Organic Waste Composting: A Resource Recovery Approach towards Sustainable Environment
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17501/26510251.2019.1203Keywords:
Composting, Resource Recovery, Waste Management, SustainabilityAbstract
Organic waste (including kitchen, garden/lawn, and agricultural waste) were subject
to composting through static pile and soil pit composting techniques to determine the best
method for managing the organic fraction of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW). These
conventional methods were used with some innovations (by using soil as seed compost and
aeration assembly) to increase the efficiency while keeping the process cost effective.
Quantitative parameter analysis of initial feedstocks such as weight, moisture content (MC)
and bulk density (BD) were measured before setting up each experiment. Temperature
variation was monitored on a daily basis and measurement of CO2 emission on weekly basis.
Moreover, mixing of feedstock for aeration and applying water for optimum moisture content
were also subject to weekly activities. Final compost from each experiment was analyzed
against physical and chemical parameters such as colour, MC, BD, water holding capacity, pH
and electrical conductivity. Aerobic soil pit showed better results among other composting
techniques with with BD of 530±0.01 kg/m3
, MC 37.40±0.26 %, water holding capacity
94±0.45 %, pH 8.00±0.10 and electrical conductivity 1.06±14.42 dS/m. Based on the
experiment’s results, there were two conclusions drawn, first the application of soil proved to
be very helpful as seed compost in a static pile showing good results. Secondly, soil pit
composting with modification of passive aeration also proved it as a potential technique to
manage organic waste.
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