorb a lot of microbes and perhaps nutrients in some form. I reckon it needs charging first.
I have no commercial interest in Earthly Biochar. Connor and I don't agree about all of this.
See what you think!
00:00 Introduction by Connor Lascelles, one of the founders of Earthly Biochar
00:24 Connor explains how the kiln helps to remove excess carbon from the atmosphere, and then how the charcoal can be used as a soil amendment
00:58 The kiln, and how it fits together
01:32 Important tips on safety when using the kiln
02:00 A ‘tour’ of the kiln, with explanation of the components
02:26 The importance of the wind protector/flame concentrator for preventing smoke production
02:47 Reasons for not producing smoke - environmental
03:18 Using the chimney for cooking
03:32 ‘Feed stock’ to burn on the kiln, eg wood chip - what type to use and why, and how to prepare it for the kiln
05:05 Or using kindling (and how this helps with biodiversity)
05:31 Adding the feed stock, using wood chip to demonstrate, and getting it ready for for burning with firelighters
07:55 Connor demonstrates how to light it using a blow torch
10:05 Putting on the flame concentrator, and explanation of how it works in relation to air flow, and then how this produces charcoal with a clean burn and no escape of methane
13:39 The importance of using dry feed stock
14:41 A look at the fire, and the importance of an even burn for preventing smoke and methane
15:10 What to do if the kiln does start to produce smoke
15:34 How long the process takes, and ways to use the heat
16:43 A look at the size and colour of the flame, what this tells us and when to quench the flame
18:16 Using a temperature gun to see how far the burn has progressed downwards
19:26 Connor demonstrates how to quench the fire with water from a watering can
23:40 A look at the charcoal that has been created
24:57 How to empty the kiln after use
26:39 Ideas for how to enliven the charcoal by adding to a compost heap
27:03 How the charcoal can be used with kitchen compost caddies, to reduce the smell!
27:30 Connor explains how he came to design the kiln and start his business
Connor and his partner Lottie Hawkins run Earthly Biochar, who make and sell the kilns, and sell charcoal/biochar. www.earthlybiochar.com/
See my woodchip video for more ideas on using wood to improve our soils • Unlocking the Potentia...
Music for this video is from "Homeacres" by Jacqui Vincent, listen here, download for £1 jacquivincent.bandcamp.com/tr...
Filmed at Homeacres no dig garden 26th February by Nicola Smith, edited by Alessandro Vitale @SpicyMoustache
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Charles, you really should be proud of yourself. It is already honorable to grow organic food for a cleaner world. But you taught and keep teaching and inspiring THOUSANDS of people, just like me, to follow your way and techniques for a much greener world. Over the years, who knows how much impact people like you do in the crazy world we live in today. Thank you for that.
Thanks so much 💚
Stay Primal Well said! I wholeheartedly agree with you!!
Well done Connor and also to Charles for providing the opportunity and exposure.
Excellent idea and fascinating listening to Connor and so nice to see a young person with such passion for business and climate change all in one . Surely there’s a message there for all of us -great job.
Groovy idea, and I like that he's put so much thought into it. Even being able to cook on the top of it, which is instantly where my mind went, but then I am a scratch cook who has been slow cooking for decades. Somewhere to cook the food we're producing, whilst producing something to help grow the food lol
Very good demonstration and product, Connor. It's like a rocket mass heater with a very specific charcoal outcome design for low emissions and positive garden/food system support. Love it!
Excellent presentation by a very articulate presentor. Always good to learn new things thanks.
You have inspired me to not give up by using your no dig method. A hit and run accident left me disabled but the garden saved me.
And now you have inspired me! Happy gardening 😁
@@jez770 one day at a time. I'm happy to hear that and wish you happy gardening as well. Now to deal with this cold spring weather in zone 4 Canada.
Best wishes from Ireland 🇮🇪. Hope you have a beautiful harvest this growing year
@@markirish7599 the country my ancestors left in the late 1700s. Thank you ❤
Good on you Anita, I wish you well
You could put a nice big kettle of chips that need drying on the flame. That saves you the fuss with spreading them out in the sun - each batch dries the next.
