Co-composting of kitchen, soy and vegetable wastes

• Main Authors: Yu-Cheng Huang, 黃煜成
• Other Authors: James I.C. Chang
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2011
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/43609182071329222803

碩士 === 國立高雄第一科技大學 === 環境與安全衛生工程研究所 === 99 === Each year, Taiwan generates 750,000 tons of kitchen waste, 580,000 tons of soy residue and 700,000 tons of vegetable waste. Most of those wastes are either sent to incinerators or to landfills. Since all three types of wastes contain abundant organic matters, it is desired to convert them into useable compost by co-composting them together. This work is to study the feasibility of co-composting all three wastes. The wastes were first mixed based on the mixing ratios determined by the mixture experimental design method, and then were mixed with the bulking agent (rice husks) before they were co-compost in a 180-liter laboratory composter. The multivariate regression analysis method was used to develop empirical models of important results such as composting time, final pH values, highest temperatures, C/N ratios, etc. Experimental results showed that all waste mixtures could be co-composted in 11 days. Soy residue was a good feedstock for composting due to its higher nitrogen content. The higher the soy residue content in a mixture was, the faster the composting process proceed. Vegetable waste performed poorly during composting due to its high moisture content. Co-composting with kitchen waste or soy residue was definitely needed to improve the performance. The quadratic equations and the response surfaces developed in the work can be used as the guidance for future studies in the remediation of co-composting of kitchen, soy and vegetable wastes.