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International Journal of Advanced Engineering Technology E-ISSN 0976-3945 IJAET/Vol.III/ Issue II/April-June, 2012/71-74
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International Journal of Advanced Engineering Technology
E-ISSN 0976-3945
Research Article
RECYCLING OF INDUSTRIAL SLUDGE ALONG WITH MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE –VERMICOMPOSTING METHOD Dr.B.Hemalatha
Address for Correspondence *M.E (Env).,Ph.D, Head of the Department, Sree Sastha Institute of Engg & Technology, Chennai-Bangalore highways, Chembarambakkam, Chennai-600123 ABSTRACT Human activity generates considerable amount of waste. Depending upon the kind of activity the type of the waste differs. Solid waste and industrial sludges are the major waste generated from an urban center. The disposal of the solid waste becomes the major problem. This paper shows the safe disposal of the solid waste and industrial sludge’s by the process of vermicomposting. The wastes are converted in to nutrient rich organic manure by this process. The study was conducted to obtain the compost by using partially decomposed Municipal solid waste and industrial sludges. The earthworm species used for this process was Eudrillus euginea.Water was added to provide the necessary moisture content. In this process the partially decomposed municipal solid waste and industrial sludges were broken down and fragmented rapidly by earth worms, resulting in a stable less toxic material which has a high economic value as a good soil conditioner. The casting was obtained with in 40 days on the top surface, which was collected, sieved, dried, tested and used as natural fertilizer.
KEY WORDS: earthworms, decomposition, industrial sludge, solid waste INTRODUCTION • It is pollution free, with no odour or leachate With the fast development of housing colonies and an problems. increase of population and change in life styles have • Conversion of organic wastes into vermicompost witnessed increase of municipal solid waste by by worms is faster than any other composting several folds during the lasts few years.. This call for process. an urgent attention of municipal authorities and • In industries it is a cost effective and pollution common public to deal with this growing problem.. It abatement technology. is therefore necessary to improve the nutrient status • No polluting chemicals need to be used or of rural and urban wastes to reduce the pollution produced. load. Among the various possible wastes to improve • Less health hazards. the nutrient status of urban and rural wastes. The rich • Saving on subsidies to national economy. biomass can be converted into bio-energy in the form COMMON PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS of rich organic manure that can be utilized for Problem 1 meeting the energy needs of our crops(K. Fruit flies are seen around the bins causing Hashemimajd,et.al 2004). occasional nuisance. Earth worms like Eudrilles eugenae, Eisena foetida, Solution and Peronyx excavatus are known to feed voraciously Discourage them by always burying the waste and on organic waste of plant and animal origin and their not overloading. Keep a plastic sheet or piece of old excreta forms as suitable organic manure. Keeping carpet or sacking on the surface of the compost in the these points in view the municipal sold waste and the bin. If flies are still persistent move the bin to a industrial sludges are mixed in proper proportion to location where flies will not be bothersome. A few evolve the means for utilization of industrial waste friendly spiders near by will help to control fly (Anitha Subash, et.al, 2001). problems. Cover the bin with a tight lid or a moist VERMICOMPOSTING newspaper. Vermicomposting technolgy is the modern concept of Problem 2 harnessing an ecosystem for effective utilization of Worms will drown if their surroundings become too organic residues with the help of earthworms (Dr. wet. Sultan Ahmed Ismail, 2004). Earthworms are Solution creeping animals living in moist soils. Earthworms Periodic checking of drainage holes is necessary to play a key role in soil biology by serving as versatile make sure that they are not blocked. Drill more holes nature’s bio-reactor to effectively harness the if necessary. beneficial soil micro flora and destroy soil pathogens, Problem 3 thus converting organic wastes in to valuable Worms have been known to crawl out of the bedding products such as bio-fertilizer, biopesticides, and on to the sides and lid if conditions are wrong for vitamins, enzymes, antibiotics and pertinacious worm them. If the moisture level seems alright, the bedding bio-mass. Vermicomposting is the process of may be too acidic. This happens when we add a lot of converting organic waste into vermicompost through citrus peels and cutting down. the action of epigeic earthworm species (.N.B. Singh Solution et.al ,2003). Before the worms can digest the waste Adjust by adding a little garden lime and cutting partial decomposition is essential. Vermicompost is down on acidic wastes. the cast or excreta of epigeic earthworm species, Problem 4 which have been cultured on organic wastes. The most common problem is unpleasant, strong ADVANTAGES OF VERMICOMPOSTING odours, which are caused by lack of oxygen in the Solid waste management by composting using worms compost due to over loading with waste so that the has many advantages. IJAET/Vol.III/ Issue II/April-June, 2012/71-74