Thank you for the most green and informative way of making a modern fire that isn’t counterproductive on our beautiful planet. ;)
💚
THANK YOU CONNOR !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!........ WE ARE THE CO-OWNERS OF MARSIAN BIOCHAR !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NICE TO MEET YOU AND GLAD WE ARE SAVING THE UNIVERSE TOGETHER !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Biochar is the future!! I'm listening to audiobook, "Burn," and am convinced it'll come close to our industrial revolution. There are myriads of uses for biochar. Thank you for giving this young man a platform.
Biochar has been a great addition to my gardens. It has not only increase production, but it helps retain moisture in the soil.
Great video. Thank you.
It's fantastic to see more and more young people focussing on a healthier environment. I for one would be happy to leave the fossil fuel era behind me for the sake of my children and their friends. We need many a more innovators like this. I am very impressed.
The youth of today!
Charles, this week we began our first 100m no dig row on a field previously tilled. Rolled out a 1m wide corrugated cardboard on a roll and tucked 1 m black opaque plastic under one side (to kill weeds and what was sown). We put 6” of compost over the card and will keep adding rows as we get the time. It’s over clay soil, so hopefully over time it’ll help the soil. We mowed the field before we started (twice). We left the mowed crop on the field so hopefully it’ll help the soil. So thankful for your resources. 🙂👍
Congratulations, and I wish you success with all that.
I'm concerned though about you putting black polythene under the compost? Hopefully biodegradable at least, I would never use black plastic except on the surface. Hope that helps.
A tip for that clay soil, add calcium! Calcium will break up the atoms that make clay impossible for roots to get into, because it knocks them off their place! It will help!
That was really interesting to watch, thank you. Listening to Connor talk about the flame height and colour made a lot of sense, as it’s exactly what I see happening in my wood box burner. I don’t know what they’re called in the UK but in Australia we have Coonara wood heaters. Like an open fire place but not open, haha. Anyway, we heat our homes with them, (they’re made of wrought iron). My boys take great delight smashing up the charcoal after a burn and then I put it in my compost. It was nice to hear that’s what Connor recommended, it seems I’m doing the right thing. The ash I throw around the base of my fruit trees or on pear and cherry slugs on my trees (kills them).
So much value from burning wood - and not just to heat the home! Thanks for sharing. Well done Connor! 👏👏
Amazing Suzanne, thanks for sharing this
Thanks for the video. To gasify wood you need 4 parts air (primary) to 1 part fuel and then another 1 part air (secondary) to 1 part gas to get a smokeless burn. Smoke is unburnt fuel. The "flaming pyrolysis zone" moves downward and heats the layer below it releasing the moisture by predrying the fuel below. Also called a TLUD. (Top Lid Up Draft). The great Dr Tom Reed is the pioneer and I have had many discussions with him. Simultaneous pyrolysis and gasification. We prefer the Exeter approach - you don't not have to worry about selecting a homogenous fuel regarding size and moisture etc although too fine wont work to the core of the pile.
Really interesting, thanks for sharing
This reminds me of many other products for other uses but I imagine they would never work as well, simply because they were designed to do something else. Connor has taken time to design this particular product for this very specific job and it clearly does it well.
Really interesting video, and very clear explanations from Connor. Thank you for sharing this information.
Genius! I was wanting to make biochar but the smoke is the problem both for the atmosphere and my neighbours!. Many thanks. I knew there had to be a solution.
You are correct Mr Dowding, the biochar needs charging before placing in the soil, The Weedy Gardener explains it in his biochar TH-cam channel. I do like the feature for cooking on this model 😁🌱☀️
Nice to hear
Amazing well done Connor and thank you for helping spread the word Charles 👏
Brilliant video on a topic I didn't know a lot about so thank you both for taking the time to make it together. Cheers!
Glad you enjoyed it Craig
Brilliant design! The burn of the smoke with the air draw reminds me of an afterburner on a fighter jet. Your science, your use of physics, chemistry, aerodynamics is completely sound!! Well done!!!
This was very well explained! It's helped me understand a bit more how I might make my own biochar, but in an airtight container. Thanks for the explanation.
This design has been around for 25 years that I know of. We used to build these gasifiers for efficient heating of water. The actual design was called a MIDGE Stove (Modified Inverted Downdraft Gasifier Experiment) It was conceived back on the old yahoo groups in one called Wastewatts 👍
I think this is actually a Top Lite Up Draft stove.
