Scientometric analysis and scientific trends on biochar application as soil amendment

This manuscript presents a scientometric analysis on the studies performed on the application of biochar for soil amendment in order to investigate the research and developments in this field and to identify the existing gaps to provide recommendations for future studies. A total of 2982 bibliographic records were retrieved from the Web of Science (WoS) database using appropriate sets of keywords, and these were analyzed based on the criteria of authors, publishing journals, citations received, contributing countries, institution, and categories in research and development. Based on these data, progress of research was mapped to identify the scientific status, such as current scientific and technological trends as well as the knowledge gaps. The majority of scientific developments started in the early 2000′s and accelerated considerably after 2014. China and USA are the leading countries in the application of biochar for the treatment of soils. Among the active journals, “Plant and Soil” has received the highest number of citations. This study attempts for a comprehensive discussion and understanding on scientific advances as well as the progress made, especially in recent years.