International Journal of Advanced Engineering Technology waste site around too long and the bin contents become too wet. Solution The solution is to stop adding waste until the worms and microorganisms have broken down what food is in there, and to gently stir up the entire contents to allow more air in. Problem 5 Worms are dying or trying to escape. Solution The causes may be 1. Too wet - so more bedding added. 2. Too dry - moisten bedding. 3. Bedding is used up - harvesting may be done. EARTH WORMS In agriculture practice, earthworms play a key role, as they improve the soil texture, enrich the soil, enrich the nutrients in the crops, act as powerful biopesticide and protect the useful micro flora of the soil. They eat soil and rock particles as grinding medium for waste organic residues. Soil excreted by the earthworms has a natural acidity/ alkalinity (pH) and contains balanced plant nutrients in available form. The earthworm is no doubt, one of the greatest forces of the nature in the continuous renewal and maintenance of the “all important top soil layer” upon which all life depends. Eudrillus eugeniae is the species used for vermicompsting. The excrement /castings of earthworms, which consist largely of digested soil and particles of organic matter is more chemically neutral than the surrounding soil(Gillian ELCOCK and Joise Martens,1995). MATERIALS AND METHODS FEED MATERIALS Sample Collection a) Waste The place collected for Municipal solid waste was Podanur area near Coimbatore City. b) Sludges Paper : The paper mill sludge was collected from Ballarpur Industrial Packaging Company Limited (Bipco) is located at the foot hills of Western ghats of Thekekkampatti village, Mettupalayam Taluk, Coimbatore District. Tannery: The tannery sludge was collected from EKM Industries in Erode. Distillery: Distillery Sludge was collected from Tarani Sugars and Distillery at Sankaran Koil. NATURE OF MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE AND SLUDGES The sample was tested for its composition Table1: Initial characteristics of Municipal Solid Waste
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Table2: Initial Characteristics of Sludges
EXPERIMENTAL SETUP
Fig1. Worm Bin Setup A laboratory scale of worm bin was made up of earthen material in the form of a rectangular box with size 43 CmΧ29CmΧ20Cm. The worm bin was provided with wire like holes at bottom for drainage and on periphery for better ventilation. The bin was placed in a steel stand and a tray was kept at the bottom of bin to collect the drained liquid. The bin was covered at top using wire mesh to prevent the entry of birds, rat’s etc. The experimental setup was placed in a cool dark place. Experimental procedure
Fig.2 Reactor Setup The worm bin was provided with the following layers • The basal layer of 3Cm thick pebbles followed by 3Cm thick layer of coarse sand to ensure proper drainage. • The third layer was filled with 3kg of partially decomposed municipal solid waste and 1.5 kg of paper sludge,3kg of partially decomposed municipal solid waste and 1.5 kg of tannery sludge and 3kg of partially decomposed IJAET/Vol.III/ Issue II/April-June, 2012/71-74
International Journal of Advanced Engineering Technology municipal solid waste and 1.5kg of distillery sludge for a thickness of 10Cm in each reactors. • Earthworms of about 60 numbers were inoculated into the bin. • Then a layer of green leaves was placed for a thickness of 2cm to supply the necessary nutrients to the compost. • Finally 2cm thick empty space was left at the top to collect the castings. In this process three bins were used. One was loaded with municipal solid waste and paper sludge (T.Kannadasan et.al ,2001), the second bin with municipal solid waste and tannery sludge and the third bin with municipal solid waste and distillery sludge. A Moisture Content of 40- 50 % was maintained. All the three bins were maintained with controlled parameters such as pH, Moisture Content and Temperature. The presence of Earthworms is not required for the destabilization stage. Hence the partial decomposition is done with the absence of earthworms. When the partially decomposed organic municipal