Thanks for this :)
An dhis is costing 700 smakers at the reduced price, now that is pretty spicy! When you can just make it in a barrel.
Shame though, would have bought it if it was reasonable.
@@joshmann7587 Barrels rust/rot, they are not readily available without expense to purchase, and building them over and over takes time, tools and ability to work with metal. I use to build NASCAR racecars, and I'm down with this product because it's made from stainless, regardless of the cost.
My wish is that it was barrel size. However, if I need to do a bigger burn using larger material, I plan to continue using the trench method.
@@cuznclive2236 ive seen people litterally just do it it in a steel drum, no building of anything apart from a few holes.
Theres no way the cost of time would come close to this product, yes looks nice, yea id like one but for that price yea no beauno.
I like this idea, good for back yard production, well done! 👍🦘
Man these young people just blow me away. He's so knowledgeable. He's obviously applied himself to learn and understand. I wish more young people would be like this young man. I love the idea!
Very interesting video thank you for the information and good luck for the future .
Connor, the way you control the oxygen supply at the two burn stages is genius.
Thank you!
Esperando los subtitulos en Español. Ya me imagino todo lo que aprenderé. Gracias 💚🇨🇱
Great video, what an intelligent young chap. Time to google ancient Amazonian farming techniques! I don’t understand how it removes carbon from the air - so I guess it’s also time to google bio char 🤷♂️ thank you for giving me excuses to learn more things, much appreciated🤙🏼🤙🏼
Good questions!! I am unsure :)
Good job Connor, you are an inspiration. Thank you Mr. Dowding for making this video.
You are very much wolcome
So great to see young thinkers helping people sequester carbon and create microbially enriched soil in their home gardens.
Thank you - that was really interesting!
Really glad you like it!
Great video, thanks for sharing.
Thank you
An excellent design, especially with the cooking top!
Thank you!
That is a great kiln! Love the cooking option.
Thank you!
Wonderful stuff, love it.
I like how transparent the video description is.
Thanks for reading 😀
This is exactly like the small gasifier stove I use to use whilst backpacking. I made it from old vegetable cans. The design was exactly like this. You can look gasifier stove up online if you want to make your own. The only difference is I was using it to heat water for food and to get a cleaner burn.
Wow! How cool is that!
Thanks for the info, genius
Great to meet Connor and know that yong people can be (hopefully), a profitable part of 'The Solution'. Brilliant young man.
Yep, I like his ethos and he presented this very well. He seems very professional and enthusiastic.
Very good design. Congrats!
Thank you!
Add 10% Biochar by volume into your compost to inoculate. Ideally you’ll want to crush it to a smaller size. Having a variable size from dust to rice is ideal. If you don’t first inoculate or charge the Biochar, it will absorb the nutrients into its pores like a sponge and rob nutrients from its surroundings until it is saturated. It must be charged properly to be used effectively before adding it to the garden.
Exactly.
I reckon 1% will suffice
@@CharlesDowding1nodig I would debate 1% for those of us that do not produce as much compost as you produce; not all of us have market gardens and an adequate supply of compostable material. Insomuch, char helps garden growers maintain similar microbial balance with fewer inputs than you by processing volume to achieve your results.
With respect.
Agree that charging (inoculation with beneficial microbes) is absolutely necessary. But crushing greatly reduces pores available for charging.
fantastic video mate. brilliant
Many thanks!
thank you
Sick one dude awesome, I remember seeing them make charcoal in Jamaica on the way to the blue mountains,smelt amazing.
oh wow!
That's great! Thanks!
Thank you Cami
That was an excellent presentation of an excellent idea, and beneficial in so many ways. Well done Connor, and well done Charles for allowing this young man to showcase his idea.
Glad you enjoyed it Clare
Very very interesting!
This was fantastic - absolutely riveting :) its a good thing I live downunder or I would have purchased one of his kilns! lol :) xxx
💚
This is a very tidy bit of gadgetry.
I burn wood in a barrel with a bottom - not open flow.
Air enters from up the side.
Much of the char wood falls through the burning grid, goes to the bottom and is smothered with ashes as they fall.
This way I get both ashes, and char.
These two are mixed and stored in a drum, and used as a soil amendment.
and Im a terror - smoke is produced. Simple is where I'm at.
