Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!iuvax!bionet!finujo.bitnet!TENHUNEN From: TENHUNEN@finujo.bitnet Newsgroups: bionet.technology.conversion Subject: VJ Composting System: (2) Quality; Separation Message-ID: <8904121956.AA29813@net.bio.net> Date: 10 Apr 89 14:14:00 GMT Sender: daemon@NET.BIO.NET Lines: 124 ************************************************************* *HEAT RECOVERY COMPOSTING PLANT IN AN INTEGRATED PRODUCTION* *OF COMPOST, EARTHWORMS, FISH BREED, GREENHOUSE, AND OUTDOOR* *CULTURES: a demonstration project of VJ-Komposteringssystem* *AJ, sponsored by EC. Part II: Compost quality; Separation* ************************************************************* 2.5 Separation of earthworms ------------------------ The vermicompost is a mixture of earthworms and compost, and the earthworms have to be separated prior to their further use. The earthworms will be separated from the cured com- post by means of chemical attractants (smelling substances). The compost, including the unhatched cocoons (egg-capsules), will be held in controlled optimum conditions during the weeks needed for the hatching of earthworms from the co- coons. The newly hatched earthworms can be separated from the compost by means of rotary screens. In full scale the yearly earthworm production should be about 46 tons. The separation methods are still under development, and co- operation exists with Andre Kretschmar (AFIDEL, France), who is well experienced with the improvement of the separation methods. 2.6 Compost products ---------------- A building for laboratory, personal and administration faci- lities, and for the processing and packing of the market products, will be erected. The compost will be sieved and mixed with peat and, if ne- cessary, with fertilizers prior to the packing and sale. A- nalyses and quality control will be carried out by Dansk Erhvervsgartnerforenings Laboratorium, Aarhus, which has an official authorization to carry out physical and chemical analyses for the declaration of soil conditioners and growth media. The heat consumption of the building has been calculated to be approximately 10 tons of oil equivalent per year; some 6 tons of oil equivalent per year will be gathered from the composting heat plan. The remaining 4 tons of oil equiva- lent will be produced by means of burning biogas produced in the biogas reactor at the water line. 2.7 Testing of compost products --------------------------- The greenhouse and outdoor trials will be run in close co-o- peration with Dansk Erhvervsgartnerforening (DEG) in Aarhus. 2.71 Greenhouse A greenhouse of 400 sq.m. will be erected for the demonst- ration trials, where the compost mixtures, made from the composts produced by windrow composting and vermiculture, will be tested. The size of the greenhouse has been chosen so that one gardener will be able to run the trials in the greenhouse as well as in the outdoor culture. The trials will mainly be focused on the production of toma- toes, cucumber, and paprika, but the cultivation of pot plants will also be tested. The annual use of compost-peat mixture in greenhouse production will be approximately 50 tons. The annual heat energy consumption in the greenhouse will be approximately 20 tons of oil equivalent. The composting heat plant is able to deliver heat energy for the greenhouse 16 tons of oil equivalent, and the remaining 4 tons of oil equivalent will be produced from biogas. Analyses and qua- lity control will be carried out in co-operation with Dansk Erhvervsgartnerforeningens Laboratorium, Aarhus. 2.72 Outdoor culture The cultivation of different outdoor vegetables on various compost mixtures will be tested in an area of approximately 2 hectares. Approximately 500 tons of compost-peat mixture will be used annually. Analyses and quality control of the plant products grown will be carried out in co-operation with Bioteknisk Institut, Kolding. 3 DESCRIPTION OF THE WATER LINE ============================= 3.1 Receipt of agricultural slurry ------------------------------ The slurry will be piped from a farm located in the vicinity (200 m away) of the plant. Most of the slurry will come from cows (bovine feces and urine). 3.2 The separator ------------- The separator will divide the slurry into two fractions: 1) The fiber fraction, with solids content of about 25 per- cent. It will be used for composting. 2) The liquid fraction, with solids content of about 2 per- cent, but still with a high percentage of biodegradable or- ganics. It will be treated in an anaerobic filter. The type of the separator will probably be an angular adjus- table screen with brushes on the screen part for cleaning. This separator type will be simple and reliable. (To be continued).