Solid Waste along with the industrial sludges were subjected to earth worms, the simple compounds were readily degraded by the bacteria while the complex compounds were degraded by the enzymes produced by the earthworms and then degraded by the bacteria. The aerobic bacteria’s enhance the degradation process which is supplied by the earthworms from their aerobic gut. The earthworms take only about 5 to 10 % of the organic matter for its growth and the rest is excreted as vermicast. The castings were left on the top surface. The castings look like minuscule black pellets. The amount of worms needed depends on the amount municipal solid waste and the industrial sludge loaded. To add worms to the bin simply scatter them over the top. Worms are very sensitive to light and hence they find their way down in to the bedding. The moisture content level of 40 to 50% is maintained in the reactor throughout the process. New municipal solid wastes were put in to the fresh bedding only so the worms will move from the finished compost in search of new food. After about a week the mesh is removed under a birth light they burrow away from it. Now the finished compost is removed from the bin. The casts were sieved through a 2.5mm sieve to separate the cocoons and young ones, which can be introduced to fresh culture beds. The casts are then dried and it can be used as manure. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS The technical feasibility study of adopting vermicomposting was conducted to convert municipal solid waste and industrial sludges to biofertilizer. The studies were carried out to laboratory scale reactor of 10 kg capacity. Three reactors was loaded with appropriate proportion of Municipal Solid Waste and industrial sludges with earthworms. The industrial sludges used were 1) paper and pulp mill sludge 2)Tannery sludge 3) Distillery sludge(C. Garcia,et.al 1989). The study was conducted to determine the nutrients. The micronutrients include nitrogen, phosphorous, Potassium and the Macronutrients include Calcium, Magnesium, Carbon, Sulphates. IJAET/Vol.III/ Issue II/April-June, 2012/71-74
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Table3:Physical Properties Of Partially Decomposed Municipal Solid Waste With Sludges:
M.C-MOISTURE CONTENT, T-TEMPERATURE, E.C-ELECTRICAL CONDUCTIVITY
Table4: Chemical Properties of Partially Decomposed Municipal Solid Waste With Sludges
T.S-TOTAL SOILDS, V.S-VOLATILE SOILDS, A.C-ASH CONTENT
Table5: Micro and Macro Nutrients of Partially Decomposed Municipal Solid Waste and Vermicast
DISCUSSIONS The result from the study gives the following conclusions, • The Municipal solid waste, paper, tannery and distillery sludges can be treated by vermicomposting method.
International Journal of Advanced Engineering Technology • Effective diposal and reuse of waste and industrial sludges are possible. • This process can eliminate the odour problems. • The result shows that the micro and macronutrients of vermicast for municipal solid waste with industrial sludges are increased when compared with that of the partially decomposed waste. • The result also shows the increased worm population, with municipal solid waste and industrial sludges. • The processing time is less by using vermicomposting method. • The compost obtain is a good quality soil conditionar. • It is a cost effective, fast and eco-friendly method of waste disposal. REFERENCES 1.
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Anitha Subash, Parvatham. R and Deepa, K.K :Comparison of the leaves of minerals and heavy metals in VERMI COMPOST and NATURAL COMPOST from Tannery solid waste and this effects on selected plants: proceedings of ENVIRO 2001, PSG, Coimbatore.(2001) C. Garcia, T. Hernandez and F. Casta :The influence of Composting and Maturation Process on the HeavyMetal Extractability from Some Organic Waste, Biological Wastes: Vol 31, pg 291-301(1989). Dr. Sultan Ahmed Ismail : Vermitech- AN Indian Earthworm’s Eye View: Proceedings of State Level Workshop on Vermitechnology for Eco-friendly Waste Management, Kongunadu Arts and Science College, Coimbatore(2004. Emterio Iglesias Jimenez and Victor Perez Garcia :Evaluation of city refuse compost maturity : A Review: Biological wastes, Vol 27, pg 115-142(1988). Gillian ELCOCK and Joise Martens :Composting with Red Wiggler Worms: Published by City Farmer, Canada’s Office of Urban Agriculture(1995). K. Hashemimajd, M.K. Kalbasi, A. Golchin and H. Shariatmadari:Comparison of vermicompost and composts as patting media for growth of Tomatoes:Journal of plant nutrition, Vol. 27, No. 6, pp. 1107-1123.(2004) N.B. Singh, Dr. A.K. Khare, Dr. D.S. Bhargava, Dr. (Ms) S. Agarwal, Vermicomposting of Tomato Skin and Seed Waste: Indian Environmental Journal, pg : 3034.(2003)
IJAET/Vol.III/ Issue II/April-June, 2012/71-74
E-ISSN 0976-3945