As always your mileage may vary.
Pretty cool char kiln
Thankyou for this 😀
A very nice looking TLUD.
Consider using the fire to dry the next batch of fuel.
A stainless steel stockpot could be used to "bake" the woodchips, driving off the moisture.
There is the chance you will pyrolyze these chips, but that is simply more efficient.
yes, if not cooking on it - it would be ethical to use all that heat to pyrolysise a retort on top - yield will probably double [@CharlesDowding1nodig please pass this on to young Connor] rather than waste it
Well thought out product.
Appreciate it!
I noticed last year where previous wood fires had been in the field and beds built on top, the carrots outperformed noticeably 👍🏻
Interesting!
This is likely due to the minerals in the ash rather than to any small amount of char.
Smoke is not methane, it is unburned carbon, AKA soot. However, there are hydrocarbon gases produced when wood is heated rather than burned. This pyroligneous acid can be distilled and separated into a wide variety of hydrocarbons. It can be carcinogenic, so requires care. If not separated when making charcoal, it just burns.
Excellent video
Thanks!
You could also produce some tar by specifically producing wood gas, which would yield both charcoal for the garden, as well as tar which can be used in the garden as a low cost form of glue, while you could clean the wood gas and use it to cook in a different physical location, possibly making safer? It's a cool concept for sure!!
Thanks Marwin
That is great stuff. 👍
Thanks 👍 reminds me to check your channel :)
Awesome!
Awesome. I want one
Thank you!
Wow, awesome!
Thank you!
Respect from Africa 🇿🇦
Appreciation from UK:)
Thank you!!!Thank you!!!Thank you!!!Thank you!!!Thank you!!!Thank you!!!🙏
Thank you for watching!
Really interesting product but an eye-watering price 😱 Good luck, I hope it does well for the designer 👏👏👏
Indeed!
Cool idea
Thank you Tommy
I so enjoyed the "Full circle thinking" of this young man. Wonderful! I'll definitely be looking into adding biochar to my gardening efforts in the future!
The full circle thing. There is so much carbon put into the air, they say, with Cremation so some people want to be composted offered in the USA. It only takes 3 months. Problem is organic gardeners want safe compost. This is very disturbing to some. I should think so. Vermont, Colorado, Washington, Oregon, California etc. The world has gone crazy. Liz G. What do you think? Not many people know about this.
@@smas3256 I don't know about most people, but my grandmother told me that the best blueberry pickings were at the bottom of the hill from the cemetery LOL As long as we can look into removing contaminants I don't see why not. The dead themselves won't know anything. But, most people need a place to visit, I guess. I would be cool with my family visiting at a local garden tbh.
💜 Genius!!
Thank you!
Great video. Had you considered a collection tray for the ashy water for home made soap?
Yes I have, just could not find one to fit under and between the legs!
It’s a wonderful thing to see this young man share his expertise, enthusiasm and obvious care for our planet. Thank you 🕊
Indeed, it is motivational for me!
You might want to look into ways to activate the biochar for better and faster results.
We put it through the compost heaps 💚
best idea .👍👍
Hello, indeed a great video. I also want to design this equipment but a bit bigger. Can you please guide what should be the size of primary and secondary holes in relative terms .
So grateful
Sorry I don't know but links in the description will lead you to their website for contact details
Connor wins Science Fair for his school for sure.
😅
What an interesting vlog.
This makes my day, thank you!
It's a neat design. Good job and good luck to the business. I've had two ideas for possible future improvements:
1. Have a vertical bar on the outside, made of material that changes colour in response to temperature. This can serve as a visual indicator of how far it's gone.
2. How about closing the bottom vents when it's time to quench, as opposed to using water?
Thanks for the ideas, Connor will check
Also note that SS is shiny metal that reflects and makes temp gun inaccurate unless properly adjusted for emissivity. A black strip is ideal for digital temp gun shootings. A closed chip container placed inside wood heater also works to heat home and simultaneously make char without quenching. Less firewood required for heating too.
Excellent presentation. He solved all the issues I had with contemplating small-scale biochar production. Gosh…will this be available in the U.S.?
I think they ship to you, best mail connor@earthlybiochar.co.uk
Well played all round
Thank you!
I really like the kiln and I would like to get one to make charcoal of garden trimmings. (I found this video when I looked for one.)
