HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Ashbolt, N. J. Articles by Line, M. A. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Ashbolt, N. J. Articles by Line, M. A. Agricola Articles by Ashbolt, N. J. Articles by Line, M. A.

A Bench-Scale System to Study the Composting of Organic Wastes¹

ABSTRACT

In an investigation of the composting of eucalypt bark, a bench-scale composter was designed to provide strict control over air composition, moisture content, temperature, and mixing. The composter consisted of six 4-L capacity gas-tight units of PVC plastic, each of which was provided with a mixing paddle coupled to a common drive. Natural temperature rise was simulated by having the units immersed in a water bath, with the temperature increased at rates consistent with those observed in large-scale compost heaps. This provided a comparatively inexpensive versatile system, with rates of CO₂, NH₃, CH₄, and H₂S production and O₂ consumption manually monitored by gas chromatography. The reproducibility of the system was as good as the best reported.

Key Words: eucalypt bark • fish wastes • gas chromatography • respiration system

¹ Supported by Australian Newsprint Mills, Boyer, Tasmania; Tasmanian Fisheries Development Authority; and the Reserve Bank of Australia.

² Graduate student and Lecturer in Soil Microbiology, respectively, Department of Agricultural Science, University of Tasmania, G.P.O. Box 252C, Hobart, Tasmania, 7001, Australia.

Received for publication July 27, 1981.