Chapter 5 Composting

Composting is a biological transformation of biodegradable waste into

water, carbon dioxide, energy and a composted matter. Composting
can help to reduce the volume of waste destined for landfill or
incineration. Composting yields a valuable product that can be used
for soil amendment and mulch and when properly processed and
cured, the compost improves soil nutrients, reduces erosion and help
suppress plant diseases.

5.1 Composting process principles

Composting takes place when these conditions exist :

i. Organic matter
ii. Suitable Microorganisms
iii. Sufficient nutrient
iv. with Oxygen (aerobic) / without oxygen (anaerobic) depending
on the types of microorganisms requirement for transformation
process.

Aerobic decomposition : bacteria 1

Organic matter + O2 + nutrients new cells + resistant organic
matter
+ CO2 + H2O + NH3 + SO4-
+ heat

Anaerobic decomposition : bacteria 2

Organic matter + H2O + nutrients new cells + resistant organic
matter
+ CO2 + CH4 + NH3 + H2S
+ heat

5.2 Parameters influencing composting

i. Particle size smaller particle is encouraged to increase

surface area for microbial activity and optimum temperature
to be maintained. However too small particle size will reduce
void size and hence oxygen viability for aerobic condition.
Hence ideal size is in the range of 1.25 7.5 cm.
ii. Moisture content this is required by microorganisms to
assimilate nutrients and increase colony size. Too little water
may affect microbial activity whereas too much water will
deplete oxygen concentration and inhibit temperature rise in
the pile. Hence ideal range is between 40 65 %.

iii. Temperature The rate of decomposition depends on

temperature. However different types of microorganism
require different temperature range as shown in table 14-4,
pg 676 of your textbook. Since composting process also
involves heat generation, thus it is important to control the
temperature during the process. This is why cooling is
performed on the compost pile by turning the compost
frequently as well as to aerate the compost while controlling
the temperature and microbial activity.

iv. pH the pH level indicates the Hydrogen ion concentration.

Microbial activity can be affected by pH less than 5.5 or rise
above 9. Hence ideally the pH level is best kept between 6.5
7.5.

v. Nutrient level- The important nutrients required for the

microbial activities are ; carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and
potassium. C : N ratio dominates the microbial activity. A high
C : N ratio slows the rate of aerobic decomposition. On the
other hand a high rate of decomposition will deplete oxygen
concentration and thereby turn to anaerobic conditions. This
is undesirable as foul smell is produced (due to the release
of H2S). Also high N concentration will lead to higher NH 3 is
produced which can be toxic to the microorganisms. Hence it
is usually acceptable if the range of C : N ratio is between 20
25 and higher C concentrations can be considered if high
quality of compost is required. Table 14-7 page 689, provides
the nominal range of C : N ratio for many types of
compostable materials.

vi. Time composting time can take within 6 months or up to 4

years. The time depends on the waste composition. Usually
protein, fats, lignin and cellulose will take longer time to
 break-down or decompose. Besides the decomposition
process, another important factor that affects timing for
completion is the curing process. The longer the curing
period will result in high quality compost.

Refer to page 687 for design considerations of aerobic composting

process.

5.3 Composting methods

When composting is the option chosen in dealing with solid

wastes, the composting operations usually consist of three basic
steps;
1) Preprocessing of the MSW
2) Decomposition of the organic fraction of the MSW
3) Preparation and marketing of the final compost product.

1) Preprocessing is necessary to do two important steps

i) separate compostable materials from those that cannot
decompose through the process of sorting and
ii) size reduction of the waste.
The sorting process can either be done manually or with the use of
devices such as screens (pg552), magnetic separators, eddy
current separators (pg565), ballistic separators, air classifiers
(pg559) or wet separators (pg561). The main purpose of size
reduction is to increase the size of available surface area for a
high efficiency decomposition process. Normally, hammer mills or
shear shredders are used that cuts the waste into smaller pieces
(pg547). It is noteworthy that the size of the waste should not be
too small to disallow aeration as discussed in section 5.2.

2) There are three methods used in composting process.

i) Windrow composting
ii) Aerated Static Pile Composting
iii) In-vessel composting systems

The windrow composting involve piling the waste into windrows of

about in the range of 6 to 7 or 8 to 10 high and 14 to 16 or 20 to
 25 wide respectively. After initial size reduction process, the
moisture content of the waste is adjusted to 50 60 % and
temperature maintained at around 55 C. During the degradation
process, the waste is regularly turned (and odour released) and
composting is expected to complete in 3 4 weeks followed by the
curing process (without turning) for another 3 - 4 weeks.

For static process (needs no frequent turning), the compost piles is

laid on perforated pipes equipped with blower and covered by a
layer of screened compost for insulation and odour control.

For in-vessel composting systems, as the name implies, the waste

is held inside a vessel cum reactor where the composting
reactions takes place under well controlled conditions. The system
can be divided under two major categories; plug-flow and dynamic
(agitated bed). In plug flow system, assuming ideal condition
prevails, the concentration remains the same at the same position
along the flow path at any point in time. On the other hand, for the
dynamic agitated system, the vessel can be said to resemble a
continuous stirred tank reactor.

Figure 14-2 shows the different types of composting methods.

A schematic flowchart Fig9-36 is shown on pg304 of the textbook

on the overall composting process.

5.4 Design and Economics

The design of composting facilities as mentioned earlier will depend

on these factors :
i) types of waste
ii) system selected
iii) environmental issues
iv) cost of implementation

Applications of composting are for ;

1) yard waste (grass, leaves, small tree branches, etc)
2) organic fraction of MSW ( food waste, thin plastics, papers, etc)
 3) partially processed Commingled MSW (waste which were not
separated before arriving at the processing site)
4) co-composting of the organic fraction of MSW with wastewater
sludge.
5) manure

The system selected will depend on the suitability of the composting

method/technique as described earlier, the system requirements
especially the microbes, oxygen supply, mechanical devices for
turning and mixing and other utilities requirement (read pg 303-311).
Besides other factors to be considered also depend on the amount of
product to be generated guided by the amount of waste to be
handled, followed by marketing of the product.

The siting of a composting facility will have to consider the

environmental issues arising such as bad odour management, public
health issues due to pathogens and heavy metal toxicity. The release
of odour during the composting process can be extremely severe
during the turning and mixing process and if not managed well can be
tormenting to the operators and upset the nearby residents. Hence
odour masking agents and enzymes must be used for the temporary
control of the odours.

The waste may contain pathogens which may exist if the conditions in
the system allows its survival. Hence control on the temperature
typically around 55 C and exposure time of between 15 to 20 days
are critical to ensure pathogen free compost.

Heavy metal toxicity may arise due to the emission of the dust and
particles during shredding of waste. Hence to avoid the production of
the dust, it is wise to separate the waste before arriving at the
composting facilities or alternatively, the method of co-composting of
waste water treatment plant sludges and organic fraction of MSW is
highly recommended to reduce the concentration and consequently
the potential toxicity.

The economics of composting will have to consider the capital cost

for establishing the facility and the cost of operation and
maintenance. However these costs can be greatly reduced when the
indirect economic benefits are considered such as savings on the
purchase of soil amendments use for streets and parks, revenues
from selling the compost, creation of new jobs within a community
and most importantly a knowledged nation is generated.