I put a paint can over my woodgas burning camping stove to extinguish it. I suppose a drum that fits over the kiln will do the same.
Perhaps!
I've been adding bio char to my compost for several years now and my garden production has improved alot. My test bed of no bio char is not as productive..
That's quite a result Linda!
@@CharlesDowding1nodig i was quite surprised myself, using bio char goes hand in hand with no dig gardening..even works for raised beds and container growing!
Good video. How dry is dry for the wood chips? Even dry wood has some moisture in it, so was wondering if you've experimented to see the ideal % moisture in chips. Also, if made on a large scale, would be cool to use this to run a steam generator - do you know if this has been tried? That way you make good use of the heat byproduct.
Hi Dave and I don't know I'm afraid. Maybe Connor has tested moisture percentage and he might have some ideas about generating electricity!
Firewood is generally recommended to be at least below 15-20% moisture. No heat is available from the firebox until above 212F to evaporate all the water. 1 year minimum is usually required to bring split firewood to recommended moisture content but due to increased surface area per weight the small wood chips dry much faster. If you see water on the chips as they heat up you know they are not adequately dry. You are correct in that larger scale plants make use of what would otherwise be wasted heat energy.
You can make charcoal in an old can with a tight lid and holes in the base on a bonfire. Shovel some dirt to cover the holes when the flame changes. You can use any wood as the steam is driven off to start with.
Cool!
or put into your woodheater every night over winter and use the heat - one will accumulate a fair bit over the whole winter - can do bones, and greener materials too
Great video, couple of questions first one can you use a different sizes of wood to make into the charcoal like bigger chunks of wood and second question is, is this available to purchase?
Yes and yes, find details here www.earthlybiochar.com, their kiln is for small chips
FROM AUSTRALIA: Hallo, Charles! Thanks for introducing Connor Lascelles and his invention! I am just a little old lady living in Perth Australia, where we virtually have the poorest soil (no:-near lifeless water phobic sand!) . But I am passionate about growing organic vegetables while at the same time feed my soil, and do my bit to lessen carbon in our atmosphere.
Have you put to the test the results of biochar in your veggie patch? And what are your findings, please?
Question for Connor Lascelles: I understand that your aim is to burn your woodchips at the highest temperature possible without oxygen.
If I now make my own charcoal by burning my twigs and smaller branches or woodchips, in the backyard, and dousing my fire when charcoal is obtain before it becomes ashes
wont that charcoal, after I let it sit in a good organic tea (Comfrey tea, or worm tea etc.) to suck up all it can, be just the thing to put in our poor sandy soil? That way I not only help the soil to retain water, but indeed take minerals etc., down into the sandy soil to where it will be made available to the roots of my sweet vegetables?
Anyway, do you have an exporter and supplier in Australia, please?
Go you Elise!
I have heard about your poor soil around Perth, and I'm sure that no dig offers you the easiest way to improve it.
Please send your questions to Connor using this link.www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiExa2GivmDAxV6S0EAHULkBpwQFnoECBcQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.earthlybiochar.com%2Fproducts%2Fbiochar-kiln-make-biochar-at-home&usg=AOvVaw05okBxy8HK8nvy_QhZaXx-&opi=89978449
I made up a inferior version .Dug a hole placed a galvanised dustbin with a hole in the bottom supported on top two concrete blocks. Filled up with wood the same size ,started the fire from below using weed burner. When the flame is going strong put the dustbin lid on . Now only air can be fed from below . When the fire had been burning for a while fill the hole with soil and then wet the soil to make air tight. Leave for a few hours open the dustbin lid and wet the charcoal. The quality of the charcoal produced is okay.
#inventor
In the States, we have an outdoor firepit called the Solo Stove Bonfire. I fill it up with wood pellets and it burns exactly the same way. The only difference is that I've been letting it burn to ash. I have a large metal bucket that I fill with water and dump the contents into the bucket.
Take you ashes add some fat and you get soap. Woo hoo!
put out your bonfire when the flames are finished and you will get lots of biochar
Brilliant! Connor is so inspiring in his enthusiasm, gives us hope for a brighter future 🙏🏻
So agree!
Would pellet grill wood pellets be suitable feed stock?
I don't know for sure but some people use them
Real nice product if you ship to the us i may be interested.
Thank you!
Charles, what is the main difference in composting wood chips vs biochar? Is there any actual difference? Would be curious to hear your thoughts.
Biochar is amazingly porous and can host a lot of beneficial microorganisms, plus air and water within the soil. It acts similarly to those jelly balls you get sometimes with flower vases, retaining and slowly releasing water to the soil.
I'm sure I don't have the correct math, but it was similarly staggering when I heard it: a cubic inch of biochar has like a square mile of surface, due to its porousness (is that in the dictionary?), so all kinds of life and nutrients get captured and made available to the soil and plants.
Andres' excellent reply says why they are different and also the charcoal does not decompose, unlike woodchip. It continues in place, helping to regulate life processes
@@andresbianciotto thanks for the quick explanation, really helps get me started on getting a few ideas on researching/testing this in the garden.
I once looked up wood smoke chemicals and was surprised by all the nasty stuff it can have in it. I prefer the slow breakdown of wood chips over years that doesn't release chemicals into the air like fire. Making charcoal releases pollutants in short order. These are things the biochar religion doesn't know, or doesn't talk about.
@@kjrchannel1480 although that is the point of this clean burn - no smoke
Looked like a good idea since it doesn't require as much feedstock as a retort, until I saw the $1000 price tag. But for less than $100 you can build a retort, so this is out of the question.
Amazing demonstration. When will this processor go into commercial distribution?
I believe it is, ask Connor connor@earthlybiochar.com
Dear Mr. Dowding.
I'm in a bit of a bind. Can I mix straw with my compost to stretch it farther? Say about 20-80 or 30-70 the compost being the greater percentile. I don't quite have enough for a full bed. But I do have a bail of straw that was used to insolate the chicken shed all winter, thus exposing it to the elements.
Maybe! I would not if your climate is damp, as the straw will harbour slugs. In a dry climate, yes!
Very dry pine or fur needles are good kindling. I nearly burned down.... nevermind.
Thanks!
And good luck with the business.
Thank you! and hope you are all good!
Yeah, definitely needs to be charged first. Adding it to green compost is a great idea as then it’s also being populated with a microbial community as it’s being hydrated and charged with nutrients. One of its lesser know advantages is how it raises the soil’s CEC!
There is also evidence it can significantly suppress GHG emissions from soils.
Interesting!
This seems like a really good product but the price is so high. I’d rather spend that money on compost deliveries.
Interesting. It looks very much like a large Bushbuddy stove or Solo stove
Laughing...😄👍 In the blurb I think autocorrect has changed 'lattice' to 'lettuce'. Charcoal; so handy. X
Thanks Moira!!
Great Idea. I liked the design. It can be integrated to steam engine
I would love to give something like this a try, but my husband worried about PAHs in the soil. How can you tell if your biochar is safe or not?
Not sure Alison but I imagine that clean untreated wood must be ok
I am somewhat skeptical about the use of biochar in home gardens. I've found a few peer-reviewed studies that seem to indicate improvements in fairly barren soil but I haven't found anything (other than anecdotal reports) that indicates it will help in healthy soils. Is anyone aware of any objective studies on the subject?
Try it yourself and observe!
Charcoal has a vast surface area for microbes to live. Microbes make minerals and nutrients available for plants. Pretty straightforward.
Look to the Soil Food Web and Dr. Elain Ingham. Specifically Dr. Ingham, because she admits when she's wrong.
Moreover, char stores/houses biology, and nature looks to balance from imbalance; thus, char provides the ability to maintain balance from nature's swings to re-balance. Feed the soil as it fits the grow environment. With the presence of char, the soil will have the ability to maintain the network of bacteria, nematodes, fungi, arthropods, and protozoa necessary for the purpose.
This is where I agree with @Charles Dowding that 1% is enough when you don't need more. Just look to Ruth Stout or Masanobu Fukuoka or Charles Dowding for examples of those that likely did not need it, but may have realized a benefit if they did use it.
there are thousands of studies - generally it is beneficial as long as the wood is not contaminated and all the PAHs are burnt off. Easy test for this: rub char into your hands then wash in plain water - if they come clean the char is good - if you need to use soap them the volatiles were not all burnt off. The PAHs are not great for the soil.